TopicIdeas

Usethefollowingtopicideastodisplayyourchosentopic.Seelinkexamplesontheright.

Youmustpick1choiceofeachcategory,red,yellow,orgreenorcreateyourownprojectand
getitapproved.

RED
=Countsforyour1longer/challengingcategory

YELLOW
=Countsforyour1moderate/mediumcategory

GREEN=
Countsforyour1easy/shortercategory

BLANK=Couldcountforanycategorydependingonlevelofdifficulty

Infographics

Informationgraphics
or
infographics
aregraphic
visualrepresentationsof
information
,
data
or
knowledge
intendedtopresentcomplexinformation

quicklyandclearly.
Theycanimprovecognitionby
utilizinggraphicstoenhancethehumanvisual
systemsabilitytoseepatternsandtrends.The
processofcreatinginfographicscanbereferredto
as
datavisualization
,
informationdesign
,or
informationarchitecture
.

Infographics

Makeyourown:
Piktochart
Infogram
Venngage
Easely
VizualizeMe

Playingwith
Data

Createagraph,chart,orotherdesigntoshowdata,
statistics,ornumbersofanythingfromhistory.
Showthisinformationcreativelytoproveapointor
pointanaudiencetoatopic.Imaginewhatmight
havehappenedinhistoryifthedatawasdifferent?

Makeyourown:
Chartgo
MetaChart
Example

Recreate
AmericanArt

FindAmericanpaintings,sculptures,cartoons,
drawings,orphotographsandcomeupwith
creativewaysofrecreatingtheminamoremodern
form.Addawritingpiecethatanalyzestheoriginal
artanddescribesyourchoicesformodern
comparisons.

KanyetheRiveter
ArtintoLife
AmericanArt

ImaginedEmail
Threadsfrom
Famous

Imagineorsummarizeaconversationbetween
historicalfiguresthroughtheformatofemail.What
wouldGeorgeWashingtonsemailthreadtoKing

Historical
Figures

GeorgeVIlooklike?

Imaginary
Becomeaninterviewerandcreateanimagined
Interviewwitha dialoguebetweenyourselfandafamoushistorical
HistoricalFigure figure?Whatquestionswouldyouask?Whatmight
theirresponsesbe?Howwouldyouconnectthem
withourmodernworld?

KarlMarx
Socrates
GenghisKhan

Text
Conversation
withFamous
HistoricalFigure

Getoutyourphoneandsnapsomescreenshotsof
animaginedconversationbetweenhistoricalrivals
orlovers.Whatwoulditlooklikeifhistoricalfigures
couldtexteachother?

ThomasPaine
KingGeorge

GradeaPerson:
GivingGradesto
Historical
Figures

Giveagradetofamoushistoricalfigures,
movements,orevents.Whatcategorieswouldyou
gradeandwhy?Whatgradeswouldyougivethem
andwhy?Wasthereanepicfailure?

ReportCard

MakeaGame

Designaboardgame,pointsgame,oronlinegame BoardGame
forstudentstotakeinordertolearnabouta
GameGonzo
historicaleventorfamousfigure.

MakeaQuiz

Createaquiztotesttriviaorpersonality.What
historicalperioddoyoubelongin?WhatUS
Presidentareyoumostlike?Whathistoricalfigure
isyourdreamdate?

GIFs

Makeyourown

WhatHistorical
FigureAmI?

CreateaGIFofhistoricalrelevanceoramashupof Horse
thepastversusthepresent.

Makeyourown:
GIFmaker
IMGflip
MakeaGIF

Imagined
Monologues
fromHistorical
Art

Ifthatpaintingorsculpturecouldtalk,whatwouldit
say?Why?Comeupwithamonologuethatpiece
ofartmightgivetheviewerifitwerealive.

IfArtCouldTalk

OldDocuments
putintoModern
English

Therearesomereallytoughtounderstandold
documentsoutthere.Helpeveryoneoutbyputting
someofthoseoldpiecesofwritingintomodern

ReWordify
Declarationof
Independence

Englishorhavefunwithitandtranslateitinto
countrywesternslangorCaliforniasurfergirl.

MadeEasy

HistoricalPublic PublicSafetyAnnouncementsareusuallypretty
Safety
weird...Helpmakeoneforthepast.Whatwould
Announcements ThomasJeffersonwarnusagainstifhecould?
Makeavideo,picture/poster,orrecordsomeaudio
warningresidentsagainstthedangersofhistorical
times.

OldPSA
10FunnyPSA's

FindtheModern Everreadsomethingabouthistoryandwonder
Equivalentof
whatitsmoderndayequivalentmaybe?The
HistoricalStuff computeris1965stypewriter.Thetractoris1850s
cowandplow.Createinterestingand
thoughtprovokingcomparisonsforotherstonotice
howmuchthingshavechanged,aswellas
highlighthowlifewasforhistoricpeoples.

