How to address violence in the news with your kids.
TOP PICKS | 21 TOOLS
Apps and Websites for Making Posters and Collages
Top Picks
RELATED
Print | Save as PDF
Faces iMake - Right Brain Creativity
Open-ended collage maker teaches symbolism and revs up creativity
Bottom line: Faces iMake - Right Brain Creativity is a don't-miss art app that encourages creativity at the same time as modeling it.
Grades: Pre-K–6
Price: Paid
Popplet
Minimalist mind mapping to organize ideas
Bottom line: Easy-to-use idea organizer can help with simple mind mapping.
Grades: 1–12
Price: Free, Paid
Adobe Capture CC
Magical design tool extracts colors, patterns, and more from images
Bottom line: The rare combo of "wow" factor and utility, this tool help students recognize and use the designed world around them.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free
Adobe Photoshop Mix - Cut out, combine, create
Impressive photo-editing app focuses on compositing, blending imagery
Bottom line: While it's tackling a slightly niche design need (blending, layering, compositing photos), Photoshop Mix is an incredible tool that makes these processes shockingly simple on mobile devices.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free
Canva
Create snazzy designs in seconds with flexible, cloud-based tool
Bottom line: With stable internet access and enough time to get started, this is a flexible, accessible way to create beautiful designs in your classroom.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Free, Paid
The Noun Project
Think in pictures with vibrant visual language everyone can understand
Bottom line: It's a neat, well-executed concept with lots of possibilities for learning, imagining, and creating.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Free
Flickr
Popular sharing site potentially useful as a classroom photo resource
Bottom line: Make use of some incredible photographs in your classroom, but don't let students wander astray on the site.
Grades: 5–12
Price: Free, Paid
Smore
Create and send simple newsletters and flyers
Bottom line: This is a fast way to fashion basic newsletters and flyers, but it isn't quite as flashy as the competition.
Grades: 1–12
Price: Free to try
Photoshop Express Photo Editor
Top-notch photo editor helps perfect pics for creative projects
Bottom line: This is a powerful, free creation tool from the industry leader in photo editing.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free
Sway
Create dynamic visual presentations on flexible storytelling platform
Bottom line: A seamless transition from design to presentation makes Sway a great fit for presenting carefully curated content.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free
Procreate
Outstanding art tool supports the workflow of seasoned digital painters
Bottom line: For iPads, this is a best-in-class tool with enough pro-level features and technology, and some nice support resources.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Paid
Easelly
Think critically, share creatively with infographic-creation tool
Bottom line: Even though the basic themes and images are limited, when prepared well, this tool can help students connect with content in a meaningful way.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free
Infogr.am
Snazzy, easy infographic maker visually pleasing but lacks design help
Bottom line: The site is a great asset for classroom presentations and analyzing data, but educators need to provide guidance to ensure students learn while using it.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free, Paid
Lucidpress
Collaborative publishing and design tool has lots of options, templates
Bottom line: An easy-to-use mash-up of InDesign and Google Drive, Lucidpress fills a niche for publication creation and collaboration.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free to try, Paid
Piktochart
Add oomph to info with sleek infographic tool
Bottom line: Tech- and design-savvy students will immediately take to this well-designed, reasonably easy-to-use tool.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free, Free to try, Paid
Autodesk Sketchbook
Impressive creation tool for teens serious about art
Bottom line: Gives students easy access to professional tools for creating digital art.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free to try
Venngage
Create impressive infographics with ease
Bottom line: Surprisingly simple way for students to think critically and communicate ideas in an appealing, visual format, but could be a bit more edu-friendly with extra educator/student supports.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free to try, Paid
Adobe Spark
Super-flexible design tool for crafting fab images, videos, and sites
Bottom line: This one-stop shop for creating sleek graphics, web stories, and animated videos is incredibly easy to use and challenges students to think critically about visual presentation.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free, Free to try
PicCollage Grid & Photo Editor
Versatile, intuitive, engaging collage maker yields impressive designs
Bottom line: With some privacy setup, and possibly upgrading to the paid version, this can be an excellent design tool for creating custom collages, teaching graphic design, layout, and photo editing.
Grades: 8–12
Price: Free, Paid
PicMonkey Photo Editor Design
Reliable photo editor built for design and social sharing
Bottom line: A great, social media-friendly option for teaching teens design, layout, and photo editing, but the paid version is more competitive with other tools.
Grades: 8–12
Price: Free, Paid
Grafio 3 - Diagram Maker
Flexible app transforms sketches into pro-level designs and diagrams
Bottom line: A terrific choice for creating simple diagrams or presentations on iOS.
Grades: 9–12
Price: Paid
