My first name is Jennifer. Without even telling you my age, you most likely know the decade I was born! My Mom still sends me Microsoft Word Documents and PAYS for Microsoft Office on their Gateway Computer. (Google it!)
My first lesson in Desktop Publishing as a student teacher was ungrouping and changing the colors of the soccer ball in clipart and making newsletters in Publisher. When I think back to the creative tools students had at their fingertips, it pains me that it was always the artistic students that excelled in alternative ways to tell a story. Adobe Spark gives EVERY student the voice to express themselves! Markers, paper, storyboards that were hand-drawn. I never excelled in hand-drawn art (lack of patience). I had always been creative and knew what I wanted to create, just not how to create it.
Along came the computer and I was hooked. I could finally use commands, steps, process and had some help with the details! I could DRAW on the computer and finally create what was in my head through different mediums!
This is what has always drawn me to teach design in a digital formatting. Every year tools get smarter, more detailed and capabilities increase! From Powerpoint, to Keynote, Google Slides, Prezi (again Google it, it is making a comeback I promise!) WeVideo, Powtoon, Canva (fared well during a pandemic when everyone had to create their own graphics), Storybird (beautiful poetry) and finally Adobe Spark (of course Adobe wants in this game!)
Maybe it helps that I have been using programs from the Adobe Creative Suite for going on 20 years. I am pretty sure I started using Photoshop at PS 5.0 (approximately 10+ versions later), but I LOVE anything Adobe. When I first started using Adobe Spark in my Project Management classroom, I loved the ease of use for quick social media graphics that could be used for the school social media account. We could create a template and churn and burn with efficiency.
Strong leaders of tomorrow start their journey today in our classrooms. Students who can communicate and direct their learning towards their own interests are more likely to take initiative to act and use their creative and analytical thinking skills which is where Adobe Spark is the PERFECT application!
It was after getting comfortable with the Adobe Spark Post option, I ventured into creating a Adobe Spark Web Page and Adobe Spark Video. SO intuitive! Check out what my 2nd grader made at the time when she was assigned a project on Elephants.
Use Adobe Spark to create introduction presentations for the beginning of the year, or create a bucket list for the beginning of the calendar year. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PAe2w6naJDUhFy5QQwvbuMqR4kE2nZIl1EPIQkteMck/edit
Other ideas with Adobe Spark Post:
Quotes
Book Covers
Memes (a website that won’t be blocked)
Posters
Comic Strips
Ideas with Adobe Spark Webpage:
Photo Essays
Portfolios
Research Projects/Reports
Explain anything!
Journals
Ideas with Adobe Spark Video:
Invitation
Book Report/Reviews
Movie Trailer
Visual Research Report
Teacher Introduction
Classroom Rules Video for Parents
Introduction of Classroom/Routines
Step-by-Step How to Videos
Field Trips
Sight Word Proficiency Create a Spark Video story with one sight word per page and with no recorded voice. Have the child go through page by page recording themselves reading the words. This can be repeated at intervals so that the children see the progress and improvement for themselves.
PD Presentations using Adobe Spark!!!! We were charged with presenting information for our department school improvement goals at a meeting and decided to veer off the static PPT train! https://spark.adobe.com/sp/design/video/urn:aaid:sc:US:7378c329-6337-406e-ae3a-a4332f25e152/play
Need more inspiration for ways to use Adobe Spark?
LOVE this resource for Adobe Spark! https://ditchthattextbook.com/13-ways-to-create-unforgettable-multimedia-with-adobe-spark/
Why the Olympics should come to your town (Kansas City) https://spark.adobe.com/video/fzj5OvGnSWLTn
Adobe Spark also offers websites and is available in the App Store! Note to self: Each app is separate for your mobile devices download Adobe Spark Post, Adobe Spark Video, and Adobe Spark Page
Want to learn more and earn graduate credit and PD salary points at the same time? Check out our SPARK your Students Course! Self-paced online graduate credit through CSU-Pueblo, LAUSD Salary Points, and Texas CPE Credits!!!
What a beautiful way to create stunning visual stories with Adobe Spark. Enjoy friends!
Jennifer Hair is the Director and Instructor for Connected Classroom Courses. She has taught high school business and visual arts classes for 18 years at Shawnee Mission East High School in the Kansas City metropolitan area. She also teaches numerous self-paced graduate education courses for teachers.
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