EVALUATION

Formative Assessments – 50% of Grade

Formative assessments help students learn and practice new concepts before applying them to larger projects. These may include:

• Studio Starts and warm-ups

• Guided Adobe lessons

• Software exercises

• Sketches and planning

• Design analysis

• Creative experiments

• Project checkpoints

• Critiques and peer feedback

• Work habits and studio participation

• File management and production preparation

Summative Assessments – 50% of Grade

Summative assessments demonstrate a student’s ability to combine creative, technical, and professional skills. These may include:

• Digital art and illustration projects

• Graphic-design projects

• Print and sublimation products

• Unit assessments and quizzes

• Formal writing and reflections

• Presentations and critiques

• Portfolio submissions

 

COURSE OUTLINE

Interactive Media and Creative Careers

Students explore the field of interactive media and learn how art, design, technology, communication, and production work together.

Students are introduced to:

• Graphic design

• Digital illustration

• Photography and image editing

• Animation

• Video and audio production

• Web and interactive media

• Print and product design

• Creative careers and educational pathways

• Adobe Certified Professional credentials

Career surveys, media analysis, guest speakers, industry visits, or other career-connected experiences help students understand how classroom skills relate to creative professions.

 

Design Principles and Visual Communication

Students learn how artists and designers organize visual information and communicate with an audience.

Areas of study include:

• Line, shape, form, texture, space, color, and value

• Balance

• Contrast

• Emphasis

• Movement

• Pattern

• Rhythm

• Unity

• Proportion

• Visual hierarchy

• Composition

• Typography

• Color theory

• Audience and purpose

Students apply these concepts throughout every creative project.

 

Professional Workflow and Digital Citizenship

Students establish the working habits required throughout the Interactive Media program.

Students learn to:

• Create an organized course-folder structure

• Name and save files correctly

• Maintain editable working files

• Export files for print, web, and submission

• Organize layers and project resources

• Distinguish between raster and vector graphics

• Select appropriate dimensions, resolution, and color modes

• Use images, fonts, and media legally and ethically

• Protect personal information and follow digital-safety practices

• Meet deadlines and follow production procedures

These practices create an early foundation for Adobe certification and professional creative work.

 

Adobe Photoshop and Digital Imaging

Students use Adobe Photoshop to edit photographs, create compositions, paint digitally, and produce original raster artwork.

Projects and lessons may include:

• Selection techniques

• Layers and layer groups

• Layer masks

• Adjustment layers

• Image correction

• Cropping and resizing

• Photo restoration

• Filters

• Blend modes

• Layer styles

• Transformations

• Puppet Warp

• Typography

• Custom brushes

• Digital painting

• Character and environment design

• Composite imagery

• Exporting for print and web

Creative projects may include book covers, restored photographs, fantasy animals, imaginative environments, digital paintings, posters, collages, and original characters.

 

Adobe Illustrator and Vector Design

Students use Adobe Illustrator to create scalable artwork from shapes, paths, typography, color, and repeated elements.

Projects and lessons may include:

• Shape construction

• Shape Builder

• Pathfinder

• Direct Selection

• Pen and Curvature tools

• Layers

• Fills and strokes

• Gradients

• Brushes

• Type tools

• Type on a path

• Radial repeat

• Patterns

• Transparency

• Drop shadows

• Logos and symbols

• Icons

• Original vector illustrations

• Print and digital exports

Creative projects may include illustrated characters, landscapes, patterns, typography, cards, buttons, logos, and merchandise graphics.

 

Digital Drawing and Painting

Students use Wacom pen displays to develop confidence with digital drawing tools.

Students explore:

• Pressure sensitivity

• Brush size and opacity

• Line quality

• Shape and contour

• Color mixing

• Shading and highlights

• Texture

• Layered painting

• Observation

• Reference-image use

• Stylization

• Original interpretation

Digital drawing may be incorporated into weekly skill builders and larger illustration projects.

 

Artificial Intelligence and Creative Responsibility

Students are introduced to artificial intelligence as one of many tools available to contemporary designers.

Students consider:

• Responsible and transparent AI use

• Prompt development

• Brainstorming and idea generation

• Originality and creative ownership

• Bias and limitations

• Copyright and ethical concerns

• Evaluating AI-generated results

• Combining generated resources with human design decisions

• When AI is and is not appropriate

Adobe Express may be used for an introductory AI-assisted design experience. Students are still responsible for planning, selecting, revising, arranging, and preparing their final work.

 

Print, Sublimation and Product Design

Students learn how digital artwork becomes a physical product. Depending on available materials and project requirements, students may create:

• T-shirts

• Tumblers

• Mousepads

• Tote bags

• Cards

• Posters

• Buttons

• Stickers

• Keychains

• Coasters

• Other promotional products

Students learn about:

• Product dimensions

• Templates

• Resolution

• RGB and CMYK

• Safe areas and bleed

• Mirroring for sublimation

• Print-ready files

• Test printing

• Heat-press procedures

• Substrates and materials

• Quality control

• Finishing and presentation

This hands-on production process helps students understand the connection between digital creativity, graphic communications, manufacturing, and entrepreneurship.

 

Critique, Reflection and Portfolio Development

Students participate in a supportive studio environment where they:

• Share ideas and works in progress

• Give and receive constructive feedback

• Explain creative decisions

• Revise and improve their work

• Solve technical problems

• Reflect on their growth

• Select completed pieces for a developing portfolio

• Present work professionally

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By the end of Level 1, students will have a foundation in digital art, graphic design, Adobe software, creative workflow, and print production. They will be prepared for Level 2 animation, video, multimedia storytelling, and increasingly advanced Adobe work.