Visual Literacy

Why Visual Literacy?

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.

In the 21st century, the rapid changes in the way that we communicate are having a huge impact on the skills needed to be a literate member of society. Nowadays, many of us read more screen based texts than paper based. We can access up to the minute news, weather, travel information, even celebrity gossip, at the click of a button. A mere ten years ago, that was certainly not a common activity for most of us. Children can gain a large amount of reading skills by learning to read a visual stimulus. Many visual interpretation skills are the same as text interpretation skills. Children can make inferences and deductions from visuals and justify their responses in exactly the same way as with a written text. One of the benefits of visuals is that the information is accessible to all: very young children; less able readers; children whose first language is not English. We also need to recognise that some visuals can be very challenging to read and understand.

During Visual literacy lessons children:

•See•Listen•Concentrate•Have fun•Laugh•Talk with clarity and confidence•Make inferences•Share ideas•Use sophisticated vocabulary•Modify their work in the light of others comments•Evaluate other’s work•Make marked, obvious progress

Discussion points during visual literacy work

C’s and S’s

•Colour

•Camera

•Character

•Story

•Setting

•Sound

What impact has it had?

•All children targeted showed a significant increase in creative and technical writing ability. •All moved 2 sub levels as a minimum in the space of 1 term. Some moved as much as 1 complete level in writing attainment.•Our children are excited by writing and are transferring the acquired confidence to writing when a visual stimulus is not used.•Attention and concentration have greatly improved. •Our children are writing much more.•Paired work is much better.•Pupil talk is sophisticated and clear.•Ideas are quickly generated•Peer evaluation is well developed and almost automatic now.•Listening skills are greatly improved.

As a result of the raised attainment and improved attitude, we made the decision to have a film centred topic (March of the Penguins) for the winter term in Key Stage 2. Key stage 1 also had a polar theme for ½ a term. All the work for that period related to Antarctica. The film was watched in its entirety at the start of the topic. The film was used to stimulate:•non fiction writing, •persuasive writing related to global warming, •comparisons between sound and visual stimuli to create feelings and characterisation.•story writing, (The penguins from Madagascar were successfully used to create fictional characters in stories.)•poetry, ( Life in the Freezer also stimulating poetry)•letter writing ( to Tony Blair re- climate change) •The Big Melt produced by the BBC was also used to support the climate change work. •Biography of Scott was written using Life in the Freezer as the stimulus•The Snowman was used to stimulate a further adventure ( in Antarctica)- planned by storyboarding then produced using stop motion animation. •A wealth of beautiful artwork has been created – paint, pastel, print collage, sewing clay work, 3 D structures•Wobbly penguins were made using cams to create movement•March of the penguins dance

LiteracyNon fictionReport writingInformation textInstructionsCommentary [narrator for short

section]Persuasive – global warming - leafletsFictionStory writing – adventureFeelings of penguins – stories –

characterisation

ScienceAdaptationHabitatsWeatherClimate changeMaterials – ice changingInsulation/keeping warmFriction movement of penguins on feet,

stomachs

HistoryExplorersNorth/South PolesFamous people-Scott/AmundsenHistory of Antarctica

D&TMoving toys – penguinsCam wheel – waddle

GeographyClimate changeMountainsMap work – polar regionsIced areasGlobal warming – ITV reportsHabitats

Art3D landscapeSculpturesPastel/chalksPen & inkSketchingClay penguinsSewingsMonochrome printing – pos & neg

imagesPress print

PSHEHousehold rulesFamily units/role modelsRelationships – roles within familiesSRE link – mating ritual – involvement

of both parents in rearing youngRE link – caring/ grief

MusicMusic for scenesThemes – match to typesComposition for stop motion

animationPE movement link

NumeracyMeasures – distancesTime scale Temperature – pos/neg numbers

PE / DramaDance – groups – attract/repelBalancing – transfer apparatus

Change of emotions

ICTTemperature – sensors – data logging

– EcologStop motion animation – penguins –

plasticine/clay models

Philosophy for Children & Speaking & Listening

Is the world changing?Are we committed to anything like

penguins are?

