Lesson 16: A4 — The Final Poster
Pre A Level Art & Design · Unit 4 · U4·L2 · ← L15 | L17 →
At a glance
| Session | W17, one Wednesday double (~90 min) — the last teaching session before the winter break |
| Date | Wed 2026-12-23 |
| Focus | A4 sat: the final poster made in class, handmade or digital, plus the reflection |
| Deliverable | The final poster + reflection, submitted at close; thumbnails and type studies in the sketchbook as process |
| Feeds | A4 is the semester’s fourth attainment; the work returns as portfolio material at W19 |
| Homework | Over the break: keep the sketchbook alive (2–3 pages a week — A5 collects it on Jan 6); read the portfolio spec; MB posting |
Goal
One double, one poster, made from your decided thumbnail — the design thinking happened last week, so today’s ninety minutes are execution with judgment. The standard is the unit’s own test: pin it up, walk back three meters, count three seconds. If the message doesn’t land in that window, no amount of craft saves it.
How it runs
- Set-up (5 min) — the criteria are on the board: hierarchy · typography · message · audience. Bring your circled thumbnails; take paper and pens or a lab machine depending on your chosen route.
- Studio (65 min) — the build, with two standing checks. At 20 minutes, the squint test: pin up or zoom out, three meters, what reads first? If it isn’t the message, fix hierarchy before finishing anything. At 45 minutes, the type pass: the title in its final voice, secondary text smaller than feels polite. Text sets last. If you are working digitally, save the layered working file; if handmade, photograph the near-final state.
- Reflection (10 min) — one page. Frames you can use: “My poster is for [audience] and says [message]” / “The first thing you read is … because I … ” / “My type sounds … because … ” / “If it hung in the hallway I would change ….”
- Submit and close (10 min) — submit the poster + reflection; put your process (all four thumbnails, type studies) into the sketchbook. Then the semester housekeeping: no class the next two Wednesdays (winter break 12-24 → 01-03); Wed 2027-01-06 is the last session — the EoT portfolio and the A5 sketchbook are both due that day. The portfolio spec goes home today.
Assessment
A4 — final poster + reflection, sat and submitted in class. Marking focus: hierarchy, typography, message, audience. Returned with feedback within five working days.
If your class is following the printmaking route, this session is instead the carve-ink-print double and A4 is the final linocut — same date, same notice, its own focus (see the variant). Your teacher will confirm which route applies in class. Register: PAL S1 Assessments.