Using Microsoft Office tools to make a Poster

Before you start, read these two short articles on using posters in teaching:

http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/fun-learning-using-educational-posters-1380344.html

http://www.squidoo.com/Teaching-Posters

MS Word, MS Publisher and MS Powerpoint can be used for creating teaching tools.

 

Elements of a Poster

Heading

 

Text - brief and to the point

 

Images - pictures, maps, graphs, etc

Use clear images, usually using one theme or type of picture.

Be careful of pictures from Northern Hemisphere countries as they often portray images that are not appropriate for Africa

 

If you are teaching rules, crossing out a picture or word can be very effective

 

 

 

 

 Labels

 

Processes –arrows or pointers

 

 

 

Careful use of colour

 

DESIGN your poster

 

Decide if you want portrait or landscape

 

Plan content

• Use essential headings
• Use only key words

 

Plan layout

• Not too crowded
• Leave enough white space
• Position pictures for maximum impact

 

Plan any other graphic elements

• Arrows, cross out a picture

 

USE your poster for teaching

Write down the questions that will enable your learners to understand the topic

 

• Literal questions
• Inferential questions
• Interpretive questions

 

Decide if you want to display the whole poster at once 

• cover sections with blank paper and move when you are ready to reveal them

 

Use the poster to make the points you want to make

• Ask the questions and indicate the appropriate part of the poster
• If there is a process show how the arrows lead you through the process

 

Ask questions at the end to check understanding

 

PRINT your poster

Printing with conventional ink

Postnet prints up to A1 size posters

• Costs vary according to the amount of colour on the poster but are about R60 – R100 for A1, and R30 – R50 for A2
• A coloured background makes the ink smudge, so they will probably refuse to do anything that is too colour dense
• Postnet charges you to use their computers to load your file for printing

Printing as a photograph

• This is done with laser ink and is permanent.
• This can be done at many photo printing stores – Foto First and Photo Africa at the Mall do them
• The poster MUST be saved in the size you want to print it, so use Powerpoint and select the size FIRST – A1 or A2
• It takes about 3 hours to print and costs up to R300