Desktop Publishing

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Desktop Publishing

• The Art of Sneaky Teaching with Print Projects

Presented by Jerry Smith Office Technology
Instructor Breathitt Area Tech Center
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Keep It Real

• Even the best software tools mean nothing without
  a distinct purpose
• Learning to use the software is secondary
• The best way to achieve a thorough understanding
  of Desktop Publishing is with good projects

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Promotions

• Treat DP as a print promotions class
• Good promotions focus on specific markets
• Good projects force the students to consider the
  audience!

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Presentation Road Map

• The tools I use
• Task List
• Projects
• Flyers
• Brochures
• Magazine Covers/Ads
• Banners
• Posters
• Calendars

• Childrens Book
• Newsletters
• CD Labels/Covers
• Letterheads
• Order Forms/Invoices

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The Tools I Use

• Adobe Indesign CS
• Indesign CS Classroom in a Book
• Adobe Photoshop
• Digital Camera
• Scanner
• MS Word
• Google/Yahoo Images (Internet)
• Imagination!

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A Word on Microsoft Publisher

• Pros
• Lots of professional looking templates
• Interface is very familiar (Microsoft Created)
• Slim learning curve
• Cons
• Underpowered
• Home-Centric
• Poor images editing/manipulation
• Cookie-cutter documents

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Flyers

• Students get their feet wet
• Most basic tools can be learned
• Small in size and scope to help build confidence
• Extremely customizable

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Example Flyers

• Yard Sale (frames)
• Lost Dog (graphic frames)
• House for Sale (5 ws)
• Grand Opening (shapes)
• Dr./Dentist/Laywer Office

• Local Festivals (drawing tools)
• Most Wanted (digital camera)
• Concert Promotion
• Wrestling Promotion

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Brochures

• Advanced layout techniques
• Can contain lots of content
• Students do the writing
• More difficult

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Example Brochures

• Company
• Theme Resort
• Career
• Using the online Occupational Outlook Handbook

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Magazine Covers/Ads

• Extremely market (audience)-centric
• Fictitious Magazine Cover targets students unique
  interests
• Forces students to put a great deal of
  information into a small space
• Ads force students to consider interests of
  target markets and not just themselves

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Example Magazine Covers/Ads

• Covers
• Fictions Theme Magazine

• Ads
• Cola Marketing
• Teens
• Baby boomers
• Stickman action figures
• Students draw poseable stickmen using drawing
  tools
• Ad is meant for boys and girls

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Banners

• Great way to foster community involvement
• Local Festivals
• Kiwanis
• Parades
• Charity Events
• Requires large format printer (or plotter)

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Posters

• Also fosters community involvement
• Power Verbs poster for local grade schools
• Advertising for school events
• Car Show
• Open House
• School Schedules
• As with banners, requires large format printer

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Calendars

• Ultimate project for learning tables
• Calendar for October, November, December because
  all the holidays
• In Indesign, tables are non-intuitive

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Childrens Book

• Students create a childrens book based on images
  they find in clipart or on the Internet
• Sections, pagination options, master pages
• Usually 6-8 pages, less than 100 words per page

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Technical Manual

• Students create a technical manual for a simple
  task
• i.e. make a peanut butter sandwich, shaving
• Utilizes complex book features
• Indexing, glossary, etc.
• Students draw illustrations on paper, scan them,
  and import them into the manual

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Newsletters

• Excellent group projects
• Covers all task lists items dealing with columns
• Can be simple or complex

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Syndicated NewsletterGroup Project

• Mini-Newspaper
• Split students into groups of three
• Have them go to news sites with AP articles and
  syndicate some of the content
• Gossip column, headline stories, horoscopes,
  sports, weather, etc.

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Newsletter (cont.)

• Any content that does not fit must be shortened
  to fit in the allotted amount of space
• Students work together to create character and
  paragraph styles, pick a color scheme, and layout
• At the end of the projects, team members rate one
  another

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CD Covers

• Students create a band, then create the front,
  inside, and outside cover for a CD case
• Smaller form-factor project
• The band info sheet helps students learn how to
  associate ideas with imagery

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Letterheads Invoices

• The beginnings of DP
• Letterheads are not complex
• Invoices, timesheets, etc. are usually very
  complex
• Usually give students a vanilla copy of an
  invoice which they must mimic and customize

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Photoshop Remarks

• Number 1 most important skill Cutting images out
• Online tutorials work fine
• http//www.good-tutorials.com
• Choose carefully as some are not well written
• Play with Photoshop yourself
• If you cant do it blindfolded, how can you teach
  your kids?

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Some Photoshop Tutorial Suggestions

• Create fire text
• Splice multiple pictures together
• Model air brushing
• Collage
• Texture filters

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Things to Remember

• Walk around the room continuously while the
  students work on projects
• Remind students of techniques they have learned
• Sometimes, point out a design flaw
• Not always, since students learn from mistakes
• If a project is going bad, stop and re-introduce
  in another way

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Things to Remember (cont.)

• Be patient
• You didnt learn DP in one day
• Nobody is perfect
• Use constructive criticism
• Dont make fun of a students work
• Push, push, push the students to stay on task
• When a student does good work with good designs,
  make a HUGE deal out of it

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Thank You!

• Any Questions?