MAKE IDEAS VISIBLE
Make ideas
visible.
A module image, explanatory diagram, and slide sequence make different demands on the tools and on your review.
Brief the image, inspect its claims, then revise
Start with what learners should notice. A wetland illustration might introduce an ecology module; a labelled diagram might explain a specific relationship. A product may use a multimodal model or call a separate image generator. Image creation should not be assumed to follow the same process as ordinary next-text-token generation.
Write the purpose into the picture.
Assemble a 16:9 image brief, then take it to an image-capable tool. This template builder does not generate an image or send your entries anywhere.
Your image prompt
Your image prompt will appear here. Start with what learners should notice, then choose how the idea should look.
After generating: check meaning, revise one thing, compare versions, and write a text alternative from the final image.
Write a brief before choosing a style
Name the audience, learning purpose, subject, composition, and details that must be correct. The image-prompt builder helps make those choices explicit. For a module header, leave room for a readable title and check how the image will crop in its final setting. For a diagram, specify every essential relationship, arrow direction, and label. Ask for the visual form the job requires. A generic illustration cannot establish facts about a particular wetland or campus. If the scene is conceptual, describe it that way in the teaching context. Keep the editable brief alongside the selected image.
Give each revision a reason
Accuracy, clarity, and style deserve separate attention. First inspect the meaning: does a diagram reverse an arrow, imply unsupported causation, or omit a relationship essential to the explanation? Then inspect attention: can a learner find the focal point without being distracted by decoration? Finally, adjust the appearance to fit the course. Change one thing at a time and compare versions against the stable brief. Save the original and describe what actually changed. If the factual review identifies no problem, record that rather than inventing a correction. More detail or stronger visual polish is useful only when it serves the teaching purpose.
Build the explanation around the image
Text alternatives depend on an image's role. A meaningful diagram may need both a short identification and an adjacent explanation of its relationships; a complex chart may need a data table. Review the actual selected image before finalizing its description. For slides, plan the sequence of understanding before producing artwork: introduce a question, explain a concept, work through an example, invite a decision, and return to the goal. A storyboard makes that progression easy to inspect. Keep real text available with image-based slides, and describe essential visual information when presenting. The visual and its explanation should support the same learner task.
PUT THE IDEA TO WORK
Try this in your course.
Brief the image before making it
Specify the learning purpose, subject, composition, style, and what the visual must get right.
Improve it in three passes
Refine the visual for accuracy, then clarity, then style. Change one thing at a time and compare versions.
Storyboard the lesson slides
Plan six slides around one question. Give each slide a single message, a visual idea, and a teaching move.