Topic – a semi-biographical story about the notable Bushranger, Matthew Brady. 

(Artist unknown, ca. 1826)

Platform – Canva Website

Rationale:

The digital story I am proposing is a semi-biography of the Australian bushranger, Matthew Brady, including factual information,  as well as fictional diary entries that will provide an engaging experience for students. I have chosen Matthew Brady as the focus of my story because I have conducted extensive research into his life, as he is my ancestor, and I have a personal and deep interest in his story.

​The digital story is aimed at a Stage 3 audience, with links to the History unit titled The Australian Colonies (NSW Education Standards Authority [NESA], n.d.). This unit explores colonial Australia in the 1800s, and though it does not specify bushrangers, students are required to investigate the lives of people in Australia’s colonial past. Australian bushrangers played an integral part in the development of colonial life and the significant events of the time. The idea is that students will engage with the example digital story and strive to create their own biography and journal for someone of the colonial era.  

​I have chosen to use Canva as my platform as I have some basic knowledge of the program already and would like to use this opportunity to solidify my application of this in a classroom setting. The platform is user-friendly with built in features which will make developing my digital story simple and provide students with an example of how they may use features in their own creation of digital stories. The NSW Department of Education has approved Canva as a platform, (2025), making it easy to integrate into the classroom with limited restrictions from administration.

References

Artist unknown. (ca. 1826). Sketch of James McCabe, Matthew Brady, and Patrick Bryant [Sketch]. State Library of Tasmania. https://www.utas.edu.au/library/companion_to_tasmanian_history/B/Matthew%20Brady.htm

NSW Education Standards Authority. (n.d.). History K–10: Stage 3 – The Australian Colonies. NSW Government. https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/curriculum/hsie/hsie-curriculum-resources-k-12/hsie-k-6-curriculum-resources/the-australian-colonies

NSW Government: Education. (2025). Technology 4 learning: Canva in education.  https://t4l.schools.nsw.gov.au/resources/professional-learning-resources/canva-for-education.html