One of my favorite units to teach is one that explores art careers. It might be because I always teach it at the end of the year and I have summer-dreams floating in my head OR it might be because it allows me to give the kids real-world applications for the stuff we talk about, which gets them super- excited and engaged.
I have lots of art career lessons, 'cause, like I said, they are my favorite. But, today I'm sharing one that I just started taught for the first time this year. I had my 5th and 6th graders create a short animation using Photoshop. Did y'all know you could even use Photoshop for such a thing? I did not, but then I figured that must be where all those animated GIF internet-memes come from (I'm obviously very with the times).
Here are some for the super cute mini-movies my kids created:
Pretty simple but, Photoshop is a pretty complicated program to learn.
So how do you do this? Well, teaching a complicated graphics program to elementary school kids, who don't have that much exposure to technology requires a lot fo patience. So keep that in mind before you begin.
On the first day of teaching, Photoshop I show my kids how to open the program, how to create a new file and how to save a file. I also point out how-to change colors, how-to draw and how-to erase. Plus my favorite Photoshop shortcuts (Cltr "T" = resize, rotate and move and Cltr "0"= make my screen look right, again). Other than that, I just let them play around.
I also give them this handy-dandy Photoshop cheat sheet.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1LjIaCp2e4lmxXZQhTnJGWOrNXryT7BeF9tHn94tpC0U/edit#slide=id.p
On day two we talk about layers. To create a a new layer, you click Layer> New > Layer on the header menu of the program. When you create a new layer, name it. If you are going to draw a fish, name the layer fish, this will make your like much easier in the long-run.
If you are unfamiliar with graphic software, creating a new layer in your file is like putting a new layer on a collage you are making, but not gluing it down. So, if you draw an ocean for the background of you image, create a new layer and then draw a fish, you will still be able to move the fish, resize the fish, erase the fish, etc. without affecting what you drew in the background. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.
You will also need to be able to see all the layers you have created because you might want to delete them, re-order them or change the opacity. In order to see all the layers you have created, go to Window> Layers. Make sure "layers" is checked. Once checked it will show you the layers menu on your screen.
In order to get the kids to understand the mysterious concept of layers, I break out my overhead transparency sheets. I layer them up and talk bout how I can erase stuff and move it around as long as it is on a new sheet, hence a new layer. You can also use this to explain how you need to select the layer you want to work on before you can work on it. If I create a new layer, then want to change my background, I will have to go to my layers menu and select the background.
So, basically, day one the kids need to draw the background for their animation. On day two, they need to open up their file, create a new layer and draw an object they want to move. The kids can obviously have more than one object move, but for each object to move independently, they will need to create a new layer. On the last day, they animate their file.
To do this, go to Window> animation and check off "animation". It will open a window at the bottom of your screen that looks like this:
If your's does not look like this, hit the teeny-tiny button at the bottom shown below:
Next, make sure you have selected the "move" tool from the left menu bar:
Now, you have to add keystones and time-out your animation. Look at this part of the screen:
Find the name of the layer that you wish to animate. Click the arrow next to it. It will give you the option of "position" or "Global lighting" Click the clock next to "position." This should make a yellow diamond at 0.00sec of your animation. This is a keystone. Move the time (blue-arrow at the top of animation menu) then move your object. It should create a gray keystone on your timeline. Continue doing this by putting your object where you want it at different second markers of your animation. Repeat this process for each object you wish to animate in your file. When you want to watch the animation, scroll the time arrow back to the beginning and hit the play button. Viola!
If this is all very confusing here is a great video from Nicole Dalesio that explains it all very simply: https://vimeo.com/17179594 ,
The final step is to save you file as an animated GIF. You do this by going to file> save for Web and Devices. Make your file a GIF and change looping options to "forever".
You can share these on the school website or school social networks like Edmodo and ClassDojo.
The kids LOVED doing this. In the process of doing this project, we talked about different art careers like graphic designers and movie makers. I don't think the kids really consider all of the places artists work in the world, but this helps open their eyes. It is also a great STEAM lesson.
