Images

• Language art posters aspire to teach a concept using a combination of words and images. Effective images help students retain the concept easily. For example, verb tenses can be shown using different images depicting the tenses: future, present and past. The future tense can have an image of a person gearing up to run (tying shoe laces or doing stretches), the present can show the person running and the past tense show the person resting or sweating a lot after running. Images should be used not only as a tool to grab the student's attention, but to reinforce the lesson as well.
  
  

Background Materials

• Adding a background makes a poster more appealing and fills the white space of the poster board. However, the background must not overpower the main message of the poster, but instead should complement the theme. Intensify the visual interest of the poster with accessories that are in line with your key phrase. For example, adding an old-fashioned feather pen and ink bottle can add an eye-catching third dimension to a poster on literature.
  
  

Phrases and Concepts

• Simplify concepts into a few words. Do not cram the poster with sentences and different concepts. Create each poster to convey one specific concept, making it more effective. If the lesson is about novels, create different posters about techniques on how to read, write and analyze novels. For example, the common elements in a novel include the plot, setting, characters, theme and point of view, so use phrases that easily describe each of these elements and create individual posters for each concept.
  
  

Overall Presentation

• The combined images and phrases must always complement each other. Each element, including colors, must be designed to make the most important ideas stick in the students’ minds. Emphasize a word by either changing the font or highlighting it and by manipulating the size and position of the images that you add. Don’t hesitate to use popular concepts and ideas, for example formatting your poster to look like a mobile phone or an iPad or using images of popular cartoon characters.