Reimagine a Historical Event from Another Perspective

Develop empathy and critical thinking by exploring multiple perspectives in history.

Teaching Context:
Recommended for Year 9 to Year 10 students studying significant historical events such as revolutions, wars or civil movements.

Basic AI Prompt:
Tell the story of the French Revolution from the perspective of a peasant.

Enhanced AI Prompt:
Imagine you are a history writer helping a student explore different viewpoints. Rewrite a well known historical event from the perspective of a less powerful group, such as workers, children or prisoners. Keep it short and powerful, with emotional language and strong detail. Make it suitable for a Year 9 audience.

Spice it Up (Optional Extension):
Ask for the story in diary entry format or as a spoken monologue script.

Lesson Implementation:
Start the lesson with a shared reading or documentary clip about a key historical event. Use a discussion prompt such as “Whose voices are missing from this story?” Students choose an event and a new perspective (guided choices available). They input the AI prompt and receive a creative reimagining. In small groups, students read each other’s outputs and discuss the tone, emotions and biases.

Use a scaffold like a 'Viewpoint Reflection Sheet' to help them unpack perspective. As an extension, students can rewrite or perform their version as a monologue or diary entry. This task builds empathy, creativity and historical literacy. Tools like Google Docs or Flip can be used for writing or performance. The activity links well to source analysis and narrative writing outcomes.

Got ideas on different ways to use this prompt? Share them with the class in the comments below!

Also, if you liked this, you'll love the thousands of subject-specific prompts in our books section!