Business Card WebQuest

Business Card Design
Mr. Bucci - Technology 8
Pomona Middle School
www.bucciteacher.com

Introduction
As a student you share many of the same attributes of someone in the business world. You may meet people in the course of a day whom you do not know and who do not know you.

It is not always possible to spend a great deal of time talking with and getting to know the people you meet. Even when you do have time to talk, people are not always going to remember everything they learned about you.

People you see everyday—teachers, other students, parents, and family members—may not know things about you that you’d like them to know. When business people meet they exchange business cards. These small pieces of paper usually contain a person’s name, the name of their business, and a title or description of the work they do, and a way to contact the person, such as a phone number or address.

Task
Create a business card for yourself. Your card should help others know and remember you. Ideally it should convey a sense of who you are, what you do, or your interests—cheerleader, history buff, teacher’s assistant, class president, hall monitor, avid reader, or the only boy in a family of seven girls!

A business card generally focuses on a single facet of an individual or business. You may be a cheerleader who also raises rabbits and tutors younger students after school. Create a business card for just one of those aspects of your school life or extracurricular activities.

The Process
Consider the following questions when creating your business card:

1. First, decide what you want your business card to tell others.

2. Describe yourself. After deciding on what aspect of your school life or activities that you want to focus, make a list or write a description that tells about that part of your life.

3. Decide if you want a “serious” or formal card or something more light-hearted or informal.

4. Using the Business Card Checklist, list the major components of your business card. Come up with a title for yourself. To put everything you want on this small card you may need to come up with different ways to say the same thing. Look for shorter words in place of long ones. Use a single word in place of two or three different ones. Experiment with abbreviations.

5. Look at sample business cards you or your class have collected. Identify those that have a style you might like to imitate or borrow.

6. Sketch out some rough ideas of how you want your business card to look—including any graphics you think you want to include

7. Using the page layout or business card software available to you, transfer your rough sketches to the computer.

8. To prove that you actually read this, hand in a business card with your name on the back sometime before the deadline and you will receive and extra 10 points on your project. Do not mention anything to your classmates about the points or you will forfeit the 10 points.

9. Print your final design on business card stock, index card stock, or plain paper. Tear apart or cut with scissors or paper cutter as necessary.

10. Exchange business cards with your classmates and teacher.

Resources
Business Card Template - (save to My Documents) use template to make business card using Microsoft PowerPoint

Business Card Checklist -Be sure to Include 8 of the following items listed below in your business card.

11 Parts of a Business Card

Horizontal Layouts

Vertical Layouts

Business Card Checklist - Be sure to Include 8 of the following items listed below in your business card.

Sample Business Cards

Evaluation

When you hand in your business card, attach the Evaluation Checklist (Attachment A) with your answers.

When you exchange business cards with classmates give them the Student Evaluation Checklist (Attachment A) to complete. Your teacher will use these completed checklists (yours and your classmates) to help evaluate the effectiveness of your business card. Be fair and truthful when evaluating the business cards of your classmates as well.

Criteria	4	3	2	1
Required Elements 4 points	The business card includes all required elements as well as additional information.	All required elements are included on the business card .	All but 1 of the required elements are included on the business card .	Several required elements were missing.
Labels 4 points	All items of importance on the business card are clearly visible.	Almost all items of importance on the business card.	Many items of importance on the business card are clearly labeled.	Labels are too small to view OR no important items were labeled.
Graphics – Relevance 4 points	All graphics are related to the topic and make it easier to understand.	All graphics are related to the topic and most make it easier to understand.	All graphics relate to the topic.	Graphics do not relate to the topic.
Attractiveness 4 points	The business card is exceptionally attractive in terms of design, layout, and neatness.	The business card is attractive in terms of design, layout and neatness.	The business card is acceptably attractive though it may be a bit messy.	The business card is distractingly messy or very poorly designed. It is not attractive.
Grammar 4 points	There are no grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the business card .	There are 1-2 grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the business card .	There are 3-4 grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the business card .	There are more than 4 grammatical/mechanical mistakes on the business card.
Following Classroom Guidelines 4 points	Arrived to class on time, used class time appropriately, did not distract others, stayed on task the whole time.	Arrived to class late, used class time appropriately, did not distract others, stayed on task most of the time.	Arrived to class late, was a distraction to other students, and did not stay on task most of the time.	Arrived to class late repeatedly, was not on task at all and was constantly distracting other students.

Conclusion

“The business card... is kind of an extension of yourself. It’s a little bit of giving yourself to someone else.”—Ken Erdman, founder of the Business Card Museum, Erenheim, PA

It is not easy to condense yourself down to the size of a business card but doing so may help you to focus on the most important aspects of yourself. It can also help to develop your vocabulary as you search for new words to describe yourself. It should also be clear that it is almost impossible to tell everything there is about a person from a single piece of paper.