Inaccurate
Historical
Proverbsor
Quotes

Givemeliberty,orgivemedeath!Patrick
Henry

Everheardaproverb,quote,orpieceofadvice
fromafamoushistoricalfigure?Howdidthatpiece
ofadviceworkoutforthemintheend?Whatless
popularquotesandsuggestionsmaytheyhave
had?Imaginesomethatjustdidntwork.

Historically
PresidentObamahastwitter.IfTwitterwasaround
AccurateTweets in1904IamsureTheodoreRooseveltmayhave
aswell.Whatwouldhehavetweeted?Towho?For
whatreasons?
Cartoonsor
Drawings

Art

Historical
Biographies
Reimagined

Areyouartistic?Canyoudraw,paint,ormake
awesomeartsomehow?Makeussomething.We
canscanitanduploaditfortheworldtosee.Be
suretoincludeasectiondescribingyourpieces
historicalrelevance,yourinspiration,your
interpretation,andfactstohelppeopleunderstand
yourart.

CartoonExample

Artisabigconcept.Itisnotjustpaintings.Perhaps NativeAmerican
youhaveadifferentideaofsomething.Wecan
Painting
worktogethertomakehistoricallyrelevantart.

AbrahamLincolnhashundredsofdifferent
biographiesfromhundredsofauthors.Thefacts
rarelychange.Butwhatiftheydid?Firstyouhave
toknowthebiography,butthenwhatifyou

Sinbad

changedsomethingsaround?Whatwouldthat
figureslifelooklike?Wouldtheirchoicesand
actionshavechanged?Howandwhy?Yougetto
bethewriterwhorewriteshistory.
BadHistory
Poems

OCaptain,mycaptain...Therearesomegreat
poemsoutthere...andthentherearesomenotso
greatpoems.Sometimestheworsepoetrycanbe
themostfun.ImagineBenFranklinwrotebad
poetrywhiletinkeringwithimportantinventions.
Whatwouldhisbadpoetrylookandsoundlike?
Whatsubjectswoulditspeakto?

BadPoet

TestOut
Historicalor
Cultural
Practices

Evertrytochurnyourownbutter?Milkacow?
Lifeinthe1800s
Traversethroughthedarkusingonlyacandle?

Havetocurlyourhaireverysingleday?Even
thoughtheysoundsomewhatridiculousin2015,
thesewereeverydayoccurrencesforhistorical
peoples.Whydontyoutryafew?Writeaboutyour
experience.Whatdidyoulearn?Didanythingfunny
happenduringyourexperiment?Doyouhavea
newfoundappreciationforyourmodernlife?

WhatIf?

Oneofthebiggestquestionspeopleask
themselvesiswhatif?WhatifAmericahadlost
WWII?WhatifMLKJr.hadneverexisted?Whatif
questionsgettotheheartofchangeandhelpus
lookatthetrajectoryofhistoryafterkeyevents.If
youcancriticallythinkaboutwhattheworldmay
looklikewithchangesmadetothepast,perhaps
youcanmoreaccuratelypredictthefuture?Write
abouteventsthathavebeenchanged.What
changedhow,why,where,when,andmost
importantly,whatdoesitallmean?

19Different
Histories

ThisDayin
History

Eachdaywecometoschoolitseemslikeany
otheraverageday,butinrealityatsomepointin
thepastthiswasanimportantdayforsome
reason.Whatcool,interesting,orimportantthings
havehappenedduringthisdayinhistory?Whyare
theyrelevanttoyou?

ThisDayinHistory

FakeNewspaper Mostofthetime,thenewspapertellsusthetruth.
Article
However,theydocertainlymakemistakesfrom
timetotime.Whatwouldthenewspaperlooklikeif
itwerecompletelyfake?Imagineyourselfasa
comedicwriter.Yourgoalistomakeeverytopicof

FakeArticle

Template

thedayfunnyforthereaderwhilealsohelping
themtogetatleastsomeofthenews.Yourethe
DailyShowbutinwriting.Workwithateamto
createaheadlinenewspaperpage.
FacebookPosts

ThankstoMarkZuckerberg,millionsofpeople

sharetheirlivesonFacebook.Whatwouldfamous
historicalfiguresFacebookslooklike?Whowould
theybefriendswith?Whatwouldtheirpictures,
newsfeed,aboutme,andmorelooklikeandwhy?

MyspacePosts

OhMyspace...youresoold...butthenagainsois

GeorgeWashington.IfGeorgehadagarageband
withtheotherfoundingfathers,theywould
definitelyhaveaMyspace.Whatwouldtheirband
looklike?Whatwouldtheirmusicsoundlike?Their
albumcover?Theirlyrics?Makethemafake
MyspacepagesotheycaninvitetheAmerican
peopletotheirnextshow.

