How To...Get Creative with WordArt

For Reproducible click here. PDF 278KB

Martin Luther King, Jr. WordArt Research - download MS Word file here 36KB

For more WordArt Resources click here.

If you have been a faithful reader of "Technology in Your Classroom," you probably already know that I think WordArt is a wonderful motivation for anything students do with words…and every curriculum has words!

What is WordArt?
WordArt is a wizard feature in MS Word that changes text into a graphic object. It is located in the MS Word menu bar: Insert, Picture, WordArt. Text can be edited to create a multitude of special effects – all with very little, if any, graphic arts training. WordArt is perfect for word processing writing, allowing even primary students to create professional-looking documents.

WordArt by the numbers
Since math is our focus this month, this is a good time to point out all the math applications available in WordArt.

Font size. One way to change the WordArt size is to change the font size. Older students will be ready for font discussions of pixels and points.

Resizing. Once WordArt is created, it can be resized by pulling on a corner. Students can discuss percentages to scale, i.e., the student's WordArt is 50% smaller or 150% larger than the original.

Rotate. A discussion of angles is appropriate when using the Rotate icon to turn your WordArt 45 or 90 degrees. My students love creating math vocabulary WordArt, like a picture showing the formula for the area of a rectangle with words going around the perimeter of the rectangle.

Edit shapes. All the WordArt shapes lend themselves to the skills students need for conceptualizing geometry concepts. All the changes in this example can be made using the WordArt toolbar.

Technology integration
Technology integration using WordArt is easy!

1. WordArt can be an ongoing computer center activity for all the content areas because students can create a page of WordArt for weekly spelling words, or for social studies or science vocabulary.
2. Make WordArt for your reading word wall or use it for vocabulary flashcards. Just add a magnetic strip and your WordArt works great on the dry-erase board for class discussions or demonstrations. You can even use WordArt to label objects in and around the classroom for ESL students.
3. Incorporate WordArt in your science and social studies units. You can create WordArt for the words students will research and then use the Internet and books to type in the facts in a word processing program. The completed page can be "scrambled" by moving the Word Art to the bottom of the page and re-sorting the words as an interactive study guide. Because the words can move on the page, this makes a great interactive matching game for grades K-2.

4. My students use PowerPoint to create WordArt for our character education program. Create a slide of WordArt synonyms of one of the character words. Then, merge all the slides and animate it to run automatically. This will be a hit at your next parent-teacher meeting.

For Reproducible click here. PDF 278KB

Martin Luther King, Jr. WordArt Research - download MS Word file here 36KB

For more WordArt Resources click here.

Linda K. Lindroth is Technology Editor and Web Coordinator for Teaching K-8. She is also a Technology Resource Teacher in a K-5 computer lab in Lexington, KY.