visual texts

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1

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BOOK 1AGES 4–7

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts iii

Teachers notes .............................. iv–ix

Curriculum links .................................x

Baseboards for two and three pictures ............................... xi–xii

Blank jigsaw sequencing puzzle ....... xiii

TWO PICTURES

Animals ........................................2–7

Plants .........................................8–10

Weather ...................................11–14

Daily activities ...........................15–27

Celebrations ..............................28–31

THREE PICTURES

Animals ....................................32–36

Plants .......................................37–38

People ......................................39–40

Weather/Seasons ......................41–42

Eating and drinking ....................43–46

Daily activities ...........................47–52

Celebrations ................................... 53

Playing, making and doing .........54–59

Community ................................60–62

Nursery rhymes .........................63–66

OPTIONAL TEXTS ...................67–84

Sequencing visual texts is a series of books which provides resources to support the teaching and learning of sequencing in early years classes. The series supports pupils struggling with written texts and those who need to develop oral communication skills. The series provides background information, suggestions for additional activities, and pictorial and text resources.

Titles in this series are:Sequencing visual texts—Book 1Sequencing visual texts—Book 2Sequencing visual texts—Book 3

Sequencing visual texts

Contents

Foreword

iv Sequencing visual texts Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com

• Page ix provides general information relating to linking sequencing activities to educational research.

• Pages v to vii provide background information including a suggested order for teaching sequencing.

The format of this book

The books in this series differ in the number of pictures provided. Book 1 has two- and three-picture sequences, Book 2 has four or five, while Book 3 has six to eight pictures in a sequence as well as suggested text.

Teachers are encouraged to photocopy the pictures onto card and laminate them for durability.

The books in this series follow a consistent format.

• Page viii provides a list of links for digital resources which teachers may find useful.

• The artwork on pages viii and ix offer suggestions for art and craft to support the teaching and learning of sequencing, and also different ways sequencing may be represented in pictorial form.

• Each book contains one or more baseboards relevant to the number of pictures in each sequence. Some baseboards will be given in a horizontal or vertical format depending on the number of pictures in the sequence. Pupils may use these as a base on which to glue their cut out pictures in sequence.

• Alternatively, teachers may ask pupils to glue their pictures onto a large sheet of paper in a straight line.

• Each set of cards on a page are separated by dotted lines for ease of separation.

• Titles of pages provide suggested language to be used when discussing the pictures with the pupils.

• The pictures are grouped by common themes or activities such as Animals, Weather and Celebrations.

Teacher notes

• Page x provides curriculum links.

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts v

BACKGROUND INFORMATIONWhat is sequencing?

• Sequencing is the ability to identify components of a story, such as the beginning, middle and end, and to retell the events in a text in the order in which they occurred.

Why is it important?

• Sequencing is an important comprehension strategy, in particular in narrative texts. Ordering events (and connecting words) teaches children features of texts and allows the reader to place parts of a story into its overall framework. Through sequencing activities, readers obtain a clearer understanding of the writer’s purpose.

• Recalling sequenced events in order makes it easier for children to recall all parts of a story, not just those which appeal to them.

• Because sequencing helps children examine the structure of texts and stories, writing skills are supported. Early writing activities commence with drawing images and, later, more complicated storyboards.

• Sequencing is the cognitive process of placing events, ideas or activities in a logical order. Pupils must connect pictures to actual objects or experiences then connect one to the next to arrange the sequence. Pupils make connections, determine importance, synthesise information and evaluate choices. They compare and contrast and look for similarities and differences.

• Proficiency in sequencing supports learners as they develop phonic skills to connect beginning, medial and final sounds to blend sounds to create words and identify them when reading. Visual memory is an important aspect of reading.

• Sequencing develops oral communication skills as pupils relate the reason for their selected order or retell the story in the sequence of events.

• Visual learners are supported by images used in sequencing pictures. As short texts such as words then simple sentences are added to images, pupils make connections between what is known to the unknown, and develop understanding.

• The use of picture sequencing helps pupils realise that visual images are a form of text and they can impart information, including emotions. They underscore the importance of pictures in an increasingly image-related digital world.

• Children’s initial steps in writing begin with drawing lines and shapes. To smoothly progress from the familiar to the unknown, pupils need the ‘comfort’ of clear images. As they develop confidence and experience, pupils will be expected to compare illustrations in books and state differences, similarities and preferences.

Teacher notes

123

vi Sequencing visual texts Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com

How can it be taught?

• While it may be incorporated into any curriculum area, sequencing is often associated with early reading. Texts with clear, distinct events are best used; as are those with a clear beginning, middle and ending. This makes it easier for retelling.

• Many curricular areas can be used to teach sequencing skills. Maths easily lends itself to the ordering of patterns (what comes next? after? in this pattern), shapes and numbers (what number comes before 5? or after 9?). Science activities depicting the stages of growth or life cycles reinforce sequences. Steps in a procedure such as a recipe follow a specific sequence.

1. Oral introduction to sequencing

• Immerse young children in literature based on a sequencing (or a cumulative) format.

