At Carmel College on the North Shore of Auckland, our Year 9 Digital Technology class has been embarking on an engaging animation unit. Girls in the cohort began by learning the fundamentals of creating animated GIFs – a creative and visually dynamic way to bring images to life.

Getting started: the bouncy-ball animation

The first task was a classic introductory animation exercise: a bouncing ball. This allowed students to grasp the mechanics of motion, frames, timing and looped animation in a controlled, guided context. By animating a ball bouncing, the learners developed a foundational understanding of how each frame contributes to the illusion of movement.

Stepping up: students design their own GIFs

Once the basics were mastered, the challenge stepped up. Students were encouraged to design their own animations, incorporating more complexity:

• working with changing backgrounds, so the setting evolves as part of the animation

• using layers, enabling separate elements to move independently (for instance a character in front of a changing background)

• experimenting with creative ideas beyond the simple bouncing ball, thereby exercising imaginative and technical muscles.

In doing so, they learnt not only the mechanics of animation but also the broader principles of digital media-creation: planning, sequencing, and refining visual content for a looped format.

Why this matters

This introduction to animation through GIFs is more than just fun: it builds a variety of valuable skills. Students develop:

• visual-thinking: how design elements work over time

• technical competence: using software/tools, layers and backgrounds

• problem-solving: how to make motion feel natural, how to loop seamlessly

• creativity: turning an idea into a finished piece

• digital literacy: understanding how animations function in the digital context.

For a school like Carmel College — a Catholic girls’ college from Years 7–13 committed to developing young women who “always strive for excellence in all their academic, sporting and cultural endeavours” Carmel College – this unit aligns well with both academic and creative growth.

The Carmel context

Carmel College is located on the shores of Lake Pupuke in Milford, Auckland, and serves girls from Years 7 to 13. Carmel College The school emphasises holistic development—academic rigour, co-curricular engagement, service, and innovation. The Digital Technology GIF unit is a fine example of how the school provides opportunities for students to engage with 21st-century skills in a hands-on, creative way.

What to look forward to

Having completed the GIF-animation exercise, students are well-placed to move on to further animation or media projects:

• more complex animations (longer loops, more elements)

• perhaps integrating sound, or exporting to video formats

• applying what they’ve learned in real-world contexts (presentations, multimedia, social media)

• collaborating with other subjects (e.g., art, design, media) to produce hybrid work.

Final thoughts

The Year 9 Digital Technology animation unit at Carmel College offers a dynamic start to the digital design journey for new students. By beginning with something familiar (a bouncing ball) and rapidly moving to creative self-expression (students’ own GIF designs, changing backgrounds, layering) the class fosters both confidence and innovation. In doing so, it reflects Carmel College’s commitment to equipping young women with the skills, mindset and creativity they need for our rapidly evolving digital world.

If you’d like to view more about the College and its programmes, you can visit the school website here: https://www.carmel.school.nz/