Makela, Lee A. (1998). Visual Literacy Exercise. Available online at: http://www.csuohio.edu/history/exercise/vlehome.html
Hi, I uncovered an interesting website today that involved an exercise for the viewer. The site asked you to view 15 Japanese prints (pictures). After viewing the pictures, you were given 3 questions to answer about things you saw in the prints (observations about climate, human adaptations, and geographic features). Next, you were shown the 15 prints again, this time with captions and direction to pay close attention to parts of the picture (zoom-in selections that highlighted parts of each print). The questions were then posed again.
After going through the exercise, I observed that I caught a lot more about the pictures the second time. I attributed this to a few things: 1) I had a chance to go back through the images a second time, 2) I knew what questions I was being asked to answer, so I was paying more attention to details, 3) I had text to accompany the picture, which explained the picture a bit more.
This exercise had me pay attention to the fact that visuals alone probably aren’t enough to make literacy and understanding the most powerful it can be. Images and text together, along with guiding questions to guide the ‘eye’ when viewing images can be very effective for Reading instruction. I enjoyed this website because it had me actually interact with the idea and it made my learning more important.
Annette
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2 comments:
Annette,
This was a very interesting activity. Not only did it make me think about using images to enhance literacy, but it also made me think of the standardized tests my students take. One strategy that some of my students use on the test is to go through and read the questions before reading the passage, so they know what they are looking for. This would be a great way to reinforce this strategy. Also, I always tell them to go back into the reading selection and look for the answer, because seeing something for a second time is very helpful. This activity also reinforces that strategy. I think I'm going to use this with my classes. Great site! My thinking now is, what else can I apply this thiking to? Maybe vocabulary?
Jenn
Hey Annette! That was a really interesting activity. The exercise takes me back to our reading about the brain and how it remembers and stores information. I guess it was correct...the brain learns/remembers best when text and photos are connected! Looking at an image just for the sake of looking at it is nice, but you can LEARN so much more from/about it if you have a purpose for looking at it and if you are given some informational text, or labeling. I would compare this to the difference between strolling through an art museum and actually stopping to read the informational plaque at each display. :o) I guess this just reiterates the importance of planning your instruction and what specifically you want your students to get out of the images/instruction. I still think just images can be great for discussions/story starters, but an activity like this where you are wanting students to compare/contrast landscapes, etc. would be MUCH better with some leading questions and text. This would be a great lesson in reading using context clues and how helpful they can be in deciphering unfamiliar text. Thanks for sharing!
Sabrina
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