Authentic Lessons for 21st Century Learning

What Do You Meme?

Mandy Green | Published: April 9th, 2021 by K20 Center

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What Do You Meme?

Memes can be powerful classroom tools, involving students' creativity and communication skills to relay a message or show understanding of a topic. This strategy asks students to create a visually engaging image with text to explain a concept. The meme can be used to communicate rules, define new vocabulary words, or identify a historical event. It can even be used as an icebreaker.

What Do You Meme?

Summary

With this strategy, students use memes to combine relevant text with visually engaging images. In doing so, they use their creativity and communication skills to relay a message or show understanding of a topic. Consider using this strategy to communicate class rules or new vocabulary words, to gauge understanding of a historical event, or to use as an icebreaker.

Procedure

  1. Select a meme generator, such as imgflip or Make a Meme.

  2. Show students a few examples of memes to communicate your expectations. (These can be memes you've created yourself or found online.)

  3. Based on your classroom's topic of study, ask each student to find an image online that represents their thinking related to the topic.

  4. Ask students to upload their images to the meme generator and add macro text.

  5. Have students share their memes or turn them in as directed.

Serano, S. (2018, February 20). ISTE. Retrieved July 27, 2020, from https://www.iste.org/explore/In-the-classroom/5-ways-to-use-memes-with-students