Experiential learning is not a new concept. John Dewey talked about its benefits in 1938. As teachers, we have all seen the tangible benefits. In this project, not only do the students remember what the word "font" is, but they also learn:
- fonts can be created by anyone
- fonts can be created by "hand"
- font design is a creative process
- new fonts can be added to an application
- fonts are available online and can be downloaded for free or for a fee
- the font designer can assign any character to any key (e.g. emoticons)
This one fun activity gives students a much broader understanding of a simple concept. And because it was done through experience and not lecture, they will remember it for a lifetime. They might not know how to add the font to Microsoft Office, but they will remember it can be done. Here is a link to Font Design lesson plan. Here's an example of the finished project from 2013-14 (by Charlotte):