Short,Imagined
Monologues

Weallhaveinnermonologues.Thatdiscussion

youhavewithyourselfandyourthoughtsinyour
mindoftennevergetssaidoutloud.Whatifitwas?
Butwedonothavetostopthere!Whatifwegave
innermonologuestothingsthatdontnormallyhave
thoughtssuchasbrooms,horses,orkites.What
wouldPaulRevereshorsebesayingtoitselfonhis
nightrideintoBoston?Thisisyourchancetouse
somehumorandimaginationtogivethesepeople
andthingsavoice.

LetterstoPeople
orEntitiesWho
areUnlikelyto
Respond

Sure,youcanwritealettertoAbrahamLincoln.
However,heiscurrentlyunavailabletorespond.
Theseareletterstopeopleorthingswhoarereally
unlikelytorespond.Whatwouldyouaskthem?
Whatwouldyousaytothemandwhy?Wouldyou
helpthemtryandworkoutsomeissuesfromthe
pastorperhapsberatethemfortheirbehavior?
Nowsyourchancetogetevenwiththem,evenif
theydontrespond.

IfHistorical
YoumaybemayorofPacificBeachsInnOut,but
Figureschecked FrankSinatrawasdefinitelythekingofLasVegas.
inon4Square
Ifhistoricalfigureshad4Square,whatwouldbe
theirtitles?Wouldtherebeconflicttocontrol
certainplaces?Whowinsandloses?Makeafake
checkinandbadgestoassigntoyourfavorite

historicalfiguresandplaces.
OddHistory
Facts

Memes

TheRomanssometimesusedhumanurineas
25StrangeHistory
mouthwash.Weird,right?Therewassomeweird
Facts
stuffhappeninginoldtimes.Yourjobistoenlighten
theworldwithyourknowledge.Findustheodd
facts!
Amemeis
ahumorousimage,video,pieceoftext,
etc.thatiscopied(oftenwithslightvariations)and
spreadrapidlybyInternetusers.

HistoricalComic Enjoycomicbooks?Whynotimmortalizeyour
Strips
favoritehistoricaleventorfiguresinacomicstrip?

Meme

WW1Comic

Political
Cartoons

Politicalcartoonshavebeenthebackboneofsatire
sincepeoplecoulddrawtomakefunoftheir
politicalleaders.Therearenumerousexamples
onlineandmoreaddedeachday.Beacontributor,
sketchacartoonthatshowsyourviewsandstance
aboutahistoricalormodernpoliticaltopicor
personality.

Example1
Example2
Example3
AnalyzingPolitical
Cartoons
DrawingYourOwn

Obituaries

Anobituaryisgrandsummaryorapersonslife
usuallylistedinanewspapertoannouncethe
personhaspassedaway.Someobituariescan
leantowardstellingaversionofthetruththat
makesthedeceasedsound...betterthantheymay
havebeen.Writeanobituaryforafamous
historicalfigureorevenahistoricalevent.What
weretheirsuccesses?Theirfailures?Fromwhat
perspectivewillyoubewriting?

ThomasJefferson
Martha
Washington
KimJongIl

IfWarwasa
Game

Warisconflictandsomemayarguethatfootballis
astyleofconflictonthefield.Imaginetheteams
arecountriesorrivalriesfromhistory?Whoisthe
quarterback,thecoach,thedefense,offense?
Whatarethestrengths,weaknesses,andtalents?
Whowinsandloses?Whathappensduringthe
game?

MakeaVideo

Gotacameraandexperiencemakingshortvideos?
Putittousebymakingaquickvideodetailinga

famoushistoricaleventorspeech.

Createa
MiniLesson
HistoricalRaps
orRapBattles
Motivational
Posters

Teachtheworld.Designaminilessontohelp
otherslearn!

Areyouarapper?Writearap,composeabeatand EpicRapBattles
recordyourmusic.Wecanuploadarapdescribing ofHistory
ahistoricalevent.

Doyouneedmotivation?Makeamotivationalor
demotivationalposterusinghistoryasyour
subject.Showtherightorwrongwaytolive.

Example1
Example2

MusingsorBlog Liketoblog?Havebigthoughts?Createablog
25BestHistory
Posts
postandwritedownyourthoughtsandexplainyour Blogs
bigideasintheformofablogpost.
100HistoryBlog
Sites

Match.comor
EHarmony
Profilesofthe
Historically
Famous

Somesayonlinedatingisaccountingformorethan
33%ofmoderndatesandmarriages.Ifhistorical
figureshadonlinedating,whatwouldtheirsites
looklike?Theirinterests?Theiridealmatesor
matches?Why?

