ECT 360: EDUCATIONAL MEDIA AND MICROTEACHING

1. LETTERING
Communication is the art of passing information, message, ideas, concepts, values, etc. to people
either in signs, writing or orally. Indeed, lettering is the art of writing or constructing alphabets
letters from A – Z. Therefore, lettering is an aspect of communication. The letters of the
alphabets are used purposefully for functional reasons such as decorate surfaces in singular form,
words or as phrases. It is also the systematic way of designing and constructing alphabets letters
with or without aids.

Objectives

By the end of this topic, you should be able

to:

(i) write alphabets letters in Gothic, Roman and in Italic forms;

(ii) define the word lettering;
(iii) construct alphabet letters from (A – Z) in both upper and lower case letters;
(iv) list the classes of letters with examples.

Types of Lettering

Letterings are classified into two, namely:

(i) The block letters, and

(ii) The scripts letters.
Block letters are constructed while scripts are freehand written letters. The art of freehand
lettering is known as calligraphy.

(1) The Block Letters: The block letters are subdivided into Gothic and Romans.

(a) Gothic are uniformly thick and rigid. They have no projectives or serifs.
Examples are:

etc. ;

They are usually used for signposts, posters, bill boards, etc. the letters are
readable from a far distance.

(b) Romans: The roman letters are romantic in nature because they are usually
attractive to the eyes. Their thickness varies as the horizontal strokes are rather
thinner than the vertical strokes. The letters have some ornamental projections
called serifs. Examples are:

A B C
Roman letters are suitable for printing textbooks, magazines and newspapers. The
Holy books, journals, periodicals and important texts use roman letters.

(2) The Scripts: These are freehand letters which are further classified into two, namely:

(a) Italics which are either caps or low and are always seen tilted to the right e.g.

A B C etc.

a, b, c, d, e

They are normally used to lay emphasis on points being made and to open up
paragraphs in some books.

(b) The old English Text: These are very complex and ornamental letters used to
open up paragraphs or chapters in the Holy books e.g.

A B C etc.
a, b, c etc.
 Letter Classification

LETTER (A – Z)

Blocks Scripts

Gothic Romans Old English Text Italics

The classes of letters are either bold or thin, they are represented in upper capital (caps)
in the or lower case (low) form.

Qualities of Good Lettering

(a) Suitability

The form or character of the letters chosen must be suitable for its purpose. Arrangement
and emphasis on each letter are also important.

(b) Legibility

The letters constructed must be readable, simple and should be arranged in orderly
manner without losing its beauty. A letter with good contrast with the background makes
reading easier.

(c) Good Spacing

Letters must have good space. It must not be too close or too wide apart. When they are
too close, reading becomes difficult. Likewise, when they are too wide apart, they are no
longer united. The character of letters, their weight, and width often determine the
amount of reasonable space between them. Letter ‘O’ and ‘I’ spaces are different, while
‘O’ and ‘I’ can be used as standard for spacing.

Instruments and Materials for Lettering

(i) Pencils: They are of different grades, namely:

(a) Soft pencil e.g. B series – 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, etc.
(b) Hard pencil – these are types of pencils used in drawing, most especially on hard
surfaces, plywood, hardwood, cardboard, etc. e.g. H, and HB of different grades.

(ii) Lettering pens

(iii) Drawing board
(iv) T – Square
(v) Donkey chair (usually used in the studio)
(vi) A Triangle
(vii) Metal rule
(viii) Thumb pins
(ix) Drawing ink
(x) Drawing paper
(xi) Tempo markers etc.

Lettering Production (Techniques)

There are different techniques in lettering construction and production. A discussion on some of
them are now presented.

(i) Grid Technique

This is an effective way of enlarging letters or images such that all parts of the letter /
image remain proportional to the original letter. With this method, small letters can be
enlarged.

The procedures involved are:

(a) Mounting the letters/images to be enlarged on a sheet of paper. Use tracing paper
to lift the letters/images;
(b) Draw grid or square lines across the letters/images to be enlarged, number the
gridlines vertically and horizontally;
(c) Determine the size of magnification or enlargement to be used. It could be twice,
thrice, or six times of the original size;
(d) Prepare the surface clipboard or paper on which you want the image transferred.
The size of the square will be determined by the size and complexity of the letter
or image;
(e) For the enlargement, mark off the surface on which you want the image
transferred with the same number of enlarged squares. For example, if the letter
is to be five times the original letter, the enlarged squares should be five times as
large;
(f) Then, draw the outline of the letter or image in the corresponding larger square at
a time;
(g) Use tempo marker or dark pencil to shade the letter at the end of the transfer;
(h) Clean off the grid or square lines thereafter.

(ii) Projection Technique

This is used where a big display type is required. The object to be enlarged is inserted
into the machine or projector (opaque, overhead, slide, enlarger, etc.).

Paste the surface on which the image or letter is to be transferred on the wall or floor.
Make sure it is tight to prevent movement. Focus clearly the image to ensure the desired
clarity after obtaining the required size.

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 Trace the outline of the projected letter with pencil. Use ruler for straight lines of the
letter or diagram.

Remove from the floor or wall and trace out boldly before completing it as desired.

(iii) Stenciling

The technique involves the use of stencils which are usually metals, plastics and paper.
They come under different trade mark names such as Oxford and Templates. Stencils are
“templates” indicating “letters” or “figures” or “symbols”.

Place the desired letter or the alphabet in the desired surface and trace out by means of
pencils, paint brush, felt pens, tempo markers or crayons.

(iv) Sticking

There are custom-made or commercially produced letters popularly known as lettra sets.
They come in different sizes, colours, arid type faces. The only thing to do is to transfer
your object, image or letter into the desired surface by rubbing on the letters which
eventually stick to the prepared surface..

(v) Dry transfer

Dry transfer is known as Rub-on, press-on or transfer type. It is about the most modern
technique. The letters usually come in different sizes, faces and colours. The letters
(made up of carbon and wax) are printed on a plastic acetate or polyethylene carrier
sheets. The letters can be transferred to any dry surface such as paper, glass, metal or
wood by rubbing with the aid of a dull pencil or used ball point pen.

(vi) Letter guide lettering system.

WORKING SPACE

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 The Place of Lettering in Media Production

A without the aid of an instrument. Therefore, lettering is an essential aspect of visual media
which conveys the written message. Apart from a few exceptions, practically all visual media
such as graphs, charts, posters, map, transparencies, etc. require either lettering or printing in
form of titles, captions, labellings, and footnotes. Thus, lettering is an indispensable topic to
everyone engaged in visual communication particularly the teachers. Lettering helps to identify,
label, emphasise, explain, clarify and reinforce, and often they are used to add supplementary
information. Lettering aids in reading and writing. It comes in words and sentences forms.

Conclusion

Lettering is an art of writing and constructing alphabets letters from A – Z. This unit discusses
the types of lettering which are basically blocks and scripts, these are further subdivided into
Gothics, Romans and Italics and Text respectively.

Lettering is an aspect of visual media which are used to convey written information and
messages. This could be on media such as charts, graphics, posters, maps, transparencies, etc.
The way you write speaks a lot about you. There is therefore the need for you to encourage your
students to write legibly and neatly. Practice should be encouraged on the part of the students.

Lettering are aspect of visual media which are used to convey written information and messages.
It could be on media such as charts, graphs, posters, map, transparencies, etc. Lettering helps to
identify, label, emphasise, explain, clarify and entertain.

Inclusion, lettering helps to identify, label, emphasise, explain, clarify, notify, in fields of human
communication.

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