Graphic Design Hacks

tricks with online apps to make great graphics

 Description

Pixlr Editor x x x A robust browser photo editor, for all your editing needs. With Pixlr Editor you have full control over your
images including layers and effects.

Photopea x x Free online photo editor. Open and edit PSD, XCF, sketch - Photoshop, Gimp and Sketch files. Apply photo
effects and filters. Convert between PSD, Sketch and other formats. A perfect alternative to Photoshop or
Gimp.

Sumo Paint2 x x Try Online or download. Sumopaint - Funkiest painting app online. Unique Features and Tools. Sumopaint
filters, painting tools and image manipulators are the fastest, smoothest and most versatile tools online.

Spark Post x x x x Adobe Spark Post is a free online social media graphic design software that lets you add text, apply filters,
resize, crop, and rotate photos. Easily create flyers, posters, memes, and more.

Canva x x x Create beautiful designs with your team. Use Canva's drag-and-drop feature and layouts to design, share and
print business cards, logos, presentations and more. TUTORIAL HERE

Photoshop Fix x x With new Photoshop Fix on your iPhone or iPad (some features available on Android), you can liquify, heal,
lighten, color and adjust your images to perfection. Photoshop Mix lets you cut out and combine elements from
Photoshop Mix different images, blend layers and apply looks on your iPhone, iPad or Android device.

Photoshop x x x Basics: Crop, straighten, rotate, and flip your photos. Remove red-eye/pet-eye. Auto-Fix: A one-touch
adjustment for contrast, exposure, and white balance. Blemish removal: Remove spots, dirt, and dust from your
Express photos with one touch. Text tool: Add text.Upright Photo: Easily fix perspective distortion by choosing the auto
options. Corrections: Slide controls for clarity, contrast, exposure, highlights, shadows, temperature, tint, and
vibrance.

More applications here

I teach _______ why should I care about
graphics and what my slides, tweets, etc look
like?
Teachers forget to make their info visually
appealing.
Cognitive Load Theory
Educational psychologist, John Sweller, suggested that overloading the learners working memory with information may
actually hinder their learning. Information presented to the brain must be at a minimum during the learning process.

As we present information, we view it differently than our students do because we have prior knowledge of what we are
teaching. Students come to us with little or no background of the subject. When introducing new concepts, it’s imperative to
make a conscious effort to not bombard them with information. (video). Check out SketchNotes.

People have trouble reading and listening at the same time, thus making it useless to offer your information as full
sentences on the screen if you are going to repeat those sentences. It is not only uninteresting but also nearly impossible to
remember. Would your students read this entire slide? No, it has too much information on it.

Adding graphics (Sketchnotes) to your lesson will help students retain the information better because they will have a
mental picture of the lesson. In my class (10-12 graphic design), if a student is struggling with a test question, I can offer a
memory hint like, “remember when you saw the photo of railroad tracks on the board?” Often that sparks their ability to
recall information.
Why use graphic design in your class?
The human brain can process images 60,000 times faster
than text.

Visual aids have been found to improve learning by up to

400%*.

People retain 10% of what they hear, 35% from what they
see, and 65% from a combination of both.

So why does that matter? Think of how your students can

benefit from the images you use. Let’s look at some tips for
effective use of images in presentations.

*according to a study done by 3M Corporation

(note the graphic here)

What is graphic design?
Graphic design, also known as communication
design, is the art and practice of planning and
projecting ideas and experiences with visual and
textual content. The form of the communication
can be physical or virtual, and may include
images, words, or graphic forms.

Good graphic design sends a powerful message.

Bad graphic design can ruin your message.

 Limit the number of your fonts
Using more than one font gives contrast and gets attention.
Using too many fonts becomes a visual distraction and can look like a ransom note.
Pair fonts that complement each other. Be noticeably different but not extreme. (KISS)
 Dyslexic Students? Graphics can help!
Click here to download the font Lexia
Readable.

(Currently, this font isn’t available for Google

applications.) Try downloading Slacky

OpenDyslexic

Open-Dyslexic is an open sourced font

created to increase readability for readers
with dyslexia. This extension overrides all
fonts on web pages with the OpenDyslexic
font, and formats pages to be more easily
readable.
This is an example of Arial font.
Notice that the lower case b, d, p,
and q are mirror images of each
other which presents problems
for people with dyslexic
tendencies.
BeeLine Reader
BeeLine's color gradient makes reading
faster/easier for over 90% of people.