Freeze frames are used frequently in Visual Literacy lessons.

The lonely penguinI waddled across the heaps of snow. Everywhere was silence. Long icicles were growing on the snowy mountains. I felt very weak. I felt cold breeze going through my beak. I smelled a salty smellfrom under the ice. There was silence, but every now and again quietnoises came. I heard my claws crushing the snow every second.My feet were getting tired; I got down on my belly and slid on the ice.I was trying to find some other penguins, I felt so lonely. Then I suddenlysaw another penguin at the horizon. In excitement I got up on my feet andtried to walk faster. The penguin was getting further and further away.My feet were getting cold, and also tired and lazy. When I got the hang of my feet being very tired I started to catch up with the penguin at the horizon. Then I saw the penguin’s face. It was a strange suspicious face.Then the penguin looked at me. He just stared; it was like he was a statue.I was right in front of him waiting for him to say something. He was very fluffy.Then he said something “hi”. “Hi” I replied. “My name is mumbles,” he said.“My name is Clogs,” I said. I wasn’t certain if I should have told a penguin my name when I don’t even know them. “What’s your name?” mumbles said. “I have already told you haven’t I?” I asked. “Oh yeah!” he replied to me sounding a bit embarrassed. I carried on walking through the snow, hoping he wouldn’t follow me. And very quietly he followed me. I am a kind penguin. I didn’t want to shout at him. I got very annoyed. So I pretended he wasn’t there, I hoped he would stop following me.

Penguins Fight for SurvivalOnce the baby penguins are born the mums go and get food for them selves and the baby, in order to keep it alive. Sometimes the mums cant get food quick enough and the father will leave the baby and leave the baby to die because if he does not get food, he will die himself.The dad will protect the egg from the hunters that will attack it. Also they have to make sure that it does not touch the floor because it will die in about 2 seconds from the frost. The journey will take about 2 to 3 days to get to where they can lay their eggs without being eaten. They try to get to the thicker part of the ice despite their desperate struggle to get there.Most penguins like to live in Antarctica because they like the weather because they have lots of fat that lets them live in cold weather. Also they have long claws that help them keep their grip. In Antarctica there are not many hunters that eat penguins but some will still try to eat the little babies , the ones that fly will quietly hover over the top of them and wait un till they are alone from the adult and then all you here is the sound of the baby shouting and crying for its life hoping that its parents will come and save it.

We wrote storyboards planning a sequel to The Snowman

Day Learning Objective Teaching Activity Differentiated Task Plenary Assessment

MondayAntarcticAntics

Explain how writers use figurative and expressive language to create images and atmosphere

Read poems from Antarctic Antics to class, giving them the fell of the rhythmn of the poems. Read AN-TARC- TIC- A poemfocussing on pattern and rhythmn of words and fun way it has been written. Raise hands when Tica has been added to a word for effect/. Look at form of poem and use of rhyme.

All children peform poem with partner- strssing the rhytmn and rhyme in poemsExt – write a vese to add to poem following the structure of the poem

Read poems aloud- add in any extra verses

Children will perform the poem reflecting the style of the poem.

TuesdayAntarcticAntics

Interrogate texts to deepen and clarify understanding and response

Read a selection of poems from Antarctic adventures – Look a Tummy sliding talk about language usage, rhythmn and rhyme in poem.

Read and discuss in pairs poems from Antarctic Antics. Pick out rhyming words, repeated phrases, structure words used to effect. Ext – write a poem about Antarctica inspired by style of poems

Read poems written – have they got a pattern and rythmn ?

Can children perform a poem interpreting the content with understanding?

