Unit 4 Final Image and Justification

This image is a slide from a Poetry PowerPoint that I use with my 9th grade students. We have usually covered simile by the time we get to poetry, but they forget fast!

My original image was awful. I was obviously in a rush to put something together, and I never took the time to go back and make it better. This would have been a perfect example for Tuft!=) I'm glad that this class is giving me an opportunity to take a look at my own work that I use in the classroom with my students. It does give it more meaning for me!

In my original image there was a lot of competition going on between my background (the color gradient) with the figure (the text) (102). This is something that my partner, Chatchada, and I agreed on. I changed the background to plain white. I played with a black background, but it still did not seem to work well with the figure. The white background with the black font provided a nice contrast and the white space helped chunk/organize the information on the slide(111). I also changed the font style (as recommended by my partner) to a sans serif font because the original font was hard to read.

I made the title (figure) stand out by making it a larger font than the rest of the text, and I tried to show depth and dimension with the title by adding some color and applying an outline and light shadow (270 and 272). I used the same two colors (black and blue) that are used throughout the slide to show unity. By using these techniques the figure should improve the information the learner selects (111).

I decided to utilize two different text colors for contrast and organization. I thought that keeping all the text black would be a bit boring. I decided to leave the definition or information that related back to the definition in black, and then I made the example and the explanation of the example in blue. I thought that by using the two colors in this way would not only brighten up the image but also help organize this information (111 and 267). I think the black will help the learner select the most important information and the lighter color (blue) will be the second piece the learner will select (the example) (102). The use of white space, as mentioned above, also helps to organize this information.

I deleted one of the examples from the slide that I thought was extraneous (102). It was a bit too much information for one slide, and it was a more difficult simile for 9th graders. I stuck to one example and attempted to explain it well.

I added clip art to this image/slide as well. Knowing my 9th grade students, I need to keep them engaged whenever/where ever I can. I looked for appropriate clip art and thought that these two pieces help to emphasize the example and give the students more of a concrete visual (102).

I definitely think that my revised image will be more effective with my students. I think that the contrast and use of the colors black, blue and white will help the learner select and organize the information on the slide. The clip art will help attract and control the students' attention and help them to visualize the example (266).