Tourism Text Art

I use this activity with my Geography classes — ranging from ages 12-16 years old. Tourism is a central theme to Geography, and a great example of economic and social interaction with our natural landscape. Through this activity, students can focus on their local area and consider the environmental elements that make it an attractive location for tourism and represent this through Text Art and photography.

Learning Objective/Intention and Success Criteria

A successful project will combine good photography using iPad, creation of text art focussing on the local tourism theme, good visual composition, and a slogan which brings it all together to help create a compelling tourism advertisement for their local areas.

The Process

Students use the Camera app on their iPad to capture images of landmarks and locations that showcase and represent the local area. 

They also develop copywriting skills through the slogans and text they add to their project.

Keynote for iPad makes it so easy to fill text with an image, allowing students to create Text Art to show landmarks, textures and landscapes. 

They can then add a contrasting photograph as a background to their project. 

Students can add an outline around the text to help make the name of their local area stand out. 

In my examples, I focussed on the beautiful location of our school in Dalkey (pronounced: “DAW-Kee”), Dublin, Ireland and the environmental elements that make this area so tranquil and unique: The sea, the sky, Dalkey Island, and the granite rock used to build so many of the historic buildings in the area.

I then added a short slogan which attempts to capture the spirit of these elements.

Reflection

One of the biggest challenges of a text art activity is to ensure that the text is clear and legible. Here are some tips and tricks we’ve learned to do this when using Text Art activities in the classroom: 

• Focus on textures and wider landscapes and landmarks. 
• Use a simple, clear font with thick strokes, such as Impact.
• Add an outline to the font which helps to make it stand out against the background.
• Use contrasting photos for the text art and background photo. The contrast can be achieved through colour, brightness, texture, subject, or material.

Activities like this encourage students to engage with their local area through photography, text and writing. Their projects can be more creative and personalised as they engage with tourism and the surrounding landscape in their local area. This helps to develop their sense of place, and sense of space.

Some ways to go further with this activity would be to ask students to:

• Create a series of images and export these as an Animated GIF. 
• Record a video using the text art and voiceover reading the slogan to create a tourism video advertisement.
• Add a different image for each letter of the text art. 
• Add video to the background instead of a photo to bring the project to life. 

Or, allow students to choose a form of assessment that suits them and how they want to present their tourism text art projects. 

Lesson Recap

Students really engage with lessons and activities like this. It unleashes their creativity, whilst embedding new skills and subject content. They are encouraged to engage with their local area and see the links between our natural landscape and how we interact with it socially and economically through tourism and leisure activities.

I use this activity in Geography classes, but Text Art activities can easily be adapted to other subject areas and across a wide range of age groups. 

Learn how, and explore more Everyone Can Create Projects >