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| Overview |
The old cliche "A picture is worth a thousand words" is put to the test in this lesson. While students may not actually write exactly a thousand words, they will have the chance to think critically about their interpretations of the events in an image and to write about those ideas. Simply distribute or show a picture that tells a story and then encourage students to brainstorm words and ideas about the image before writing a story that tells background on the image or extends details on what has happened.
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| From Theory to Practice |
Multilevel classes offer special challenges for the teacher. With the burgeoning
numbers of special-needs students in our language arts classes, including those
who speak English as a second language, teachers need to find assignments that
are open-ended enough for each student. With this assignment, all students can
find success "where they are" as we address culture, vocabulary, voice, and
characterization in specific contexts.
This lesson uses artworks as inspiration for narrative writing. Why use artwork?
As Rochelle I. Frei (1999) explains, art "can be used the same way as written
text can to expand children's knowledge of the world, and to understand what
children do when they make sense of that world. . . . Art can provide a window into
how children negotiate their understandings of images and their knowledge of
the world" (386). In Frei's project, students explain their understanding
of pieces of art, revealing details about their literacy processes and strategies.
The same kinds of revelations, likely on a more advanced level, are revealed
in this lesson, where students explore background actions and other narratives
related to the art they study.
Peggy Albers, in "Literacy in the Arts," believes "if we want children to represent
meaning visually, musically, and/or dramatically, along with their written texts—in
other words, to create a semiotic system—we have a responsibility to teach
them how to create meaning in many sign systems" (8). Albers's work provides useful theoretical background supporting connecting art and writing
in the classroom.
Read More
Albers, Peggy. "Literacy in the Arts." Primary Voices K–6
9.4 (April 2001): 3-9.
Frei, Rochelle I. "Making Meaning with Art: Children's Stories."
Language Arts 76.5 (May 1999): 386-382.
This lesson was adapted from Gail Servoss's teaching idea in NCTE's Standards
Consensus Series book, Motivating Writing in Middle School (1996), pp. 17-19.
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| Student Objectives |
Students will
- demonstrate knowledge of the characteristics of narratives (e.g., sequence, storytelling).
- explore connections between images and words.
- use detailed vocabulary to write their text.
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| Instructional Plan |
Resources
- Copies of a picture that tells a story (see online resources below)
- Chalk board and chalk, erasable board and markers, or chart paper and markers
- General classroom supplies (paper, pens, and so forth)
Preparation
- Find a "Norman Rockwell"-type picture, i.e., any picture that is telling
a story with people and a clear situation. The Saturday Evening Post is
one source for this kind of picture. You can also look at online art gallery
resources (listed below, in the Web Resources).
- Copy the picture for each student and have the original available for fine details.
Instruction and Activities
- Distribute the picture to the students.
- Ask students to examine the picture individually for a few minutes, jotting
down on a piece of scratch paper or in their writer's notebooks any features
or details that they notice.
- Consulting their notes as necessary, students brainstorm about
the possible events and characters this picture illustrates. As students share their ideas, place the words or phrases under headings such as Character, Setting, Situation, and Vocabulary (see example).
This is especially helpful for nonnative speakers, who may need help with
vocabulary and spelling. Of course, this step may be only oral for native
speakers.
- Ask students to write from one character's point of view. They may write
about the character's feelings and thoughts, tell the story that leads
up to the picture, or narrate the events that follow. Encourage students not only to describe the picture but
to invent an original story related to the event illustrated. Students can sketch
out the sequence of events for their narratives using the Time
Line Tool.
- Remind students of the characteristics of narrative writing. You might write the information on a piece of chart paper or on the board so that writers can refer to the list while working.
- Focuses a clear, well-defined incident or series of related events.
- Develops plot, character, and setting with specific detail.
- Orders events clearly.
- Uses description and dialogue as appropriate to develop setting and character.
- Shows events rather than just telling about them.
- Establishes and maintains a tone and point of view.
- Uses a logical and effective pattern of organization, such as chronological order, flashback, or flash-forward.
- Uses transitional words and phrases to maintain coherence and establish sequence within and between paragraphs.
- Based on student need and experience with writing narratives, you might
add one or more mini-lessons that will help students complete their work.
Any of the following items would make excellent mini-lessons for writers composing
narratives:
- If you want students to create a more formal piece of writing, allow additional
class sessions for them to revise, type, and edit their papers. Alternately,
you might have students do simple "first draft" writing, or write in their
journals or writer's notebooks.
Web Resources
The following online museum Web sites provide images of many pictures that
students can use for this lesson.
- Norman Rockwell Museum
http://www.nrm.org/
- The Norman Rockwell Museum pages include background and details on many
of Rockwell's works. Be sure to check the "Current Exhibits" links
for images of the paintings currently on tour.
- American Masters Database of Visual Artists
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/database_visual_arts.html
- This PBS-sponsored Web site includes paintings and other works of visual
art by American artists ranging from Richard Avedon to Andy Warhol.
- WebMuseum,
Paris
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/
- The "Artist Index" to the WebMuseum collection of online images
of paintings, drawing, sculpture, and other artwork provides access to numerous
classic images.
- Online
Tours of the National Gallery of Art
http://www.nga.gov/onlinetours/index.shtm
- Visit the Washington Gallery of Art without leaving your computer! You can
choose one of the many images available as the focus for your students' narratives.
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| Student Assessment/Reflections |
The results of this activity range from a restatement of the vocabulary from the brainstorming on the board or chart paper to a detailed story with fleshed-out characterizations, depending upon the student and his or her abilities; therefore, a variety of finished products may result, each reflecting individual student's efforts.
- If students write their stories in their journals, you might read and simply note things that stand out as specific and well-detailed.
- If students complete multiple drafts of this piece, you could use the Peer Review: Narrative lesson plan to give students the chance to do self-assessment and revise their texts. Then use similar guidelines to respond to their writing.
- For more formal feedback, use the Narrative Writing Rubric.
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3 - Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
6 - Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.
12 - Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
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