Graphic Design 101
Graphic Design 101 teaches teens to master the seven elements of design—building skills in branding, layout, and color while developing the confidence to create polished, purposeful work that stands out.
$300
Quantity:
Online Course
Visual Learner
In a Curriculum Kit
Nonreligious
2026 Twelfth-Grade Curriculum Kit
Graphic Design 101 provides ½ high school credit while teaching students how design works beyond simply making things look good. Throughout the course, students learn how designers communicate ideas, build brands, organize information, and create visuals with purpose.
Students watch short video lessons taught by a professional graphic designer, then immediately apply what they learn through hands-on assignments. This is not a course where teens watch videos for thirty minutes and call it school—the projects are where much of the learning happens.
One distinctive feature is the workshop component. After completing projects, students watch guided critiques and discussions of similar assignments, giving them opportunities to see how design decisions succeed, fail, and improve. For many students, seeing someone else revise work is just as valuable as creating their own.
Throughout the course, students work through topics such as color theory, the seven elements of design, branding, layout, and the design process itself.
As skills build, projects become more independent. By the end of the course, students create a personal brand, design a logo, and develop a complete campaign that demonstrates what they have learned.
Because the course emphasizes creating, revising, and evaluating work rather than simply consuming information, it often works especially well for students who enjoy creative projects but need more structure than “make something artistic.”
How to Use This Graphic Design Course
- Start each module with the short video lesson taught by a working graphic designer. These lessons introduce the concepts and techniques your teen will use right away.
- Complete the assignment after the lesson. Much of the learning happens during the projects themselves as students experiment, revise, and apply what they have just learned.
- Finish the module with the workshop video. Watching other students work through similar assignments—and hearing instructor feedback—helps teens learn how to evaluate and improve their own work.
- Plan on completing one module each week to finish in about 12 weeks, or spread each module across multiple days by separating the lesson, project work, and workshop discussion.
- Keep completed projects organized as you go. By the end of the course, many students have built a starter portfolio alongside earning ½ high school credit.
In the 2026 kits this course earns high school credit:
0.5 credits of Graphic Design
Art · 12th grade · Classic and Non-Religious kits
Lesson 2 - Setting up Your Space - Staying Organized / File Management
Lesson 3 - How to Use Common Applications - Digital Tools
Lesson 4 - Elements of Design - Seven Types of Elements to Use
Lesson 5 - Principals of Design - Five Types of Principles to Use
Lesson 6 - Color Theory - Why is Color so Important?
Lesson 7 - The Design Process - Step by Step of Creating a Design
Lesson 8 - Learning the Grid - Following Design Guidelines using Grids
Lesson 9 - Typography - Why Are Fonts and Typefaces Important?
Lesson 10 - Branding - What Makes up a Brand / Company
Lesson 11 - Creating a Campaign - Build and Design Your Own Company Campaign
Lesson 12 - Table Talk - Discussion with Graphic Designers / People in the Industry
Publisher: Film School 4 Teens
Age Recommendation: 12+
Grade Recommendation: 7th Grade+
Faith-Based: No
Consumable: Yes
Subscription Info: 8 months access, 1 student
System Requirements: Internet access
Lessons/Projects: 12 modules
Format: Digital program + Spiral bound workbook
“The Graphic Design 101 program may encourage students to pursue various career paths such as graphic designer, branding specialist, or visual content creator. Additionally, the foundational skills acquired can serve as a stepping stone toward more specialized areas like web design.” Read the Review
Schutle Sweeties Homeschool:
Homeschooling Through High School:
Cummins Life:
“This course has been a great introduction to Graphic Design. It is well-designed, user friendly and fun. By learning fundamental concepts and gaining skills along the way, it helps you truly enter the realm of visual storytelling and design and not feel overwhelmed. ” Read the Review
Find answers to the most frequently asked questions about this product below:
Yes, they are! We have four semester-long courses and one year-long course. Our semester courses are equivalent to 60 hours of course work, and the year-long course is 120 hours. The credit you receive takes into account the course video content, instruction time, and the time the student spends completing assignments and final projects. According to the state you live in, you can determine what your credit value will be.
Yes, it does come with one free workbook per course ordered. We don’t currently carry the workbooks separately. If you would like to order an extra workbook for a sibling, please contact the publisher by emailing admin@fs4t.com.
Absolutely! Working with your friends can be the best way to do this course. Co-ops and classrooms are having a blast doing these courses together. Split up what is done individually and what is done together to your liking. Each participating family must purchase their course and login. The course purchased will come with one workbook, and each family can order as many additional workbooks as needed.
Students will receive 18 months to complete the course. If they have not completed their course, they are welcome to ask for an extension of 18 more months...no problem.
Yes! We like to say our courses are "family-style." Families can absolutely do these courses together, and you will only need to purchase (from the publisher) or print out a second workbook for each additional child. Each student needs a copy of the workbook to fill in the blanks as they watch the video lessons and complete their assignments. When students have completed the course, they will have a beautiful portfolio in their workbook.
All Film School 4 Teens courses are independent, self-paced, and graded by the parent/teacher. They are designed in a way that the students work on their own at their own pace.
The student workshops were developed to allow students to watch other homeschool students go over their same assignments (after they do their own assignments). Like a masters class, they essentially grade their own work.
Graphic Design 101 counts as half a credit of Graphic Design on a high school transcript. To turn its grade into a GPA, use our free homeschool GPA calculator: it works out each letter grade from your student's scores, figures the GPA by year and for all of high school, and prints a grade record for the transcript.
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