Some suggestions include:

The hungry caterpillar Eric Carle

The doorbell rang Pat Hutchins

The napping house Audrey Wood

This is the house that Jack built Pam Adams

There was an old woman who swallowed a fly

Pam Adams

If the shoe fits Alison Jackson

Silly Sally Audrey Wood

The bad-tempered ladybird Eric Carle

Joseph had a little overcoat Simms Taback

No jumping on the bed Tedd Arnold

We’re going on a bear hunt Michael Rosen

Seven blind mice Ed Young

I ain’t gonna paint no more Karen Beaumont

Knuffle bunny: a cautionary tale

Mo Willems

Wombat stew Marcia K Vaughan

If you give a mouse a cookie Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you give a moose a muffin Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you give a pig a pancake Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you give a pig a party Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you give a dog a donut Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you take a mouse to school Laura Joffe Numeroff

If you take a mouse to the movies

Laura Joffe Numeroff

Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?

Bill Martin

Teacher notes

Ten in a bed

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts vii

How can it be taught?

1. Oral introduction to sequencing (continued)

• Quiz pupils about daily class or school events to see if they can remember what activities they do on certain days of the week or times of the day.

• Pupils may orally relate the directions in the correct order to tell how to get from one place to another in the playground or around the school.

• Simple repetitive dance steps such as the ‘Hokey cokey’ may be used. Ask pupils what action comes next after each is performed. Singing repetitive songs such as ‘Old MacDonald’ and ‘This old man’ requires pupils to remember verses in order.

• Involve the pupils in process activities such as following a few simple steps to create a dish or complete an art or craft activity.

• Ask the pupils to role-play the steps in familiar activities such as getting dressed, tying shoelaces, setting the table etc.

• With all oral sequencing activities, pupils should have modelled, and be encouraged to use, the correct language. Words such as ‘after’, ‘first’, ‘before’, ‘last’, ‘next’, ‘then’ and ‘while’ will reinforce the concept that events are connected and support grammar knowledge of connective words and the language of ‘time’.

2. Sequencing using picture cards that depict the key events in a familiar story or activity

• Use pictures in hard and digital copies, including cards and photographs, to sequence events in order. Start with two panels involving ‘before’ and ‘after’, or ‘first’ and ‘last’. Then progress to three, four or more pictures. This will include the beginning, middle and end of a story, activity or event. Simple charts such as those depicting the beginning, middle and end of a story or more complex charts such as flowcharts may be useful.

• Letter and number sequencing can be included in this section. However, this skill is more difficult as it requires children to decide which numbers or letters are missing on a number line or in the alphabet.

• Ask pupils to draw simple illustrations of the steps in a familiar activity such as getting a bowl of cereal ready to eat for breakfast.

• Initially, young pupils may be aided by using pictures in a set which link together in order like a small jigsaw puzzle. See page xiii for blank jigsaw sequencing puzzle.

3. Introduce text

• Add keywords or simple sentences to the pictures. Commence with one word then short sentences and finally more complex sentences. Gradually, pictures will be replaced with sequences containing text only.

• Older or more proficient children should be encouraged to sequence strips of paper showing four to six lines of written text from a poem or story.

• After becoming familiar with sequencing pictures and text to relate a story, activity, process or event, pupils may write a made-up story using a series of three or four unrelated pictures.

• Storyboards (a basic graphic representation of a sequence of scenes) can be used as a visual aid to plan or explain a narrative, connecting the visual with the written text.

Teacher notes

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts ix

Teacher notes

General information

• If possible, all sequencing activities should relate to, and connect with, familiar experiences and activities to help pupils connect prior knowledge to new concepts.

• The use of sequencing cards or digital resources reinforces the philosophy of learning by ‘doing’. Pupils should be actively involved as they learn. Games involving sequencing reinforce teaching and learning as a play-based, active learning process.

• Inquiry learning helps pupils make sense of themselves and the world around them as they seek to answer questions. Inquiring means thinking, questioning, analysing, creating, planning and reflecting on answers to questions. Sequencing is an inquiry-based learning activity. What comes next? What happened first? What happened last? What happens in the beginning? These questions all reinforce sequencing as an inquiry-based learning activity.

• Children may work individually, in pairs or in small groups when sequencing, making it suitable as a collaborative activity. Pupils can learn from each other as they discuss and arrange cards or digital pictures.

• It is essential for teachers to use the language of sequencing when working with children as they sequence images. Words such as ‘first’, ‘next’, ‘last’, ‘before’, ‘after’, ‘beginning’, ‘middle’ and ‘end’ should be used and interchanged as appropriate.

• Pupils who are capable should be encouraged to ‘write’ words or simple sentences to accompany a series of sequenced visual texts.

NOTE 1: For all sequencing activities, if pupils can sensibly justify the reason for their chosen order, and it makes sense to teachers, this should be accepted as a viable answer. Pupils should not be expected to order visual texts based on the social or cultural expectations exhibited by others if it is not part of the pupils’ personal experience.

NOTE 2: Optional texts are provided at the end of this book for more capable pupils. Teachers should replace these with others of their own choosing as they wish.

Animals

2 Sequencing visual texts Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com

Before and after

Animals

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts 3

Before and after

Animals

4 Sequencing visual texts Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com

Before and after

Animals

Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com Sequencing visual texts 5

Before and after