BeeLine uses a color gradient to guide

your eyes from the end of one line to the
beginning of the next. This seemingly
simple tweak makes reading substantially
easier and faster because it allows you to
transition between lines quickly and
effortlessly.
Consider your color choices
Find colors that complement each other or colors that harmonize. Adding color can
make important things POP off the page. Too much color can distract.
Image one is monochromatic. The
words and image have the same
importance.

Image two uses the color pink to give

the words importance. This gives our
student a place to go to.

Image three uses too many colors

and leaves us wondering where the
focus should be.

Not sure what colors

to use? Try the
Adobe Color site.
Alignment
Where you place content on your page is important.

Center and right alignment are difficult for students to read because the eye has no set
starting place. Use sparingly. (experiment with poetry example)

Left aligned paragraphs create a jagged right edge and can look sloppy.

Full justified paragraphs align on both sides and look uniform.

Be Organized (proximity matters)
Try not to clutter your designs. See example:
Put things that go together near each other
❏ Organized
❏ Easy to read
❏ Visually
appealing
Use White Space and Get Noticed
White space (aka negative space) is the portion of a page left unmarked. Negative space helps
organize a page. Pages with too much stuff on them seem dark and can be intimidating.
Remember the Cognitive Overload Theory. Aim for 50% white space.
How to mask text in Adobe Spark Post
Insert a background image.

Type your words. (use a thick font)

Choose shape. Select the third option. (white box with clear letters).

Now your image shows within your text.

Shameless plug for another training session. :-)

Be consistent
If you are creating graphics that you will use often, find a theme and stick with it.
Having visual consistency helps students identify what it is.

A friend of mine creates a weekly

Flipgrid to engage participants in
using the application.

Notice the visual consistency that

each graphic has.

If these graphics were used for a bell

ringer, would it be more appealing
than a plain Google Slide?
What does image consistency mean?
● Keep clip art with clip art and photos with photos. Never mix the two. Consider ELL kids.
● Avoid the cutesy cat clip art with an actual photo of a dog. We don’t see that in real life.
● Maintain consistency in sizes of subjects in presentation when using comparisons.
 Visual aids Textual Images
improve learning

by 400% Say it with a few words and use pictures to get a point across. The first is a text.
Most often the presenter will read each bulleted item, which is unnecessary and
boring.

Would you rather sit through 30 minutes of the first or the second examples?

Traditional words that a teacher will read Combine a few of the bulleted items and and image to make a bigger impact and
to their students. (Insert yawn here.) convey the concept
Free Image Resources
Unsplash Just because it’s on Google, does not
Pexels mean you can use it.
Canva

Pixabay
Try to practice copyright laws so that
your students will do it as well.
Spark Post

Free Images
Show students how to search
correctly
Identify what is wrong with this graphic.
Identify what is wrong with this graphic.

Would students be
excited to learn
about Abe if they
walk into your
room and THIS is
what they see?
Time to get busy and learn
about American History
with Mr. Skywalker.
Session Challenge
Use one of the applications listed above to create a graphic that you will use in your
classroom.

If you are on Twitter, please post your creation and

tag me @ghs_bradley, #teach4gr8ness, and
#graphicdesignhacks
If you are not on Twitter, please share your art with me. I want to share them with the
world. dawn.bradley@granburyisd.org

Please do not forget to complete the workshop survey. Your

feedback is appreciated.
Sources Sweller, John. “Cognitive Load During Problem Solving: Effects on Learning.”
Cognitive Science 12.2 (1988): 257-88. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Web.

“Cognitive Load Theory of Multimedia Learning (Sweller) | Learning Theories.”

Learning Theories RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2014.
<http://www.learning-theories.com/cognitive-load-theory-of-
multimedia-learning-sweller.html>.

“Cognitive Load Theory of Multimedia Learning (Sweller) | Learning Theories.”

Learning Theories RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 June 2014.
<http://www.learning-theories.com/cognitive-load-theory-of-
multimedia-learning-sweller.html>.

Williams, Robin. “The Non-Designers Handbook.”