TIPS AND TRICKS

• As with most projects, planning is key. Have students consider and write out what they want to animate and why. That is especially key for longer projects in which images are doing more than smiling!
• If you only have access to Office, you wouldn't actually save each picture. Instead, you would create a picture in Excel (View > Toolbars > Drawing); click CTRL A (or Apple A) to select all; click the first icon on the drawing toolbar; and then select Group All. That would combine all the elements of your drawing (ears, nose, eyes, and so on) into one picture. Then it's just Edit > Copy, open PowerPoint, and Edit > Paste. When you're ready to make the next picture, go back to Excel; click the picture; select Ungroup to break up the elements again; make the edits; and then repeat the steps. Not hard but a bit time-consuming.
• Lesson plan ideas: Besides being a fun lesson for art, animation also can be used in language arts lessons. First, have students write the steps in Word or on paper. That helps with narrative writing and sequencing. You also can practice storyboarding concepts with this activity.

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