1 - Introduction ~5 mins
Welcome
Today you add at most one or two calm motion choices to the piece you will show at interview: your format 1 file. Busy bounce, spin, and stacked effects look amateur and pull eyes off your idea.
You will practise restrained motion on a short practice file first (slides, CapCut, or Canva, matching your format). Then you polish format 1 with the same one-to-two rule.
Format 1 means the presentation, short video, or carousel you are building for VET in {{code:Project_Portfolio/09_specialism/sm2/}}. If yours is missing, tell the teacher now and use today's practice file as a stand-in.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Use restrained motion across slides, CapCut video, and animated carousels
- Apply the one-to-two motion elements rule
- Distinguish motion that directs attention from motion that distracts
Warm-up
Look at the side-by-side on screen. Which version would you trust in a VET interview, and why?
2 - Key Concepts ~6 mins
Motion should serve the audience. If you cannot say in one sentence what a movement is for, cut it.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Motion as direction — a small entrance, cut, or transition that steers the eye to the next idea | Examiners and sponsors notice the message first when movement is quiet and purposeful | A single fade-in on the cost figure in your enterprise pitch so the room lands on the number |
| Motion as distraction — bounce, spin, flash, or stacked effects that compete with the content | Busy motion reads as unfinished work and undercuts a VET interview or sponsor deck | Every bullet flying in from a different corner on a Work Experience summary slide |
| One-to-two motion elements rule — at most one or two deliberate motion choices across the whole piece, not one effect on every object or every shot | Restraint looks designed; more effects make the piece feel random | One subtle slide transition plus one fade-in on the final call to action — then stop |
| Restrained defaults — fade, appear, simple cut, soft dissolve; avoid bounce, spin, zoom loops, and auto-play noise | Safe defaults still look modern and keep the piece interview-ready | CapCut jump cut between two clear clips of a GAA skills demo, with captions already on screen — no glitter overlay |
The same one-to-two rule applies whether format 1 lives in slides, CapCut, or a Canva carousel. Template defaults are not a free pass — they still count toward your budget.
3 - Step-by-step Task ~15 mins
Choose your path only — ignore the other two lists.
- YOUR PATH: Slides → follow the PowerPoint for the web or Google Slides steps on screen (with screenshots).
- YOUR PATH: CapCut → teacher live demo is your click path; the CapCut checklist below is your follow-along script. Pause with the teacher after each item.
- YOUR PATH: Canva → teacher live demo is your click path; the Canva checklist below is your follow-along script. Pause with the teacher after each item.
Everyone practises on a short practice file first — not on real format 1 yet. Save practice as {{code:motion_practice}} inside {{code:Project_Portfolio/09_specialism/sm2/}} (or a clearly labelled CapCut/Canva project with that exact name, with a link or export sitting in {{code:sm2/}}).
YOUR PATH: CapCut (video format 1)
Match the teacher's screen click for click. Practice idea: two shots of a GAA hand-pass drill (wide setup, then close-up of the pass), with optional fade-in of the skill name Hand pass.
- Open CapCut and create or open a short practice clip with those two clear shots (or duplicate throwaway footage). Name the project exactly {{code:motion_practice}}.
- Place one clean hard cut or one short dissolve between the two clearest shots only.
- Optional: add at most one simple text-in of the skill name Hand pass (or keep captions static) — no stacked stickers.
- Open the effects or animation list on the timeline. Delete zoom punches, glitter, flash overlays, and loop stickers until only your one or two choices remain.
- Replay the whole 15–60 second piece once with sound off if you can. Ask: what is each remaining motion for?
- Count deliberate motion choices across the whole piece. Keep at most two. If you cannot name the job of an effect, delete it.
- Confirm the project is named {{code:motion_practice}} and that a copy, export, or link sits in {{code:Project_Portfolio/09_specialism/sm2/}} so it stays separate from format 1.
YOUR PATH: Canva (carousel or animated export)
Match the teacher's screen click for click. Practice idea: a 3-page enterprise carousel — problem, price €3, call to action — with one soft page fade or one fade on the €3 only.
- Open Canva and create or open a short multi-page practice carousel (problem / €3 / call to action) in your school account. Name the design exactly {{code:motion_practice}}.
- Apply one soft page transition, or one fade on the €3 only — not both families of busy effects.
- Select decorative icons and secondary shapes. Turn off loop animations and auto-play motion on anything that is not your one key element.
- Play or preview the full set of pages once.
- Count deliberate motion choices across the whole piece. Keep at most one or two. Delete anything you cannot defend in one plain sentence.
- Confirm the design is named {{code:motion_practice}} and that a share link or export sits in {{code:Project_Portfolio/09_specialism/sm2/}} so it will not be mixed up with format 1.
When your teacher checks that you can name and remove one junk effect on {{code:motion_practice}}, you are ready for independent practice on real format 1.
4 - Common Issues ~4 mins
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| Every bullet animates one after another and the slide takes forever | Select the text box, open Animations or the Motion panel, and remove per-bullet effects. Keep one fade on the whole block or on a single key line only. |
| I cannot find Animations in PowerPoint for the web or Motion in Google Slides | Click the object first (title or shape). Many motion controls only appear after something is selected. If the ribbon still looks different, use the on-screen search or ask your teacher to point to the same control on the classroom display. |
| My CapCut or Canva template added five effects automatically | Templates are not finished design. Delete effects until only one or two deliberate motion choices remain, then replay. The one-to-two rule still applies to the whole piece. |
| Motion plays too fast or too slow when I rehearse speaking | Prefer On Click (slides) or longer holds between video cuts so your voice leads. If an automatic timing steals your pause, slow it down or switch to click/manual advance. |
| I cannot tell practice from format 1 in {{code:sm2/}} | Practice stays as {{code:motion_practice}}. Format 1 keeps the filename you already used for that piece. Do not Save As a new mystery name. |
5 - Independent Practice ~20 mins
Independent Practice
Slides: at most one quiet entrance plus one shared transition style across the deck.
CapCut: open your existing format 1 clip. Keep one clean cut (or short dissolve) between the two clearest demo shots, and at most one simple caption fade-in on the skill name — delete stickers, zoom punches, and stacked template effects. Export or save back over the same format 1 evidence file in {{code:sm2/}} under the name already used (not a new export name).
Canva: open your existing format 1 carousel. Keep one soft page transition or one fade on the key number only; turn off loop animations on decorative icons. Keep the same design name and the same evidence file or link in {{code:sm2/}}.
Play the whole piece once, remove anything that fails the "what is this motion for?" test, and leave format 1 in {{code:sm2/}} under its existing name.
- Format 1 still opens from {{code:sm2/}} under the same filename you already used for that piece (not {{code:motion_practice}}, not Untitled)
- You can point to at most one or two deliberate motion choices in the whole piece
- Each kept motion has a plain-English job (for example "lands the eye on the final cost" or "moves cleanly between two demo shots")
- A full play-through feels calm enough that a stranger could follow the idea without watching effects instead of content
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