Screen to Story

Overview

Students use Canva to create a short, informative digital presentation that explains a technology topic and communicates key ideas to a familiar audience. They will plan, design, and refine slides, linking presentation choices to how audiences understand information.

Learning intentions

• Students will plan an informative presentation about a technology topic for a specific audience.
• Students will create and format slides in Canva using clear layouts, readable text, and simple visuals.
• Students will explain how their design choices help an audience understand key information.
• Students will revise their presentation for clarity and accuracy.

Success criteria

• I can create a Canva presentation with a title slide and 2–3 content slides.
• I can use short sentences and include at least one visual (photo, icon, diagram) that matches the information.
• I can check my work for spelling, punctuation, and readability before presenting.
• I can tell the class how my slide choices help the audience understand.

Curriculum links

• Technology — Students design and communicate ideas using digital tools, focusing on clarity for an audience.
• English EN2-CWT-02 — Students plan, create and revise written texts for informative purposes, using text features, sentence-level grammar, punctuation and word-level language for a target audience.
• English EN2-HANDW-02 — Students use digital technologies to create texts.
• English EN2-OLC-01 — Students communicate with a familiar audience by presenting and listening for understanding.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Hook. Teacher shows one example slide image from the Canva informative presentation deck and asks: “What makes this easy or hard to understand?” Students turn-and-talk, then share one idea.

2. 5–12 min · Model + success criteria. Teacher uses the Canva informative presentation deck to demonstrate a simple informative structure: title + 2 content slides + one closing statement, highlighting “short text, clear headings, matching image, readable font”. Students follow along and identify the text features.

3. 12–18 min · Choose topic + audience. Teacher introduces a Stage 2 technology topic menu shown on the Canva informative presentation deck (e.g., “How algorithms help everyday apps”, “Input and output devices”, “How robots sense and act”). Students choose individually or in pairs and decide a target audience (e.g., “Year 3 students” or “our class”).

4. 18–26 min · Planning worksheet. Teacher distributes the Canva planning and writing scaffold and guides students to complete:

• Title (topic + what it explains)
• 3 key points (one per slide)
• One image/visual idea per slide
• A 1-sentence closing statement Students write drafts using sentence starters provided on the worksheet.

5. 26–45 min · Create in Canva (teacher support). Teacher revisits the Canva informative presentation deck for step-by-step instructions: create presentation, choose a template, add title, add text boxes, insert images/icons, and align/space elements. Students build their presentation in Canva using their plan from the Canva planning and writing scaffold.

6. 45–52 min · Revise for clarity (micro-edit). Teacher uses the Canva informative presentation deck to remind students to check: spelling, punctuation at the end of sentences, font size, and whether each image matches the text. Students make quick edits to their slides, then do a “read-aloud test” to a partner.

7. 52–59 min · Share + audience feedback. Teacher calls for short “gallery walk” sharing: students present one slide at a time to their partner, then swap roles. They give one feedback using stems on the Canva informative presentation deck (e.g., “Your heading helps because…”, “I understood when you showed…”).

8. 59–60 min · Exit ticket. Students complete a one-sentence exit reflection on the Canva planning and writing scaffold: “One design choice that helped my audience understand was…”.

Resources

• the Canva informative presentation deck
• the Canva planning and writing scaffold
• Devices with Canva accounts (logged in and ready)
• Headphones (optional, for noise management)
• Printer access (optional for worksheet copies)
• Classroom projector/interactive display for modelling
• Canva template examples (pre-set folders if available)
• Timer for creating (5–10 minute check-ins)
• Student access to a small image/icon library (within Canva)

Assessment

• Formative: observe students during Canva build for appropriate use of text features and visual-to-text matching.
• Formative: check completed the Canva planning and writing scaffold planning before publishing slides.
• Summative (light touch): use exit reflection to confirm students can explain at least one design choice linked to audience understanding.

Differentiation

• Provide sentence starters and word bank on the Canva planning and writing scaffold (e.g., “This technology helps…”, “The input is…”, “The output is…”).
• Offer a “minimum viable slides” option (title + 2 content slides) for students needing support.
• Extension: students add a simple diagram-style visual (using Canva shapes) or include one extra detail fact and update their final slide accordingly.
• For EAL/SEN: allow pairing roles (one types, one selects visuals) and provide a read-aloud option during the micro-edit stage.