How to Create Your Own Academic Award Certificate
Recognizing achievement in the classroom is a way to sustain students' interest throughout the school year. There are award templates available for free download or purchase online. Blank certificates can also be found at local office supply stores. Choosing to create your own academic award certificate rather than purchasing one can be economical and allow the certificate to be customized. An academic award can be made with any word processing program and a printer.
Things You'll Need
- Word processing program
- Paper
- Printer
- Unfilled, pre-printed certificates (if desired)
Instructions
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Create a new document in the word processing program, name the file so it will be easy to find on the hard drive and save it to an appropriate directory.
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Select "File" > "Layout" > "Landscape," and then save the changes.
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Open "Format" > "Document" > "Margins," and set all the margins to 1 inch. Save the changes to the margins.
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Select "View," then click the option to open the "Format Palette" or "Add Borders and Shading." Highlight the border style that is desired and save the changes.
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Click inside the border to set the beginning position for the text. Select "Format" > "Text" > "Align Center" before beginning to type.
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Type in the text as it should appear on the award. Skip a line between the award title, the recipient's name, the date of the award and any other information to be included.
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Highlight each line of text and change the font and size as desired so the text is clearly able to be read and fills the page. The award title is typically in the largest font size and is a different font style from the rest of the text. The recipient's name should also be large (but not as large as the title). All other text should be in a font smaller than the recipient's name. Save the document when done.
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Insert any appropriate clip art onto the page to add a graphic element to the award.
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Save the document, and then print the award. Review the print and make any adjustments to the position of the award text and graphics as desired. Print the final copy.
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Tips & Warnings
Use the "WordArt" formatting option, if the program offers it, to create award title text that is curved, or has a shadow, or other special properties.
Check for spelling errors, especially if using an ornate font that is hard to read. Having to take back an award to fix an error in the spelling of the recipient's name can be embarrassing.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Blank award certificate form image by Stasys Eidiejus from Fotolia.com
