Our free complete Kid Pix Teaching Tips are sent with the software when purchased from us. The following is an addendum for PCS to those Tips. This article shows you how to put your own graphics into Kid Pix. It shows you how to trim your imported graphics in Kid Pix 3, and it also shows you how to capture any graphic on the screen (such as the graphic below which were all screen captured). I realize that to novice computer users manipulating graphics may sound complicated. But once you've done it --it's easy. And most of the same techniques apply to ALL paint programs.
Your older students and teens will be very familiar with "cut and paste" techniques...or will pick it up fast. ASK FOR HELP.
All the following techniques can be used outside of Kid Pix as well to edit digital photos and clip art for use in flyers and newsletters.
Here's an example of how I imported my head into Kid Pix 3:
First I trimmed the picture using the Kid Pix scissors tool, then pasted the trimmed graphic of my head into Kid Pix 3's Mt. Rushmore background...
Let me walk you through that:
First, you need to know that when you import clip art or pictures, such as my head, Kid Pix will import the entire box-shaped image laying it right over your background. The boxy imported image may look odd against your background, especially if you just want to import a Bible character or portion of the graphic. However, YOU CAN TRIM your graphic using the Kid Pix 3 scissors tool so that only the what you want appears against your background -not the entire box around the graphic (see my graphic example above.Here's the procedure for trimming imported graphics down to exactly what you want:
First, you must open a new project window and import the graphic you want to trim. Second, click on the SCISSORS tool (it looks like the yellow hand with a dotted line circle next to it) and drag your mouse around the edges of the part of the graphic you want to "cut and paste." Third, select "cut." Fourth, go back to the project you were working on and with the background in place that you want and SELECT "PASTE" from the EDIT menu on the taskbar. This procedure will be VERY FAMILIAR to many of your older kids and adults who have used paint programs in other software.
The following is an example of composing a Kid Pix 3 setting using a SCREEN CAPTURE from "Mary and Martha's Bethany House" in the A Walk in the Footsteps of Jesus CD and a graphic of Bildad the Bible Explorer from Good Sam the Samaritan CD. How to "capture" a graphic from your monitor:
1. Pull up any graphic on your screen that you want to "capture."
2. Press your "printscreen key" on your Windows keyboard. This "captures" the entire screen's contents to an invisible "clipboard."
3. Using Windows Paint select EDIT and PASTE. Windows Paint is found in your Accessories area under the Start | Programs Button. This will put your screen capture onscreen for you to edit. Next, (trim/cut/crop) reduce the image down to 610 x 460 pixel size (8.4" x 6.4"). This will make it fit perfectly in the Kid Pix 3 as a BACKGROUND picture you can then import.
I added Bildad using the "How to Trim Imported Graphics" method discussed above. However, I could have just as easily imported Bildad from the Good Sam program using the screen capture method mentioned here, ...then trimmed/cut him out of that capture, ...THEN combined the two images using cut/paste.
TIP: Kid Pix 3 has several "folders" into which you can create and SAVE graphics for later use. Have teens create a stock set of Bible characters for younger students.
How to IMPORT CLIP ART that's in another file format:
Here's how I imported a "TIF" formatted graphic from Bible Story Clip Art CD (in our catalog) into Kid Pix 3.
Bible Story Clip Art CD graphics come in TIF format, but Kid Pix 3 only allows you to import bitmaps (.bmp) and jpegs (.jpg) graphic formats. NOT A PROBLEM.
1. I opened the Bible Story Clip Art graphic in Windows PAINT and then saved it as a jpeg on my desktop. It took about one minute to do it.
2. Then I switched over to Kid Pix 3 and easily imported it.
FYI...Windows Paint is found by clicking START | Programs | Accessories. You might already have other graphic and paint programs on your computer to use. There are free versions on the Internet too.
Kid Pix 3 Technical Help Kid Pix 3 Teaching Tips Kid Pix 3 Ready-made Projects
(a graphic showing you where to find them and suggesting some uses)
Questions? Contact Neil MacQueen at neil@sundaysoftware.com
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