A Day in the Life of a Graphic Designer

We are back from winter break with a very exciting and creative project! 

Many of you may not know this, but my college major was Graphic Design, and design is something I am truly passionate about. Because of that, I decided to create a hands-on project where students could become graphic designers for a day and gain a better understanding of the complexity, creativity, and decision-making involved in this profession.

Logos designed by Ms. Ibert

We discussed how designers thoughtfully combine shapes, lines, colors, and typography to communicate ideas and messages. I explained that graphic design goes far beyond creating logos; it also includes designing flyers, business cards, restaurant menus, posters, advertisements, and more. I showed the students a variety of logo examples, some very simple and others more detailed and complex, and we analyzed what made each one effective.

I also reminded them that designers often use complementary or analogous color schemes because they work well together and make designs more visually appealing. We then talked about the fascinating history of the Nike “swoosh” logo, including how the designer was paid only $35 at the time, something that truly surprised the students.

After that, I shared some of my own work, including logos I have designed for different clients and a restaurant menu I created. Their reactions were priceless: “Wow, Ms. Ibert! You made that? Is it real?”

To make the lesson even more engaging, we played a fun game where students had to look at an image and guess which company the logo belonged to. They had a great time with this activity, and almost everyone guessed the brand correctly, which showed just how recognizable good design can be.

Then came the main challenge: 
I introduced three fictional companies. I acted as the client, and the students became the designers. They had to choose one of the following products and create three different logo sketches, each with a unique idea and concept:

• A video game company called “Woki”
• A strawberry-flavored popsicle company called “Deliberry”
• A sports footwear company called “Fitzas”

Sketches designed by the students

Everyone immediately got to work, brainstorming ideas and putting their creativity on paper. The final objective is for students to choose the most creative and brand-appropriate design. Next week, they will redraw their selected logo on a larger scale and refine it by adding details, using complementary colors, and applying their imagination to make the logo visually attractive and suitable for the company.

This lesson has been incredibly fun, engaging, and inspiring, and I can’t wait to see the final designs come to life!