Incorporating Photography into Literacy
Incorporating Photography into Literacy
I know that my students love seeing their names all over my classroom and it makes them feel a part of our classroom family. So what better way to spice up writing than to add photos of students?
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| One of my absolute favorite projects to do with my students is called "The Best Part of Me". Photographer, Wendy Ewald, went into a third grade classroom and asked students what they liked about themselves. She photographed them and then asked them to write a poem to go with their photo. I have done this multiple times with students in first through fifth grade. I first read the book and then brainstorm with students parts of their body that they like. Students sometimes go beyond just body parts and say they like their heart or brain, one student even said her bones. I always find a creative way to photograph it, since I am so proud of the students' creativity. After we brainstorm a list as a class, I show them how to create a web using adjectives and reasons why they love that part of their body. Students then go back and create a web themselves which eventually turns into a poem. It a great way to get students writing as well as appreciating themselves. I highly suggest you check out this book! Here are some examples:   Some other ways of incorporating photography into writing include: Writing prompt: If I were trapped in a Snow Globe!  Writing Prompt: When I grow up...  Writing Prompt: I can save the world with my own two hands!  In addition to using photos of your own students as subjects for their writing, you can also use any photographs to serve as creative writing prompts. For example: Write a story about what is happening in this photo.  Other ways photography can be used in the classroom: -Photos of vocabulary words -Photos of students modeling correct expectations -Photos of students to label book bins -Photos of students for attendance (students flip over their photo once they arrive) -Photos in social studies to see how others live -First Day/Last Day of School photos -Grass heads (when planting grass glue students' heads on the cup) -Create a class memory book of photos - Have students take pictures and share them to tell a story *Photos are a great way for beginning readers or ELLs to connect letters to sounds and words. For example: they can see that on their friends' book bin underneath their picture it says Grace. Grace starts with the letter G and makes the same sound as G in grapes. Here are some websites you can visit for more information on how to incorporate photography into the classroom: 21 Ways to Use Photos in the Classroom 10 Ways to use Photography in your Classroom 5 Smart Ways to use Digital Imagery in the Classroom Check out Focus Lessons: How Photography Enhances the Teaching of Writing by Ralph Fletcher Photography can be used in the classroom is so many different ways! |
Hi Justine! This is a great topic and I'm so glad you shared this with us. I've never heard of "The Best Part of Me" project, but I absolutely love it. I love taking pictures in general and I think this is a fun and engaging way to incorporate technology into literacy instruction. Students also tend to love getting their pictures taken, especially when they are conducting a project about something they like about themselves; what a great way to build self-confidence in students! I liked how you flipped this around into using photos as writing prompts too. I find that doing this promotes much creativity in students and it's great to see the different ways in which they think. I'm excited to use these ideas in my future classroom!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! Great job on your blog on incorporating photography into literacy. I see a lot of the classrooms at my internship who include pictures of their students on their walls, and I absolutely love it! I really like the project you included called, “The Best Part of Me”, that you said you do with your students. This is such a fun activity and I really would love to try it with my future class! it will be interesting to see what my students say they love about themselves, and it is a great way to teach students about writing a poem or a short story to go with it (also, thanks for the student examples – those are so great)! That is so funny you included the writing prompt, “If I were trapped in a snow globe”, because a class at my internship had done that activity this past school year. I like the prompt of, “write a story about what is happening in this photo”, that reminded me of one of the Try Its in the book. Thanks for a great blog about how to include photography into the classroom with literacy, great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine, awesome post! I really enjoyed reading your post. This was not just informative but fun to read and see some examples from your classroom.The idea of incorporating photography and writing is a great way to sum up the idea of digital literacy in general. The concepts you share from your class are exciting and I can see myself using a version of that myself. One idea in particular that stood out to me was the idea of using photography with vocabulary words. This an interesting idea that I can see being used multiple ways. This can be a lesson and can also be turned into a study tool for any students who may like that type of association. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHey Justine! I really enjoyed reading your blog and was immediately captivated by the picture that you posted in the beginning of the blog describing the project called “The Best Part of Me.” I absolutely loved this idea and thought that it was incredibly unique and special because the students were able to come up with a poem that goes along with the picture of what they liked about themselves. I really enjoyed how you added pictures of what some of your students have written and like how different and creative each one is. I can definitely see myself using this project one day because I think that it is important for students to recognize something about themselves that they are proud of and love. I think that this is a very unique and creative project that I had never seen done in a classroom before and believe that it can be incorporated at every grade level. Overall really great blog, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! I really enjoyed reading your blog. I love the book The Best Part of Me. Every month at my school we pick two or three students to receive a Citizenship Award. We use this book school wide for the first set of awards. It is such an amzing way to see what they choose and all of the beautiful photos to go with it. I love all of the examples of ways to incorporate photos into the classroom. One that stuck out if the first and last day of school photos. I usually do the first day but it would be great to do the last day. I agree, the pictures are so important for all students but especially for our ELL students. I think it is great to have vocabulary word walls with picture support. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine, what a great topic! I have always loved seeing how different teachers use pictures of their students throughout their projects and in their classroom. I really liked the idea of the writing piece "The best thing about me". I remember having so many projects with my own pictures in them in school. Students are always so excited to share their final products with their peers and families. I liked how you included multiple ways for pictures to be utilized throughout literacy. This is so helpful to get ideas from. I also really liked you additional resources I will be keeping these in mind when I have my own classroom.
