Story: Mira is making a 15th August poster for her class in Thane. She wants a big, colourful star in the middle, with the words ‘I Love My Country’ written inside it. ‘How do I draw a star in Word, and how do I write inside it?’ she asks her teacher. ‘Let me show you the Shapes tool,’ says her teacher.

You already know that Word 2016 provides different formatting tools to format the content of documents. In Word, you can also work with graphics. There are three basic types of graphics: Shapes, WordArt and Pictures. You can also format the graphics with colours, patterns, borders and other effects.

Word 2016 comes with a set of readymade shapes that you can use in your document. A shape is a drawn picture that can be created from lines, curves, rectangles and other objects. You can resize, rotate, flip, colour and combine shapes with other shapes to make more complex shapes. The Shapes command on the Insert tab contains several categories of shapes, including Lines, Basic Shapes, Flowchart, Stars and Banners and Callouts.

To draw a shape from the Shapes command: Step 1 Click on the Insert tab. Step 2 Click on the Shapes command in the Illustrations group. The drop-down menu opens with a list of categories of shapes. Step 3 Select any shape from the available categories. Step 4 Click and drag the mouse pointer in the document area to draw the selected shape. Release the mouse button when the shape of the desired size appears.

Word 2016 also allows you to write text inside a shape. Step 1 Right-click inside the shape and select the Add Text option from the pop-up menu. The cursor will appear inside the shape. Step 2 Type the text and then click anywhere on the screen outside the shape. The text appears in the shape.

Mira draws her star shape, but it is plain grey. She wants it in saffron, white and green, the colours of the Indian flag, and she wants it to look raised, like a badge. Word 2016 lets her do both: change the shape’s colours and add special effects.

Word 2016 allows you to format shapes by changing the outline colour and fill colour of the shapes. It also allows you to add different types of shape effects, such as 3-D and bevel.

To fill the colour and change the outline colour around a shape: Step 1 Click on the shape to select it. Click on the Format tab. Step 2 Click on the Shape Fill command in the Shape Styles group to fill the shape, OR click on the Shape Outline command in the Shape Styles group to change the outline colour. A colours palette opens. Step 3 Choose and click on a colour.

Word 2016 provides various types of shape effects to change the look of a shape, such as Preset, Shadow, Reflection, Glow, Soft Edges, Bevel and 3-D Rotation.

There are two kinds of 3-D effects in Word 2016 that can be applied to shapes to give them a 3-D appearance: the 3-D Rotation Effect and the Bevel Effect.

To apply the 3-D Rotation effect: Step 1 Select the shape. Click on the Format tab. Step 2 Click on the Shape Effects command in the Shape Styles group. A drop-down menu appears. Step 3 Place the mouse over the 3-D Rotation option from the menu. A submenu appears. Step 4 From the submenu, select the desired rotation effect.

Bevel adds thickness and rounded edges to shapes. To apply the Bevel effect: Step 1 Select the shape. Click on the Format tab. Step 2 Click on the Shape Effects command in the Shape Styles group. A drop-down menu appears. Step 3 Place the mouse over the Bevel option. A submenu appears. Step 4 From the submenu, select the desired bevel effect.

For the title of her school project, Mira wants the words ‘Computer System’ to look bold, slanted and shiny, far fancier than ordinary bold text. Her teacher tells her this is exactly what WordArt is for.

WordArt is a collection of text styles that adds decorative effects to your documents. WordArt allows you to create text effects that are not possible through ordinary text formatting.

To apply the WordArt effect to text: Step 1 Click on the Insert tab. Step 2 Click on the WordArt command in the Text group. A drop-down menu appears with different types of WordArt styles. Step 3 Select the desired style. A text box will appear in the document. Step 4 Enter text in the text box. After entering the text, click anywhere outside the text box. The text entered appears in the selected WordArt style, for example the words ‘Computer System’ in bold, decorated letters.

Mira now wants to add a photo of the Indian flag that is saved on her computer, and a smiley symbol that is not on her keyboard. She learns there are two separate tools for this: Pictures and Symbols.

Pictures consist of photographs, clip art, etc. You can insert a saved picture, a scanned photo, or a picture from the internet.

Inserting a Picture from a File: Step 1 Place the cursor where you want to insert the picture. Click on the Insert tab. Step 2 Click on the Pictures command in the Illustrations group. A submenu appears. Step 3 Browse the location and select the desired picture. Step 4 Click on the Insert button. The selected picture will be inserted into your document.

Inserting Online Pictures: In Word 2016, you can also insert Online Pictures into the document. Step 1 Place the cursor where you want to insert the picture. Click on the Insert tab. Step 2 Click on the Online Pictures command in the Illustrations group. An Insert Pictures dialog box opens with different categories of pictures, such as Bing Image Search and OneDrive. Step 3 Type the word, for example ‘flowers’, in the Bing Image Search box, then press the Enter key. Step 4 Select the picture you want to insert. Step 5 Click on the Insert button. The selected picture will be inserted into your document.

Symbols are punctuations or special characters generally not found on the keyboard. To add symbols to your document: Step 1 Click on the Insert tab. Step 2 Click on the Symbol command in the Symbols group. A drop-down menu containing different symbols appears. Step 3 Click on the symbol you want to insert. Step 4 To view more symbols, click on the More Symbols option from the drop-down menu to open the Symbol dialog box. Step 5 Select the symbol or character you want to insert. Step 6 Click on the Insert button to insert the symbol into the document. Step 7 Click on the Close button to exit.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of an Indian student drawing a blue heart shape on a laptop screen inside Word 2016, cursor dragging diagonally.