WednesdayLife in the Freezer

Compare the different contributions of music, words and images in short extracts from TV programmes. Choose and combine words, images and other features for particular effects

Visual Literacy - Watch film clips of the Scotts hut in Life in the Freezer. Discuss the 3 s’s and c’s ( story, sound, setting, character camera and colour) focus in on the ‘s’ for setting. Brainstorm in pairs words to describe the hut Watch the clips again, using the setting sheet to note the main areas describing the hut. Write on the sheet as they watch then discuss with talking partners, adding ideas as they share. Focus the discussion on descriptive language Steal ideas from others as we share so everyone has ideas for every section. Write 3 sentences which could be used to decribe the atmosphere of the hut.AA – looking for sophisticated description giving the feeling as enter the hut. A –describe the hut –see hear smell - looking for adjectives BA describe what they can see in the hut

Take 1 sentence and reduce the number of word in order to create the opening lines for a poem

All children will have a word bank to draw on in next session

ThursdayLife in the Freezer

Choose and combine words, images and other features for

particular effects Clarify meaning and point of view by varied sentence structure using phrases, clauses and adverbials

Watch the Scott clip again. Use the stills to add descriptive detail to word banks. Look at contrast between colour and black and white stills – emphasise that the belongings of those men are still in the hut , their memory is still there. the black and white stills almost ghost the people who died. Introduce the structure of the poem we are going to write from the clip – we are going to be the person finding the empty hut for the first time in many years. We are going to describe our discoveries step by step, feeling the memories of those explorers in everything we can see. Model writing a repeated line which will end each verse of poetry – The wind whispers voices of men lost long ago. Discuss the structure of the poem and the sad feeling as we see more of the mens lives

All write the repeated line to from the structure of the poemShare and improve AA – continue write poetry to own structure – using word bank as supportA use frame to structure poem - computersBA use frame to structure poem – adult support

Read examples of poems – do we feel the sadness of the empty hut? who has used effective phrases? why do we like what has been written?

All children will have a clearly structured poem describ ing feelings at base camp

Friday Clarify meaning and point of view by varied sentence structure using phrases, clauses and adverbials

Read examples of poems from yestserday . Identify areas where language use and description can be improved. Take out unnecessary words. substitute more effective words.

Continue with poems as yeasterday – use computers to present work

Read completed poems- share as a class, picking out areas where description has been used for good effect

All children wil have poem which has descriptive feel and repetetive structure

Grammar SpellingDistinguish the spelling and meaning of common homophones

Handwritingwords with ee ea join

Imagine you are the first person the discover Scott’s base camp since they died in 1912. You are walking towards the wooden hut.

Sound

Setting

Story

Describe the sound of the door opening.

How does the handle feel?

What can you hear?

Describe what you can see as you approach the shelf. How do you feel? What can you hear?

Imagine the atmosphere around the table

Pulling the heavy sledge behind them, ….

Scott’s Base CampLonely hut,

Whispers in the distance,Howling wind

Breaks my heart.Dusty door,

Ragged cloth,Dusty floorboards,Breaks my heart.Rusty tin cans,

Sharpening toolsTidy clothes,

Breaks my heart.Crowded table,Gorgeous food,

Hungry men,Breaks my heart.

By Thomas Year 4

Old, rusty door leads me into the hut,Haunted sounds whistle in my ears,Feeling nervous and determined to go in,Creaky doors, creaky floorboards,I wish they would stop creaking.Rotting wood with tins piled high,Jars rattling and wobbling side to side,Breathless and daring to move,Creaky doors, creaky floorboards,I wish they would stop creaking.Wrinkled boots hanging from beds,Empty table where men used to eat,Dusty chairs waiting to be sat on,Creaky doors, creaky floorboards,I wish they would stop creaking.By Daniel Year 3

Children’s reactions to Visual Literacy

‘When we started it I thought that I would not like it, but I found out that it is more fun than I expected it to be. I like writing about the characters in the film.’

‘In visual literacy we get to watch films and we get to make up our own characters for stories and its really fun. I think visual literacy is my favourite subject because mrs denyer makes it fun for us and picks films that we like and she doesn’t ask us what films we like she has a good guess of what we do like.’

‘I think ever since we started visual literacy we all enjoyed writing. It is something I look forward to every single day after break. We enjoy the choice of the films we watch and I love writing about the characters personalities. It is always fun and fascinating. Every day when I come home from school I have a happy smile on my face. Everybody in Class 3 also enjoys it too.’