Once you have completed the signup process and you have a project username, click on the link in the confirmation e-mail that will take you to the Gallery Maker page, where you will identify a class with whom you would like to partner. Once you have selected a class, you may contact the class via e-mail using the E-mail Wizard provided. An automatic e-mail will be sent to the class with your information.

If the list of matched classes does not match your preferences or if you want to see an updated list, you can go to the Partner Matching Area and complete another search.

Once you have chosen a partner from the list or from the "Partner Matching Area," e-mail them and make an agreement to become partners. Once the agreement has been made, remove your information so other people who are doing match searches do not contact you thinking you are unmatched.

Communicate with your partner class to get to know one another. Create a time schedule that you both can meet, and work out vacation dates, long weekends, test dates, or any conflicts. Finally, decide how many groups (monsters) each of your classes is going to draw.
(TIP: The fewer the easier)

Begin incorporating the Monster Project into your curriculum by having your students draw their original monsters and then write and/or type their descriptions following the descriptive writing process. Remember to label the author and monster names on each picture to avoid confusion.

Exchange your students' descriptions with your partner class using e-mail. Next, distribute your partner's descriptions to your students and have them read and draw the monsters based on the descriptions.

Writing the Original Monster Description

Have your students type their original descriptions using a word processor. It is much easier for you to create your monster galleries by cutting and pasting the descriptions from the word processor into the description text box in the "Gallery Building Process."

Scanning - Original Monster Picture

Scan the original monster pictures that your students drew. Save them in GIF or JPEG format with an approximate height and width of 4 centimeters. The size is important because large images experience an extended download period in the gallery and an extended amount of disk space on the Monster Gallery Server. It is suggested that you name the files using a labeling system

Scanning - Partner Redrawn Monster Picture

Scan the redrawn images of your partner class's Monsters. As you did with the original images, save them in GIF or JPEG format with an approximate height and width of 4 centimeters. It is suggested that you name the files using a labeling system which incorporates the monster's name; this can make the process of managing many monster files easier and more organized. (NOTE: File names should have no spacing and/or non-alphabetic characters.)

Gallery Building STEP 1.
Adding your class' monster description.

Complete the first step of the Gallery building process. Adding your classes' monster descriptions. You will need to complete this step once for each of your students' original monsters. The information you are required to enter for each monster is: the monster's name, the author(s), and the description (copy and paste from your word processor).

To ADD a monster:

1. Click on "Add/Edit Monsters" on the Gallery Maker page. You will be taken to the class information page where all monsters will be listed, once submitted.
2. Click "Add a New Monster." You will see the Monster Gallery page.
3. Type the monster's name, the name(s) of the author(s), and the description of the monster.
4. Click "Submit Description."

To EDIT a monster:

1. Click on "Add/Edit Monsters" on the Gallery Maker page. You will be taken to the class information page where all monsters will be listed, once submitted.
2. Click "Edit" in the row where you see the monster's name.
3. Make your edits.
4. Click "Submit Changes."

Gallery Building STEP 2.
Uploading your class' original monster pictures.

Once you have done STEP ONE for each of your student's original Monsters, complete STEP TWO for each Monster. This step requires you to complete it once for each of your student's original Monster pictures that you scanned. Follow the steps by choosing the Monster name that you are uploading the picture for and by clicking the browse button to select the scanned Monster GIF or JPEG file.

Gallery Building- STEP 3.
Uploading your partner classes' redrawn Monster pictures.

Once you have completed STEP TWO for each of your students' original monsters, complete STEP THREE for each of your partner's redrawn monsters. (Please note that your partner must have completed at least STEP ONE for each of their original monsters in order for you to complete STEP THREE.)

For each of your partner class' redrawn monster pictures that you scanned you will need to go through Step 3. Select your partner class' name, the monster name for which you are uploading the picture, and click the "Browse" button to select the scanned monster that you have saved on your computer either as a GIF or as a JPEG file.

1. Click on "Upload Class Partner's Pictures" on the Gallery Maker page. You will be taken to the Partner Class information page where all the monsters will be listed, once submitted.

2. Click "My Redrawn Monster" in the row where you see the monster's name.

3. Click "Browse" to to upload the image. NOTE: You will need to locate the file on your local machine or server. You will need to type in the filename ".jpg" or ".gif" if your file does not support file extensions.

4. Click "Upload Image" to upload your image to the Monster Exchange Gallery.

5. Click "Submit Description."