MADISON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Digital Advertising II
Authored by: Dani Bratton
Reviewed by: Lee Nittel,
Director of Curriculum and Instruction
Thomas Paterson,
Supervisor of Science and Technology Education
Approval Date: January, 2013
Members of the Board of Education:
Lisa Ellis, President
Patrick Rowe, Vice-President
David Arthur
Kevin Blair
Linda Gilbert
Shade Grahling
Thomas Haralampoudis
James Novotny
Superintendent: Dr. Michael Rossi
Madison Public Schools
359 Woodland Road, Madison, NJ 07940
www.madisonpublicschools.org
I. OVERVIEW
Digital Advertising II is a semester long course offered at Madison High School. The course is open to
students who have a strong interest in learning more about the software and skills required to work in the
world of graphic design, and wish to develop a portfolio to use in applying for graphic design jobs or for
college. The course will provide students with the opportunity to expand skills and techniques throughout the
semester: layout, photo manipulation, design, and typography. The course will also focus on advanced use of
the Adobe Creative Suite: Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop. These three programs are the graphic
design industry standards, which will allow students tremendous flexibility and creativity as they work to
produce their projects. Students will use these 3 software programs in conjunction with one another to create
a number of possible projects: a business card, CD covers, DVD covers, movie posters, magazine
advertisement campaigns, packaging art, a magazine cover, promotional posters, and book covers.
II.
RATIONALE
Digital Advertising II will allow students who are creative but not necessarily traditionally artistic to expand
their graphic design abilities by designing high-quality professional-looking projects using the Adobe Creative
Suite. Digital Advertising II will focus on the importance of applying design rules and aesthetics throughout
the creative process. The course will allow students to expand their creativity and give them a solid
foundation and a working knowledge of project management. This curriculum gives the students lessons that
are currently applied in today’s industry and will continue to apply, even as the technology associated with
graphic design is upgraded. Students taking Digital Advertising II will have a strong base upon which to
expand their software knowledge in college, should they study graphic design, public relations, marketing or
advertising. They will also have the means to enter the workplace in graphic design should they choose a
related career directly after high school. Students who excel in this class are strongly encouraged to develop a
digital portfolio to have for presentation to colleges.
III.
STUDENT OUTCOMES (Linked to N.J. Core Curriculum Standards listed below)
Identify the basic elements of art and principles of design in diverse types of artwork. (1.1)
Use evaluative tools, such as rubrics, for self-assessment and to appraise the objectivity of critiques
by peers. (1.4)
Use discipline-specific arts terminology to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of works of
visual art. (1.4)
Define technical proficiency, using the elements of the arts and principles of design. (1.4)
Critique performances and exhibitions based on the application of the elements of the art form.
(1.4)
Develop criteria for evaluating art in a specific domain and use the criteria to evaluate one’s
personal work and that of their peers, using positive commentary for critique. (1.4)
Determine the role of art and art-making in a global society by analyzing the influence of
technology on the visual, multimedia arts for consumers, and creators around the world. (1.4)
Make informed choices among technology systems, resources, and services in a variety of
contexts. (8.1)
IV.
Create and manipulate information, independently and/or collaboratively, to solve problems and
design and develop products. (8.1)
Integrate new information into an existing knowledge base and communicate the results in a
project or presentation. (8.1)
Describe how components of a technological product, system, or environment interact. (8.2)
Demonstrate and explain how the design process is not linear. (8.2)
Use hands on activities to analyze products and systems to determine how the design process was
applied to create the solution. (8.2)
Describe how variations in resources can affect solutions to a technological problem. (8.2)
Analyze the factors that influence design of products, systems, and environments. (8.2)
Evaluate the function, value, and appearance of technological products, systems, and
environments from the perspective of the user and the producer. (8.2)
Apply critical thinking and problem-solving strategies during structured learning experiences.
(9.1)
Determine when the use of technology is appropriate to solve problems. (9.1)
Use data accessed on the Web to inform solutions to problems and the decision-making process.
(9.1)
Use effective oral and written communication in face-to-face and online interactions and when
presenting to an audience. (9.1)
Research current advances in technology that apply to a selected occupational career cluster. (9.1)
Participate in a structured learning experience that demonstrates interpersonal communication,
teamwork, and leadership skills. (9.1)
Describe and apply constructive responses to criticism. (9.2)
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS AND CONTENT
Digital Advertising: A Review
1. What is Proximity?
2. What is Alignment?
3. What is Repetiton?
4. What is Contrast?
5. How do you use these principles in design?
6. What is InDesign? What do you use it for?
7. What is Photoshop? What do you use it for?
8. What is Illustrator? What do you use it for?
9. How do these programs work together?
Pre-Press Production: The next step
1. What is a bleed?
2. What is a crop mark?
3. Why do you need bleeds and crops in your work?
4. What is CMYK?
5. What is the best resolution for my images?
6. What is the resolution for line art and logos?
Campaigns: Designing for a demographic
1. What is a demographic? Why does it matter?
2. How do you design for men?
3. How do you design for women?
4. How do you use color in design?
5. How does your font choice impact your design?
6. How do you design for children?
7. What does type communicate?
Presentations: The Basics
1. What is your project?
2. How did the planning go?
3. Did you encounter any obstacles? How did you work though them?
4. Why did you design it the way you did?
5. What did you do with the images and type?
6. What were you trying to convey? Was it successful?
7. How can you improve your design?
V. STRATEGIES
This class is completely different from Digital Advertising I because there is very little teacher instruction. The
students already have the core computer skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the class. This class is
an opportunity to flex their creative muscles at a higher level and to develop precision, an eye for detail, and a
clearer understanding of their own creative processes. In addition, this class is an opportunity for students to
expand their thinking about how to communicate their concepts regarding graphic design. Not only will
students be creating graphic design projects that they intend for a specific audience, they will also have to
explain their work to their peers and justify their choices in a presentation at the end of every project. This
practice will prepare students who are considering graphic design as a college major or a career to be able to
clearly articulate why they make the design choices they make. This class is not only about the creation of
projects; it is also about better understanding their own creative thinking process, and being able to justify
their design choices.
VI. EVALUATION
Assessment may include:
• Ongoing class notebook
• 8-9 individual design projects
• 8-9 individual project presentations
• Class Participation
VII. REQUIRED RESOURCES
Textbooks for course:
Because of the ever-changing nature of the technology and tools used for Digital Advertising and graphic
design, any books purchased to address this class would be almost immediately obsolete. Instead, the students
will use on-line Internet resources, and perhaps some DVD tutorials as well.
VIII. SCOPE AND SEQUENCE
Graphic Design: The Basics in Review (1 week)
1. Reviewing the rules of graphic design
2. Reviewing InDesign
3. Reviewing Photoshop
4. Reviewing Illustrator
5. Reviewing class standards for type, images and layouts.
Using the Creative Suite to create industry-standard work (8-9 projects: 17 weeks)
1. Marks: how the world knows the actual size of your art.
2. Bleeds: The difference between a pro and an amateur.
3. CMYK: The colors that make the print world go around.
4. Resolution: the difference between creating printable work and creating a problem.
5. Demographic: Who are your targeting? Why? How do you meet them?
6. Presentation: Why did you do what you did?