You draw a shape by clicking Insert, then Shapes, choosing a shape, and dragging the mouse in the document.

Key idea: A shape is a drawn picture made from lines, curves and other objects.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of a blue heart shape on a Word document with the words ‘I Love My Country’ typed neatly inside it.

Right-click inside a shape, choose Add Text, type your words, then click outside the shape.

Key idea: Text typed inside a shape appears centred within the shape’s outline.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of a colour palette popping out of a Word ribbon, with a paint bucket icon labelled Shape Fill and a pencil icon labelled Shape Outline.

Shape Fill changes the colour inside a shape; Shape Outline changes the colour of its border.

Key idea: Both commands are found on the Format tab, in the Shape Styles group.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of a flat blue rectangle shape turning into a tilted, rotated 3-D box shape, with an arrow showing the rotation.

3-D Rotation turns a flat shape so it looks rotated in three dimensions.

Key idea: You apply it from Format tab → Shape Effects → 3-D Rotation.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of a flat round button turning into a raised, rounded-edge button with a shiny highlight, like a real push-button.

Bevel adds thickness and rounded edges, making a flat shape look raised.

Key idea: You apply it from Format tab → Shape Effects → Bevel.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of the plain words ‘Computer System’ transforming into bold, blue, decorated WordArt letters with a glow.

WordArt turns plain text into decorative, stylised text for titles and headings.

Key idea: Find the WordArt command in the Text group on the Insert tab.

Image prompt: Flat illustration split in two: on the left a folder icon with a saved photo being inserted into Word, on the right a Bing search box typing ‘flowers’ with photo results appearing.

A Picture from a File comes from your computer; an Online Picture is searched for on the internet.

Key idea: Both commands are in the Illustrations group on the Insert tab.

Image prompt: Flat illustration of a Word document with a tick mark, a pointing hand and a smiley symbol being inserted from a Symbol dialog box, Wingdings font shown.

Symbols are special characters, like a tick mark or pointing hand, not found on the keyboard.

Key idea: Use the Symbol command in the Symbols group, and click More Symbols for extra choices.

Aman adds a rectangle shape to a Word document for his school timetable project. He does not like its plain grey colour, but he does not know how to change it, so he decides to just leave it as it is and moves on to typing the rest of his timetable. His classmate Rohan notices the grey box while helping him and tells him that Word has an easy tool for exactly this problem, hidden inside a tab that only appears on the ribbon once a shape has actually been clicked and selected.

Questions

1. Which tool should Aman use to change the colour inside his shape?
2. On which tab is this tool found?
3. What is the name of the tool that changes only the border colour of a shape?
4. Why did this Format tab not appear for Aman at first?
5. Name one shape effect Aman could also try, besides changing the colour.

Tara is creating a birthday invitation for her friend in Word. She has already typed the party details neatly at the top of the page, and now she wants to add a picture of a cake that is saved in her computer’s Pictures folder, right below the text, so the invitation looks festive and complete. She is not sure which command to use, since she has heard of both Pictures and Online Pictures in her computer class and is confused about which one actually fits her situation.

Questions

1. Which command should Tara use, since her cake picture is already saved on her computer?
2. Where would the inserted picture appear in her document?
3. Which tab and group is this command found in?
4. If Tara instead wanted a cake picture from the internet, which command should she use?
5. Name one thing Tara must do before clicking Insert, in either method.

Priya’s teacher in Pune asks the class to prepare a one-page project on a freedom fighter, with a bold, decorated title at the top of the page. Priya types ‘Rani Lakshmibai’ in plain letters using the same font as the rest of her paragraph, but her teacher says the title should stand out far more, like a real poster headline, not blend in with the body text underneath it. Priya suddenly remembers a graphics tool from her computer class that makes titles look truly special.

Questions

1. Which tool should Priya use to make her title stand out?
2. In which tab and group is this tool found?
3. What has to happen after Priya chooses a style from this tool’s menu?
4. Why can bold formatting alone not give the same result as this tool?
5. Name one other graphic Priya could add to decorate her project further.

For an art and computer class activity, students in Class 5 must draw a smiley face circle shape and then insert a tick mark symbol right next to it, to show that their work is fully complete and ready for checking. Karan draws the circle easily using the Shapes command, but when he looks carefully at his keyboard for a tick mark key, he cannot find one anywhere, no matter how many keys he checks. His teacher reminds the whole class that some special characters are simply never printed on an ordinary keyboard.

Questions

1. Why can Karan not find a tick mark key on his keyboard?
2. Which command should Karan use to insert the tick mark?
3. In which group of the Insert tab is this command found?
4. What should Karan click if the tick mark is not visible in the first drop-down menu?
5. What must Karan click at the very end, after inserting his symbol?

For a creativity activity, Meera’s class must design a ‘magical treasure map’ using Word graphics, with shapes, symbols and decorated text scattered across the page. Meera draws an arrow shape pointing to an ‘X marks the spot’ location, but it looks completely flat and a little boring next to her friend’s map, where the arrow looks raised and shiny, almost like a real wooden signpost rather than a flat drawing. Curious, Meera asks her friend exactly how she managed to give her arrow that raised, three-dimensional look.

Questions

1. Which shape effect gives an arrow a raised, thickened, rounded-edge look?
2. On which tab must Meera click the shape first?
3. Which command in the Shape Styles group leads to this effect?
4. What appears after Meera hovers over this effect’s option in the menu?
5. Name one other type of graphic Meera could add to make her treasure map even more creative.