ASCII art is text-based visual art that uses ASCII characters to create images. It is a fun and effective way to teach keyboarding because it requires students use a variety of different keys, including the symbols.

Here’s a pumpkin I did for Halloween in about fifteen minutes:

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Here are eight online resources for quick animations. For updates on this list, click here:

1. Animate with Krita–free Photoshop-like program for animation (see video below)
2. Animation and 3D Templates from MS
3. Brush Ninja–free and no registration required
4. ChatterPix–make anything talk
5. Draw and Tell–for K-2
6. PowerPoint–a video showing how to create animations in PowerPoint
7. Puppet Pals HD (free app)–Create your own unique shows with animation and audio in real time
8. Wick Editor–free, open source, to create games, animations, and more

If you’re not familiar with creating animations, here’s a longish video on using one popular program:

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Here are popular online resources to teach about 3D Printing (click here for updates on links):

1. 3D Bear
2. Cricut Machine–to cut materials

Create 3D Printing Designs

1. 3D Doodler Pen
2. MakerBot PrintShop
3. Onshape
4. SculptGL
5. Sketchup
6. Tinkercad–create your own 3D print designs

Download 3D Printing designs

1. GrabCad
2. Smithsonian X3D–download 3D print designs of Smithosonian artifacts
3. Thingiverse–download lots of 3D designs, like an iPhone case
4. Youmagine–find 3D print designs

–image credit Deposit Photos

Copyright ©2023 askatechteacher.com – All rights reserved.

Here’s the sign-up link if the image above doesn’t work:

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Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, contributor to NEA Today, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

Before starting on Photoshop lessons for fifth grade and up, teach preparatory basics covered in this lesson plan here (reprinted in part below). If you have a newer version of Photoshop, adapt these instructions to yours:

Open Photoshop. Notice the tool bars at the top. These will change depending upon the tool you choose from the left side. These are the crux of Photoshop. We cover about ten of them in fifth grade. The right-hand tools are used independent of the left-hand tools. They are more project oriented.

• • Click the File Browser tool (top right-ish). It shows you the folders on your computer. From here, you can select the picture you’d like to edit (or use File-open)
  • Select a picture and notice how it displays all data—file name, size, date created, author, copyright and more
  • Click on several tools on the left side and see how the top menu bar changes, offering different choices. Go to Help. Have students view several of the ‘How To’ wizards available. Make sure they try ‘How to paint and draw’, ‘How to print photos’, ‘How to save for other applications’. Then have them select the ‘Help’ files. This takes them to the Adobe CS website and exposes a vast database of questions and answers. Encourage them to explore, engage their critical thinking and active learning skills. Remind them this is where they can find answers independent of teacher assistance.
  • Open a picture of the student’s choice. Show class how to zoom in and out (right-side toolbar). Explain pixels.
    Show students how they can take the paint brush and color just one pixel if they are close enough. This is
    how experts remove ‘red eye’ in photos.
  • Introduce the History toolbar (right side) as an undo feature (like Ctrl+Z in Word). Have students open a new blank canvas and draw on it. Now use the history tool to toggle between the canvas before and after drawing on it by clicking between the original picture and the last action taken (at the bottom of the History list).
  • Have students click through several tools on the left tool bar and show them how the top toolbar changes,
    depending upon the tool selected.
  • Watch the layers tools. You can only paint on the highlighted layer. Notice that the top layer covers all others
  • Show students how to save. The default is as a Photoshop file with a .psd extension. This won’t open in other programs, so show students how to change the file type format to a .jpg, .bmp, .tif or other for use in Word, Publisher, emails or a website.

Once students are comfortable with the Photoshop format, try these easy-to-do auto-fixes.

Auto-fixes is one of the easiest Photoshop skills. Depending upon your version of Photoshop, this may be found in different spots on the menu lists. If you’re familiar with your program, you’ll find it right away:

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Here’s a great lesson that uses every child’s innate love of color to learn grammar. All you need is MS Word or Google Docs), a quick introduction to the toolbars and tools, and about 25 minutes to complete. If you’re the tech lab teacher, this gives you a chance to reinforce the grammar lesson the classroom is teaching and teach tech skills students need (click to enlarge):

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Before teaching Lesson Plans using Photoshop, be sure to cover the basics with students:

Open Photoshop. Notice the tool bars at the top. These will change depending upon the tool you choose from the left side. These are the crux of Photoshop. We’ll cover about ten of them in fifth grade. The rest will have to wait. The right-hand tools are used independent of the left-hand tools. They are more project oriented.

• Click the File Browser tool (top right-ish). It shows you the folders on your computer. From here, you can select the picture you’d like to edit (or use File-open) (more…)

Some students just don’t like writing. A page filled with black-and-white words intimidates–or bores!–them making it almost impossible to explain their ideas for an assignment. That is one reason graphic novels are becoming so popular–telling a story or thoughts with a blend of images and words The drawback is finding a photograph that fits the assignment requirements in a legal, copyright-appropriate manner. There’s one solution that’s easy and available to everyone: Create the image yourself.