Nonessential
Mnemonics

Amnemon
icdevices
aretechniquesapersoncan

usetohelpthemimprovetheirabilitytoremember
something.Inotherwords,itsamemorytechnique
tohelpyourbrainbetterencodeandrecall
importantinformation.Itsasimpleshortcutthat
helpsusassociatetheinformationwewantto
rememberwithanimage,asentence,oraword.
Makingamnemonicnonessentialmeansthatyou
havecreatedamnemonicforsomethingsillyor
unimportant.Imaginetryingtorememberalistofall
thecountriesinSouthAmerica?Orperhapsallthe
flagsinMr.Jacobsroom?

ProductReviews Therehavebeenmanyimportantinventionsand
productsthroughouthistory.Writeareviewforone
asifyoulivedinthattimeperiodandusedthe
product.
Literatureor
FamousSpeech
Reviews

Everheardorreadafamousspeech?Whatdidyou Top100American
thinkofit?Imagineyourselfasaprofessional
Speeches
speechcritic,andmakeityourjobtocritically

analyzetheirstyle,tone,choiceofwords,target
audienceandoverallsuccessorfailure.

Lists

WouldYou
Rather
Hypotheticals

Areyoualistmaker?Makesomelists.Choose
somethinginterestingorentertainingfromhistory
andmakeacompleteandcomprehensivelistofit.
Addpicturesorothermediaifyoulike?Draw
attentiontowhyyoumadethelistandwhyitis
important.

Wouldyouratherusesandpaperastoiletpaperor
hotsauceaseyedrops?Thisisawouldyourather
question.Nowimagineyourselfinahistorical
settingorcomparepastfrompresent.Makeasetof
wouldyourathers,completewithpicturesandgive
percentagesofstudentchoicesoranswers?

LessonsWeStill InvadeRussiaduringthewinter?Alongground
HaventLearned warinAfghanistan?Somelessonsweseemto
neverlearn.Describesomeitemsfromhistorythat
continuetorepeatthemselvesandexplainwhywe
haveyettolearnourlessons.
LesserKnown
Timelines

Historical
Cooking
Recipesfromthe
Past

Timelinesaregreatforshowingeventsinorderand 10FreeTimeline
canhelpusmakesenseoftheprogressionof
Builders
eventsthroughouthistory.Mosttimelineshowever,
onlycoverimportantissuesandevents.What
aboutthingsthatarenotsoimportantbutarestill
funorinteresting?Createatimelineaboutthe
historyofgraffitiart,orcows,oralienhoaxes.
Wehaveasomewhatmodernmenuthesedays
andasSouthernCaliforniansweeatavarietyof
foods.Butwhatabouthistoricaldishes?Whatdid
Americanseatin1830?Whatwasthetraditional
Thanksgivingmealin1902?Researchit,writea
recipe,makesomefoodanddocumentyour
thoughtsandreactions.Useourafterschool
cookingclubforhelp!

TheFact
Becomeourexpertfactcheckerandquestion
CheckerQ&A answerer.OpenupaQuestionandAnswerblog
Responsesfrom andtakequestionsfromthepublic.Answerthem!
aStudentExpert

Historical
Whenwerebluejeansinvented?Howtightwere

FashionTrends corsets?Researchhistoricalfashionandbecomea
fashioncritic,magazineeditor,ordesigner.Or
combinehistoricalfashionsenseandmodern
designtomakenewsketchesanddesignstoday.

Thenvs.Now
Articles

Comparepastandpresent.Writeanarticle
detailingfactsandcomparingthem.

WW(X)D?
WhatWould
(BLANK)Do?

WhatWouldBeyonceDo?
WhatWouldGeorgeWashingtonDo?
WhatWouldStalinDo?

MakeupsomeWWquestionsandthenexplain
whythatfigurewoulddosomethinggivena
situation?Whathistoricaleventshelpedyouto
figurethisout?

ArrestReports

Canyouthinkofahistoricalfigurethathasfought
thelaw?Writeanarrestreportforafamous
historicalfigurewhohascommittedafakecrime.
Whatweretheyprotestingwiththeiraction?Why?
Whatwoulditsayonthereport?Whywasthe
governmentagainstthisaction?

Propaganda
Posters

Thegovernmentandmediahasdesignedposters,
artandotherformsofmediatoinfluencetheminds
andactionsofthepeople.Createapropaganda
posterthattargetsanaudienceandtriestoshape
theirminds.

TheIdiotsGuide HaveyoueverreadTheIdiotsGuideto

to(Blank)
_______?Createahelpfulguidetoacomplicated
ordetailedissue,event,orpersonforother
students.
Historical
Horoscope

Imagineyouareahoroscopewriter.Pickadozen

famoushistoricalfigures,oneforeachsign...writea
horoscopeforthatmonthandconnectitwiththat
historicalfigurespast.