📋 Look carefully at both travel guides below
Both of these travel guides were made by students in Year 9. Read them carefully — notice the differences in layout, images, colours, and structure. Don't click anything yet — just read!
i went to spain last year it was really hot and sunny. we went to the beach and had ice cream. the hotel was ok i guess. there were loads of shops and stuff. we went on a boat one day that was cool. also we had pizza for dinner most nights. you should go to spain because its nice and warm and the food is good. i think its cheap too but im not sure. bring sun cream and shorts.
day 1 we arrived and went to hotel. day 2 we went to the beach. day 3 we went shopping. day 4 boat trip. day 5 went home.
things to pack: sun cream shorts tshirts sandals hat swimming stuff towel phone charger
Barcelona is a vibrant city on Spain's east coast. It has stunning architecture, amazing beaches, and delicious food. It's the perfect destination for families who love culture and sunshine.
| Day | Activity | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive & explore Las Ramblas | Free | Wear comfy shoes |
| 2 | Sagrada Familia & Park Guell | £20 | Book tickets online |
| 3 | Beach day at Barceloneta | Free | Bring sun cream! |
| 4 | Day trip to Montserrat | £15 | Take the cable car |
| 5 | Shopping & departure | Varies | Great souvenirs |
- Sun cream (SPF 50+)
- Comfortable walking shoes
- Reusable water bottle
- Camera or phone
🎯 Learning Objectives
🧩 The Building Blocks of a Travel Guide
Every great travel guide has these key parts. Think of them like building blocks — each one makes your guide look more professional and easier to read.
The destination name — large, bold, and colourful
Section titles like "Why Visit?" and "Itinerary"
A decorative frame around the whole page
Photos of the destination with captions
Neat rows and columns for your itinerary
Tip boxes and fact boxes with borders
🎮 Matching Game — Word Features to Travel Guide Elements
Click a Word feature on the left, then click its matching travel guide use on the right. Match all 6 pairs!
🖥️ Word Feature
🗺️ Travel Guide Use
✏️ Skill A: Creating a Colourful Title
Your title is the first thing people see. Make it big, bold, and eye-catching!
At the top of your Word document, type the name of your dream destination (e.g. "Discover Barcelona" or "Explore Tokyo").
Triple-click on the title to select it all, or use Ctrl + A if it's the only text.
In the Home tab, find the font size box. Click it and type 28. Press Enter.
Press Ctrl + B to make the title bold.
Click the Font Colour dropdown arrow (the A with a coloured line under it). Choose a colour that matches your destination — green for forests, blue for beaches!
Press Ctrl + E to centre your title on the page.
🔤 Skill B: Adding Sub-headings
Sub-headings break your guide into sections. They should be smaller than the title but still stand out.
On a new line, type a section name like Why Visit?
Highlight the text and change the font size to 16.
Press Ctrl + B for bold, then Ctrl + U for underline.
Use the same colour as your title to keep things consistent. This makes your guide look polished.
🖼️ Skill C: Adding a Page Border
A page border frames your entire travel guide and makes it look like a real brochure.
Click the Design tab at the top of Word (next to Layout).
On the right side of the ribbon, click Page Borders. A new window will open.
In the Page Border window, choose Box on the left side. Then pick a style (try the double line or 3D effect). You can also choose a colour and width.
At the bottom of the window, there's an Art dropdown — this has fun decorative borders like palm trees, stars, and waves. Perfect for a travel guide!
📝 Lesson 1 Knowledge Check
Test what you've learned about titles, headings, and borders. Click the correct answer!
Choose Your Destination
Fill in the details below — your destination card will update live on the right!
- Add your activities above...
✅ Lesson 1 Checklist
Tick off each task as you complete it in Microsoft Word:
Lesson 1 Complete!
Well done! You've learned how to create titles, sub-headings, and page borders. In Lesson 2, you'll add images, tables, and text boxes.
🎯 Learning Objectives
🔢 Put the Steps in Order
These are the steps for creating a travel guide in Word, but they're all jumbled up! Drag them into the correct order (or use the arrow buttons on mobile).
🔍 What's Wrong With This?
Click each card to reveal the formatting mistake and learn how to fix it.
📸 Skill A: Inserting & Formatting Images
Images make your travel guide come alive! You need at least 2 images with captions.
Open a new browser tab and search for photos of your destination (e.g. "Barcelona beach"). Right-click and Save Image As to your computer.
Click where you want the image. Go to Insert tab → Pictures → This Device. Find your saved image and click Insert.
Click on the image and drag the corner handles to make it smaller. Hold Shift while dragging to keep the proportions correct.
Click the image → click the Layout Options icon (it appears next to the image) → choose Square so text wraps around it.
Click below the image and type a caption in italic (use Ctrl + I). Example: "The beautiful beaches of Barcelona"
📊 Skill B: Creating a 5-Day Itinerary Table
Tables are perfect for organising your itinerary. Here's how to create one:
| Day | Activity | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrive and explore | Free | Check into hotel |
| Day 2 | Beach and water sports | £15 | Bring sun cream! |
| Day 3 | Cultural tour | £10 | Wear comfy shoes |
| Day 4 | Adventure day trip | £25 | Book in advance |
| Day 5 | Shopping and departure | Varies | Great for souvenirs |
Click where you want the table. Go to Insert tab → Table → drag to select 4 columns × 6 rows (1 header + 5 days).
In the first row, type: Day, Activity, Cost, Notes. Make these bold (Ctrl + B).
In each row, type the day number, what activity you'd do, how much it costs, and any notes or tips.
Select the entire first row. Go to Table Design tab → Shading → choose a dark colour. Change the text to white using Font Colour.
Select the whole table. Go to Table Design → Borders → choose All Borders to make grid lines visible.
💡 Skill C: Creating a "Top Tip" Text Box
Text boxes are great for callout tips, fun facts, or important warnings that you want to stand out.
Go to Insert tab → Text Box → choose Simple Text Box (or draw your own).
Delete the placeholder text and type something like: "Top Tip: Book your tickets online to skip the queues!"
Click the text box border → Shape Format tab → Shape Outline (choose a colour) → Shape Fill (choose a light pastel colour).
Click and drag the text box to position it next to relevant content. Resize it by dragging the corner handles.
📋 Skill D: Creating Bullet Point Lists
Bullet points are perfect for packing lists, top tips, or "things to do" sections.
Press Enter after each item to start a new line.
Highlight all the lines you want to turn into a bullet list.
In the Home tab, find the Bullets button (it looks like a small list with dots). Click the dropdown arrow to choose a bullet style.
📝 Lesson 2 Knowledge Check
Test what you've learned about images, tables, and text boxes!
Plan Your 5-Day Itinerary
Fill in the table below with your planned activities, then copy this into Word.
| Day | Activity | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | |||
| Day 2 | |||
| Day 3 | |||
| Day 4 | |||
| Day 5 |
Build Your Packing List
Click on items to add them to your suitcase! You can also type your own items.
Click items to pack them:
Plan Your "Top Tips" Text Box
Write 3 tips for anyone visiting your destination. These will go in a text box in Word.
✅ Final Checklist — Is Your Travel Guide Complete?
Tick off each feature as you add it to your Word document:
⭐ Self-Assessment — Rate Your Skills
How confident do you feel about each Word skill you've learned? Click the stars to rate yourself (1 = not confident, 5 = very confident).
Travel Guide Complete!
Amazing work! You've learned how to create titles, sub-headings, page borders, insert images, build tables, create text boxes, and use bullet points in Microsoft Word. These are skills you can use in every subject!