One of our Ask a Tech Teacher contributors has ideas on photo effects that students will be able to quickly master and enjoy using:

5 Fun Photo Effects and Edits to Try Out With Your Class

As a teacher, you might have noticed that your students love taking photos and posting them on popular social media platforms. Others might even be dreaming of becoming influencers with their creative work. However, it is important to understand how competitive the influencer world is. In addition, there are billions of social media users, meaning that many posts seek the attention of followers. This makes it a challenge to ensure that your photos stand out.

That notwithstanding, there are a couple of photo effects and edits you can try with your class to make your photos stand out. You do not even need to be a graphic designer for you to use these effects and edits. 

Here they are;

The Matte Edit

Matte can be defined as a flat and dull color, paint, or surface that does not have a lot of light. It can also be seen as the opposite of reflective or shiny photos. This is one of the photo edits that have become quite popular in the last couple of months.

To successfully get this photo edit style, your class needs to settle on one of the best photo editing tools we have today. However, even though the matte photo edit style stands out, do not be surprised if some of your classmates are not sold out.

This is because the style washes the colors of your photos a little before achieving the matte look. It is a filter for your photos and gives you a dramatic gray and black look. You can use it with street, portrait, and landscape photography.

Creating a Pop Art Piece from a Class Photo

Pop art is one of the oldest photo effects still in use today. It was originally used to portray pop culture imagery as simple and attractive pieces of art. So what do you do when you want to create a pop art piece from a class photo?

Unlike a few years ago when people had to rely on artists if they wanted pop art pieces, you can use an online photo editor for this. These photo editors come with color blocks and halftone effects that you can use as you please to get the art piece that you want.

In addition, you get different pop art filters at your disposal. You can try a couple of them before settling on one that meets your requirements. This might sound like a lot of work, but it will take you just a couple of seconds. Compare that to manually creating the same piece! 

The Vintage Effect

Do you have a class photo that you would like to change with a cool but dramatic effect? Well, the vintage effect is the perfect effect for you. Even though the vintage effect has existed for some time, it is still growing in popularity.

You will find this effect in fashion, products, weddings, school, and portrait photography. When applying this effect, you need to pay attention to yellow, red, green, and blue colors. This is because these are the vintage colors you need for your photo.

The vintage effect has some similarities with the matte edit discussed above. This means that when applying this effect, you should make sure that your photo colors look as if they have been washed out. This would be the best effect if you took this wonderful southeast Asia trip as a class.

High Contrast Photo Edits

Contrast in photography can be defined as the difference between the brightest and darkest parts of your photos. Increasing the contrast of your photos gives them a cool dynamic range. Decreasing the contrast, on the other hand, makes the difference between the whites and blacks thin.

If you have a class photo that you would like to make more impactful, you should increase its contrast. You will also be making its vibrancy better. The shadows on the photos will become more visible and natural.

This is one of the best photo editing styles for those who want to increase the depth of their images. Apart from making your photos edgy, they will also look dramatic. You can use the high-contrast photo editing style with black and white as well as colored images.

Reflections and Light Flares

Reflections and light flares are among the trending photo editing styles on social media platforms such as Instagram. If you visit Instagram today, you will see this style on different feeds, especially those belonging to brands, influencers, and Gen Z.

Looking at a photo with this editing style, you might think that you need fancy photo studios and lighting to apply the same to your photos. Fortunately, you do not. This can all be achieved through a photo editing tool.

However, ensure that you choose a tool that not only comes with reflections and light flames features but also shadows, light, and prism features. Such a tool will help you achieve everything you need with this photo editing style.

But which tool can you use to apply these effects and edits to your photos? Thanks to advancements in technology, many tools can do this effectively. A tool such as BeFunky is one of the best, with many features to edit photos, create graphic designs, and make photo collages. Others include Adobe Photoshop Express, LunaPic, and Prisma Photo Editor.

No matter the course you are taking, you can apply photo effects and edit your photos like a pro. You do not need to be a graphic designer for you to use any of the effects discussed above. All you need is a cool photo editing tool, most of which are available as web, computer, or mobile applications.

Copyright ©2023 AskaTechTeachercom – All rights reserved.

Here’s the sign-up link if the image above doesn’t work:

http://eepurl.com/chNlYb

Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, contributor to NEA Today, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

Good websites and apps, some for kids, some for adults. Beware: Many have in-app purchases and advertising

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Here is a great list of coloring book websites for kids and adults to share for the holidays. Many are color-by-number, some even auto-fill the right color with a long-click. Beware though: Many have in-app purchases and advertising so preview them before sharing:

1. ABC Color–color letters with fill or paint brush
2. ABCYa Paint
3. Art Coloring
4. Canva Templates to color
5. Coloring book pages–downloadable
6. Coloring Book–color by number
7. Color Planet–app
8. Colorscapes
9. Free coloring pages
10. Happy Color
11. KidPix–visit coloring book backgrounds
12. No-pix–color by number
13. Paint by Number–app
14. Paint Sparkles Draw–free; lots of coloring pages, but maybe too many ads
15. Pixel Art
16. Tap Color Pro

Click here for a great summary of several of these sites.

–image credit Deposit Photos

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After you’ve checked out our favorite STEAM resources, here are some of those that teachers use to teach STEM and STEAM:

Science

Technology

Engineering

Art

Math

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