DESIGNING A BROCHURE – Colour, Negative Space, Typography

Students will be able to:

• create a brochure to promote an environmental issue;
• use borders and negative space to construct an eye-catching design;
• select and arrange fonts to create a clear message;
• demonstrate technical accomplishment;
• support their ideas with evidence found in the artworks.

Have students:

• use the lesson plan Powerful Posters available on this website to create a poster to promote their issue;
• create a stop motion animated film about their issue using the Stop-Motion Animation lesson plan available on this website;
• organize a viewing of their videos.

1. Prior to this lesson you may want to have students learn modern calligraphy using the Modern Calligraphy lesson plan available on this website.
2. Have students work through the Analyze a Media Text worksheet available on this website. (Downloads - AnalyseAMediatext.pdf)
3. Gather a variety of brochures from your local community, enough for at least 2 per group of 4 students.
4. Download and display the Emphasis, Colour and Balance posters available on this website.
   - review or teach the element of colour – warm/cool colours
   - review or teach the principles of emphasis, balance and unity – placement of shapes, symmetry, asymmetry, radial
5. Gather, and make available, books about lettering, for example, Little Book of Lettering, by Emily Gregory; Adventures in Lettering: 40 exercises to improve your lettering skills, by Dawn Nicole Warnaar; Creative Lettering: Techniques & Tips from Top Artists, by Jenny Doh; Doodle Art and Lettering with Joanne Sharpe: Inspiration and Techniques for Personal Expression, by Joanne Sharpe; and Hand-Lettering (An Interactive Guide to the Art of Drawing Letters), by Megan Wells.
6. Photocopy the Brochure Analysis worksheet - 1 per student. (Download - BrochureAnalysis.pdf)
7. Provide time for students to research an environmental issue of their choice.

1. Place students into small groups of about 4.
2. Have them analyse the brochures using the Brochure Analysis worksheet. (Download - BrochureAnalysis.pdf)
3. Once students have completed the task discuss the brochures as a class drawing attention to what makes them effective.
   ​List the characteristics on a chart paper, for example, ​
   - simple and clear composition makes it easy to see important information
   - borders and negative spaces set elements apart from others making it easy to read
   - shows all required information
   - has a dominant element, such as a symbol, or character that immediately catches your eye and gives added meaning
   - uses size, contrasting colour or values to emphasize the most important part of the message 
   - images or symbols are related to the message
   - colours connect the text and images
   - colours have a symbolic meaning that match the message
4. View and discuss the use of fonts drawing attention to their characteristics.
   List the characteristics on a chart paper, for example,
   - weight - thin, bold (thin fonts are more passive, bold more powerful)
   - colour - symbolic and cultural meanings
   - size - big, small (bigger fonts are more powerful and attract attention first)
   - slant - italics emphasizes words, suggest motion
   - formality - serious, playful
5. Introduce the challenge.

1. Place students into partners.
2. Ask them to: 
   - share their work and discuss the things that are especially effective and why
   - analyse the designs using the Analysing Brochures form
   - talk about what they found satisfying about doing this project
   - talk about how they might use what they learned in a different way
3. Share ideas with the whole class. 
4. Ask students to tell how they felt about doing this project.

1. Observe students as they work – thoughtful focus, discriminating, seeking more information, elaborating, experimenting
2. Observe students as they discuss the brochures – active listening, insightful contributions, supporting ideas with evidence found in the artwork and from personal experience.
3. Use a checklist to track progress. (Downloads – Brochure_tracking.pdf)
4. Have students use the self-assessment form to evaluate their work. (Downloads – Brochure_self-assessment.pdf)