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! I am definitely stealing some of these ideas for my future class sessions! I think it's so true that students love seeing their name in the classroom because it gives a home feeling. I like how you put pictures of exercises that include the use of photography and words together in one. Bringing these two powerful tools together leaves the door open for so many possibilities. I love how you bulleted ways to use photography in the classroom at the end because it is a great tip list for all educators and is super easy to follow. Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteHey Justine! I really loved reading your blog. It was organized and structured so well. I love the idea of incorporating photography into literacy. I love taking pictures in general, so I would love to use this idea some day. I never heard of the "Best Part of Me" project. I thought this was such a creative and unique project idea. I liked how you used specific examples to explain the project visually and used simple pictures to be used as a writing prompt. I would definitely love to use this in my classroom! Overall, I love how you used photography to create such interesting writing prompts. As you stated, photography is a great tool to use in literacy, in both younger and older grades. I think students would love to do this type of work. Great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine, awesome post! A great way to add a twist to literacy is to incorporate pictures, especially of the students! Although I love this book, I have yet to use it in my classroom. I do however, use other texts to build community and student excitement/engagement in literacy. In March, "All the Places You'll Go" is a great Dr. Seuss text to use in conjunction with photos of the students! Pictures are a great way to get students to write in a perspective that promotes positive self image. The different ideas that you have included on how to incorporate photography are great! I love the idea of showing students a picture and having them create a story about the photo incorporates creative writing - it would be interesting to see what some might write!!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! Thanks for sharing your blog post! I thought it was a fascinating read. I think photos really help step up the game with literacy. They too tell a story beyond words and can be easily incorporated into the classroom yourself and with your students. I never heard of the project you talked about, but it is something I would use in my classroom. I like how you read a book for students to then brainstorm themselves what they like. When students have the opportunity to be creative, they sure do it well! Not only with your project do they write, but add in a photo to bring it all together. Thank you for sharing some photos and other examples! They are super cute and a great visual. I definitely think that taking your own photos or having students take them enhances the stories more as they add a more personal touch. Lastly, I think it is awesome that photos can help ELL’s in terms of connecting letters to sounds to words. I have seen it done before and it is wonderful!
ReplyDeleteGood morning Justine~ Thank you for this blog! I agree that the students LOVE to see their own photographs incorporated into projects in and around the classroom. Incorporating their own self- helps them to take on a more in depth ownership of the writing or project than maybe if it was just a coloring picture. It is important for students to learn, even at very young ages, the importance or noticing the details in images. I have done the Best Part of Me writing activity with first graders and they were SO excited when they saw how the photos turned out! Adding a personal connection to projects definitely enhances "another writing assignment" Thank you for the added information of ways to use digital imagery in the classroom
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this blog and loved all your personal ways of having students write creatively. The one I think incorporated such a positive and engaging lesson for student was , The Best Part of Me, this was something that not only got the students writing, but built self-esteem. The other ideas I love to about name tags with pictures, labeling classroom expectations with pictures and even having the students take pictures of their own.Also, vocabulary words with pictures can be so effective for all learners, especially ELLś. I agree that the more personal a classroom and assignment, the more invested a learner becomes. They begin to feel apart of the class or assignment and a sense of ownership. I really enjoyed this post!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! Great job on your blog post! I immediately related to your post from the very opening paragraph. From my experience, especially as a preschool teacher, I have seen just how much students love to see their names or faces all over the classroom. For very young children such as my preschoolers, it is much easier to do simple projects with their little faces glued on. Reading your blog inspired me and provided us with so many great ways to incorporate photography into classrooms with older students. I loved the project that you discussed called “The Best Part of Me.” I especially liked how you included examples so we could see exactly how this project turns out. This seems like a great activity because it could be adapted to all different grade levels. I also loved the If I were trapped in a snow globe writing prompt that you discussed as well. I have actually seen this done in a classroom and the students absolutely loved it. This was an awesome post with so many great resources!
ReplyDeleteHi Justine! I really loved this blog post. Photography is one of my passions too and have been looking for effective wats to involve my students in something I love. I can't wait to have my own classroom and try the Best Part of Me project. I think it's so important for students to find the good in their bodies in a world that constantly tears you down. I would be curious to know how the first graders' answers differ from the fifth or sixth graders' answers. It might even be cool to make one of my own as the teacher. Another idea that resonated with me is the showing the students a picture and asking them to write a story from it. I can remember doing something like this when I was in elementary school. It made writing much more fun than just writing to write. We got to publish and share our stories too which made everything even more special!
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