Increasingly, social media has been used to create positive social change. From hashtags to sharing positive posts and fundraising efforts, these movements build momentum through social media. Researching current trends and creating a strategy to promote a cause they believe in encourages students to be active citizens and to recognise the potential of using social media for positive outcomes.

Year level

7-10

Duration

60 minutes

Type

In class activity

Online learning

SEL Competencies

Self-management

Social awareness

Learning intention

Students understand how to use social media to create positive social change.

Key outcomes

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

  • understand the impact of social media trends

  • create a social change campaign.

Materials needed

  • Pen and paper

  • Device with internet access

Mapped to

Australian Curriculum: Health and Physical Education

  • Refine protective behaviours and evaluate community resources to seek help for themselves and others (AC9HP8P08)

  • Analyse factors that shape identities and evaluate how individuals influence the identities of others (AC9HP10P01)

  • Plan, justify and critique strategies to enhance their own and others’ health, safety, relationships and wellbeing (AC9HP10P10)

Australian Curriculum: General Capabilities

  • Personal and Social Capability:

    • Self-management

    • Social awareness

  • Ethical Understanding:

  • Understanding ethical concepts and perspectives

  • Digital Literacy:

  • Investigating

  • Creating and exchanging

  • Critical and Creative Thinking:

  • Inquiring

  • Generating

  • Reflecting

NSW PDHPE Syllabus

  • Investigates health practices, behaviours and resources to promote health, safety, wellbeing and physically active communities (PD4-7)

  • Applies and refines interpersonal skills to assist themselves and others to interact respectfully and promote inclusion in a variety of groups or contexts (PD4-10)

  • Plans, implements and critiques strategies to promote health, safety, wellbeing and participation in physical activity in their communities (PD5-7)

Victorian Curriculum: Health and Physical Education

  • Plan and use strategies and resources to enhance the health, safety and wellbeing of their communities (VCHPEP130)

  • Plan, implement and critique strategies to enhance the health, safety and wellbeing of their communities (VCHPEP149)

Show details

Activity 1

Research and applications: Positive social media

30 minutes

  1. Ask students to choose a positive social media story or trend – for example, the Instagram page ‘goodnews_movement’ or hashtag ‘#buyfromthebush’, or using social media to connect with family members or to communicate with friends overseas.

  2. Students create a poster or presentation explaining the campaign and why it was positive. Questions to answer include:

    • What is the story or trend?

    • What platform was it shared on and how did it grow momentum?

    • What was the reason for the trend or story?

    • Why did this come about?

    • What was the positive impact?

Activity 2

Individual activity: Social media to create social change

30 minutes

  1. Individually, ask students to identify a topic they are interested in (e.g. climate change, poverty, homelessness, racism, mental health, discrimination).

  2. For their chosen cause, ask students to design two social media posts to explain the topic. Students should write or draw these on paper. They might create a/an:

    • Instagram post

    • Twitter post

    • Facebook update

    • Snapchat filter.

  3. Students write a paragraph explaining why their posts could create positive social change.

  4. Students share their campaigns with each other.

Print

Free teaching resources emailed to you

Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest teaching resources on mental health and wellbeing.

To see how we use this information check out our Privacy policy.