This was originally posted by a variety of people in Twitter – it comprises of many photographs categorised by people, decade, places, events and culture – it has its own search facility making it very easy to track down images to support any project you are running in the classroom – as a teacher i would find this a really useful resource to support any work i was doing in the area of visual literacy -
LIFE photo archive hosted by Google
Came across this great Youtube video on Joe Dale’s MFL blog. This would be a great starting point for lots of different muti-media activities around the Normans. You could broaden things and use it as an example of digital storey telling for your work on visual literacy.
The term ‘Visual Literacy’ is interpreted in many different ways. For some it means that they undertake work in Digital Video or Animation. However we believe that if we broaden our definition and implement it, then this can lead pupils into deeper learning experiences. The best definition I have come across is on a website ‘21st Century Skills ( http://www.ncrel.org/)
“Visual literacy” is the ability to interpret, use, appreciate, and create images and video using both conventional and 21st century media in ways that advance thinking, decision making, communication, and learning.”
We need to encourage children to view many types of visual material with a critical and aesthetic eye, and encourage them to question what they see. Visual imagery is very powerful. We also need to encourage their creativity with media. To do both successfully it is necessary to base units of work on a rationale which underpins learning. If you are thinking of introducing Visual Literacy into your curriculum you might like to look at a simple rationale (email us) that was used at our own school. This could be a starting point. There is also a MindMap (email us)which lays out the two main areas, considering the pupil both as a viewer, and a creator of visual information.
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Classroom Activity (Goodies & Baddies) -
This activity (email us) is designed to show how easy it is to jump to the wrong conclusion. Pupils work in groups and take a group photograph showing themselves as ‘goodies’ or ‘baddies’. They then crop the photo to show a different point of view. The children annotate the photos to explain their judgments and reasoning. This helps children understand how easy it is to manipulate digital images and makes them aware of the need to observe very carefully and to question what we see. Are we seeing the whole picture? Is it a fair and balanced view? This activity can also reveals their own prejudices and values which can be a springboard for discussion.
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Classroom Activity – Spotlight
This activity (email us) uses the ‘spotlight’ tool on an interactive whiteboard. It is designed to challenge perceptions as more and more of a picture is revealed. Sometimes judgements are made based on pre-conceptions or prejudice rather than evidence. Careful questioning enables pupils to reveal their reasoning in making judgements about visual images.
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Paper on Visual literacy Read the White paper on Visual literacy by Dr. Anne Bamford, Director of Visual Arts, Senior Lecturer in Interactive Media, Art and Design University of Technology, Sydney.
