1 - Start ~4 mins
You have spent time judging whether content is reliable, biased or shaped by an algorithm. Today the question shifts: not "can I trust this?" but "who is this made for, and why?"
By the end of the period you will have a shared four-field frame (theme, purpose, intended audience, techniques used) and will have used it on sample pieces of digital content, plus one you choose yourself.
2 - Examine and Discuss ~8 mins
Every piece of digital content is made for someone, for a reason. A sports highlight reel, a school notice, a product review and a charity campaign all look different because they are aiming at different people and trying to do different jobs.
From today, the class will use one shared frame with four fields. Keep these four words for the rest of the course:
- Theme: what the content is about (the subject or main idea)
- Purpose: why it was made (to inform, persuade, sell, entertain, warn, recruit, and so on)
- Intended audience: who it is really aimed at (age, interests, situation), not just "everyone online"
- Techniques used: the choices that try to reach that audience (music, captions, colours, urgency, faces, hashtags, calls to action)
Look at this short invented post together, shown as it might appear on a phone feed:
"Rainy-day study mix 🌧️📚 45 mins of lo-fi beats for Junior Cycle revision. Tag a mate who needs this. Free mix link in bio. #StudyTok #JC2026"
Posted by @FocusFuel, a small account that shares study tips and links out to free mixes.
With a partner, decide the four fields in your head: theme, purpose, intended audience, techniques. Be ready to share one field with the class.
3 - Hands-on: Content Teardown ~14 mins
Work in pairs on the shared frame: theme, purpose, intended audience, techniques used. Short phrases only, not full paragraphs. The class stays together piece by piece so everyone can defend one field if called on.
Piece A is labelled on screen. For Piece B, jot the four fields on paper or in your notes — that table is a layout guide only.
How we run this
- We look at Piece A together.
- In pairs, fill the four fields for A (about 2 minutes).
- One pair shares one field; we agree or adjust.
- Repeat for Piece B.
Piece B: school notice graphic — this one you do on paper.
A clean Canva-style graphic posted on the school app: green header, school crest, bold text "TY fundraising bake sale. Friday 12:40, main hall. Homemade only. All profits to the Nepal trip." Small print: "Nut-free table available. Volunteers sign up with Ms Byrne."
| Field | Your notes |
|---|---|
| Theme | |
| Purpose | |
| Intended audience | |
| Techniques used |
Only if you finish early
Ask for Extension C or D (climate reel / product review). Your teacher will show the full piece.
Star the field you feel least sure about on each piece you complete.
Before you finish, check: notes for two core pieces (A and B), each with the four fields filled, and at least one starred uncertainty you can explain. Extension pieces are a bonus, not required.
Piece A is in the activity below. Label it together first, then we show the model and see where we differ.
Piece A: take the post apart
4 - Your Turn ~6 mins
Pick one piece of digital content you actually use or have seen recently (a post, story, short video, game trailer, school update, sports clip, or product review). Do not pick anything private or unkind about a real person in the room.
If you cannot open a phone, pick one specific piece you remember well. Name it in one line, e.g. "the GAA championship trailer on RTÉ Player last weekend" or "the free-premium banner in [game you play]". Do not write only a category like "football videos".
Apply the same four-field frame on your own:
- Theme: what is it about?
- Purpose: why was it made?
- Intended audience: who is it really for?
- Techniques used: which choices try to reach that audience?
- The piece is named in one line (what it is and where it appeared)
- All four fields are filled in plain sentences
- One extra line: "It is really for ___ because ___"
- You can say your answer out loud in under thirty seconds if asked
5 - Make Sense ~3 mins
Pull the four fields back together. Content is not neutral wallpaper: someone chose a theme, a job for the piece to do, a target audience, and techniques to reach them.
Two things often change when you use the frame. First, purpose is rarely only one thing (help and sell can sit in the same post). Second, "everyone" is almost never the real audience; the techniques give the audience away.
You will reuse this same four-field frame later when you judge influencers, formats and your own work. Keep the four words: theme, purpose, intended audience, techniques.
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