Additional Art Classroom Resources

Bringing back my collection of lists, I thought I would share some software and websites that could be good to use in your classrooms. I also made sure to include age recommendations and some free alternatives to popular programs.

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Artsonia | Ele - High | Free | A portfolio tool for art classes. Students can upload their work, post artist statements, and comment on other student’s art. It is available for students at all levels, and I believe this could be beneficial for younger students to learn the process of publishing this work. This could be upgraded when they get older to art networking programs like Behance or ArtStation. Design is a little dated. Some parents may not want their child’s work posted as well. 
My Story School eBook Maker | Ele | $4.99 | I saw this, and thought it could be a really interesting program to play around with for young students. Using the simple interface, icons, stickers, and text, they can create their own story books to keep and share with the class. This seems like a good way to introduce them to, and get used to using digital creation tools. There is no tutorial with the program however, so students will need to rely heavily on their teacher. 
Illustrator | High | Adobe Suite starts at $2,499 for 100 device licenses for schools. | A necessary program for any digital artist or designer to learn. This program excels in creating text and vector based imagery. Use in class for any design based project like posters, business cards, logos, etc. Proficient students can even get certified in the program which looks great on a resume. This is a really extensive program, however. It will take a lot of time and energy to teach students how to use it effectively. 
InDesign | High | Adobe Suite starts at $2,499 for 100 device licenses for schools. | This is another necessary program for designers. InDesign is geared more toward arranging layouts for multi page projects. Making children’s books could be a fun project with it. Like Illustrator, students can get certified, and it is also a really bulky program that can be a little advanced. 
SketchBook | High | Free | A free drawing program students can use on their devices. May be a bit difficult to learn the interface, but once they get it they should be able to use similar programs efficiently. Will need a stylus to use efficiently. A bit more simple then similar paid programs, but is easy put into the hands of students. 
Adobe XD | High | Adobe Suite starts at $2,499 for 100 device licenses for schools. | This is a software I actually want to play around with more and I believe will become more relevant as time goes on. This is an Adobe application used to create user interface design. I think students will be able to catch on to this technology quickly despite it being another advanced design software because they are so used to using apps and websites in their everyday lives. It’s a growing design field where these students can make a lot of money in the future. 
Gimp | High | Free | A similar-to-Photoshop photo editing and drawing program. Free to download, and a familiar interface. Easily accessible to students if they would like a free alternative. The interface is a bit dated however. 
Blender | High | Free | A free 3D rendering software. I find my students are often interested in animation or game design, so practicing on this or a similar software and learning some basics would be good. There is a really high learning curve with this, however. 
Canva | Middle - High | Free | An online graphic design platform. This would be great to assign design projects to beginners without getting into heavy and expensive software like Illustrator. There is a paid option for businesses, but that is not necessary. It offers templates, and I’ve seen adults use this for random promotional materials. Obviously not as deep as other programs, but a good site for everyone to know!
Zoom | Ele - High | Free | Zoom has really hit its stride during the pandemic. It and Google Meet now a necessity to keep classes in touch and running. I’m currently in calls multiple times a week. I do believe I prefer Google Meet however. I have trouble getting my settings correct for Zoom, and there were some pretty bad privacy issues early on. 
Pear Deck for Good Slides | Ele - High | Free | I love the idea of Nearpod. Students can work at their own pace to complete lessons, answering questions as they go along. This is an app that provides this service for Google Slides. This is great for me, because I use the Google Suite constantly. You can ask students questions while they view the lesson and even have them draw. I haven’t used this yet, so I’m not exactly sure how well this works. I don’t typically have students go through powerpoint slides on their own, and I feel like it would be difficult to make them all download the app on their chromebooks.
Behance | High | Free | This is an art portfolio website created by Adobe. Students can upload their work, and someday even look for jobs. It is connected to the Adobe Suite, so you can see what was made in what program. I like to have my students at least check this out, so that they can see portfolios from working artists and designs. They also get a taste for what they like by viewing the work of others! It is a networking site, so this can cause issues with school internet. 
ArtStation | High | Free | Another art portfolio site. This is more geared toward digital artists, character illustration, environment design, 3D animation, and game design. Depending on what my students want to go into, this could be a good website to be aware of. They host competitions and there is a section for job searching as well. Some content on this site will have adult themes, so it may not be accessible by school computers. 
Pinterest | Middle - High | Free | I love pinterest, and I always recommend my students go there for inspiration or for reference photos. Students can create profiles and pin images they like in moodboards. I’ve used it before at the beginning of the school year to see what my students are interested in. This is good for tips, recipes, art, decorating, etc. Students should be monitored carefully because there can be more adult themed images or art they could come across. 
Edmodo | Ele - High | Free | Another educator recommended this to me, and I really like the idea of it even though I haven’t had a chance to try it out. It is a teaching platform where you can add students and parents and post assignments, quizzes, and updates. I could post questions on my video lessons that will stop for students to answer. However, I feel like it would be difficult for students to keep up with a completely new class platform when they’re now very used to Google Classroom.