Introduction
The Change for People by People project was created as part of the 2023 LSE Festival in partnership with visual artist, Becci Kenning, Art in Transit. and all resources below have been adapted and shared free for all to use under Creative Commons license CC-BY-NC.
The project incorporates an interdisciplinary mix of art and design, visual literacy, history, citizenship, and PSHE. Originally created for Year 5 students but could be adapted for all students in KS2 and above.
Phase 1: What is activism? What are archives?
Use these resources to teach students about how archives can be used as inspiration for current campaigning.
Browse the images from the LSE Library Flickr collection The Women’s Library collection and complete the Analyse Archives handout to get a feel for how campaigns for suffrage in the UK used symbols, logos, and slogans to advocate for the right to vote.
Using the Logos and Symbols Handout, look closely at contemporary logos and symbols used by campaigns and activists to see how certain designs become recognizable and give clues to a campaign’s mission without using words.
Handouts: Analyse Archives, Logos and Symbols
Time to complete: 1-2 hours
Phase 2: What needs changing?
The handouts in this section can be used to encourage students to think about what issues matter to them. Use Handout 1 to brainstorm causes happening worldwide, nationwide, citywide, and communitywide that are important to the students and then use Handouts 2 and 3 to design campaign merchandise with logos and symbols (see above) that supports their issues.
The Powerpoint slides in this section can be used to explain how songs have been a part of protest and rebellion throughout history and provide both historical and contemporary examples. The final slide encourages students to have a discussion about what issues they think need to be stood up for. In the Change for People by People project, LSE Library worked with Community Composer, Tom Cook, who led a songwriting workshop for the students to turn their ideas into lyrics.
Handouts: Handout 1, Handout 2, Handout 3
Time to complete: 1-2 hours
Slides: Songs of Protest
Examples of songs composed by Community Composer Tom Cook and the Year 5 students at Christ Church Primary:
Video 1: Don't Fit In Stand Out
Video 2: Earth Comes First
Phase 3: Our Activism, Our Art
Using text-based artists (eg Bob and Roberta Smith) as examples, students can explore the impact of text in art and how it can deliver effective campaign messages.
Look at examples of Bob and Roberta Smith’s artwork, with particular attention to the use of colour, bold outlines, and text.
Students can then use the handout to compare and contrast artwork and make judgments on what designs are most impactful in delivering a message. Finally, students can draft their own version of text-based art. Checkout the video for a demonstration. It’s recommended that the next activity is creating a large-scale version of one of the designs.
Handout: Phase 3 handout
Video: Using Signs and Symbols in Protest Art
Time to complete: 1-2 hours
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