Incorporating infographics into the classroom is an excellent way to communicate information in a visual format. I had a lot of fun exploring the various tools presented in the Sandbox. I have used Canva for professional and personal projects. Some items I have created in Canva are library fliers, Twitter headers, resumes, invitations, and infographics. I love how user-friendly the platform is, with hundreds of templates to choose from that can give it a professional look and showcase your personality simultaneously. I decided not to use Canva and explore Easel.ly, and Piktochart. Easel.ly appeared to be the most basic platform out of the three. I believe elementary students would be able to use this tool easily! I appreciate you can create a design without creating an account. There are plenty of graphics and photos to choose from and even animations to make your design stand out. While there are not as many features as Canva or Piktochart, I like the simplicity and easiness of this site.

I designed my infographic with Piktochart. Since it is almost the end of the school year, I wanted to create a design showcasing statistics for my library as a “year in review.” I enjoyed discovering new features, and design options on the Dashboard. Like Canva, there is an option to start with a template or create your own from scratch. I decided to start from scratch to explore all of the tools offered since Piktochart is new to me. I got lost in the background colors. It took me a while to finally pick one I liked and wouldn’t take away from the information. I stuck with three colors and a typeface that is part of a family as an attempt to make the content look cohesive. Some challenges I had was getting used to the Dashboard layout. I am used to using Canva, so it took some time to familiarize myself with Piktochart’s features and where they are located. I also had issues lining up my text and images. I am still unsure if everything is lined up with precision, but I tried my best. I liked that I didn’t have to create an account however, I did notice you only receive two free downloads upon completion of your design.

There are several ways to utilize infographics in a school library. First, librarians can show students how to use infographic tools like Canva, Piktochart, and Easel.ly. Second, librarians can use infographics to explain library policies and procedures and turn them into posters for the library. Third, librarians can work with students on research projects and, instead of writing a paper, create an infographic to present their findings; a specific example is “Opposing viewpoints” of gun laws in the United States. This can lead to meaningful discussions in the classroom. My final idea is for students to create infographics as book reviews. I want to remember to teach future learners about creating infographics to keep your information short and meaningful, color choice and typeface are equally important as images, and be patient and have fun using a new tool!