Visual learning is a teaching and learning style in which ideas, concepts, data, and information are associated with images and techniques.

From a psychological standpoint it is a type of sensory learning controlled by the cortical visual areas of the brain.

Visual thinking and learning utilize graphical

ways of working with ideas and presenting

information.

Research in both educational theory and

cognitive psychology tells us that visual

learning is among the very best methods for

teaching people of all ages how to think and

how to learn.

Learning Style Effective Techniques

Visual Pictures, images, spatial

understanding

Auditory Sound and music

Kinesthetic Body, hands, sense of touch

Verbal Words (in speech and writing)

Logical Logic, reasoning, systems

Social In groups or with other people

Solitary Alone and use self-study

Learning-styles-online.com

Widely Used

Universal

Effective

Communicate Quickly

Simple Techniques

Allan Paivio proposes

that we process verbal

and visual information

differently.

From an era

approximately 40,000

years ago, man began

using images that they

painted on cave or rock

walls and ceilings to tell

their story.

Early written symbols based on

pictograms and ideograms.

Developed in a logographic writing

system around 5000 BC.

Ideograms are used today in main

stream society in airports and other

environments where a person may be

unfamiliar with the language.

• In ancient Egypt around 2000 BC, the first pure alphabet was

created.

• The Phoenician alphabet was the first alphabet that was based on

the principal that one sign represents one spoken sound.

• This Greek adaptation of vowels into their alphabet made it the

world‟s first true alphabet.

• The Romans, several hundreds of years later, refined the Greek

alphabet for the uppercase alphabet that is known today.

Medieval Europe held in it‟s time frame some

of the greatest book designers that ever lived

and some of the most beautiful books the

world has ever known. These books became

to be known as the Illuminated Manuscripts.

In the 15th century, the printing press was

invented. The inventor's method of printing

from movable type, allowed for the first time

the mass production of printed books.

During the Renaissance, scientists of this era

began to illustrate their research

and studies with images.

Leonardo da Vinci recognized the

impossibility of recording volumes of data,

and translated words into drawings from

different aspects.

As history repeats itself, we may find that a

great deal of information is better presented

visually rather than verbally.

• During Industrial Revolution a unique invention called lithography

introduced an efficient method to book production lead to a boom in

the production of texts.

•In 1826 was the invention of photography. The development of

photographic film revolutionizes visual imagery and communication.

•Modernism entered the popular culture in the 1930‟s. Modern ideas

in art appeared in commercials and logos. A booming post-World

War II American economy established a greater need for graphic

design, mainly in advertising and packaging.

In 1950, UNIVAC, was the first computer

that was designed to handle both

numeric and textual information.

The achievement of this apparatus

manifested the launch of the computer

era.

With research and technology advancing

at exponential rates a visualization

movement in modern computing allows

for more profound insights as well as

enhanced abilities to communicate ideas,

data, and concepts.

History shows that the development of visual communications has

been the underlying fire and drive to visual learning. From mans‟

early cave drawings to the latest in graphic design, we have seen

visual learning evolve from its simplest form to the technological

marvel it is today.

Involve the viewer in the story unfolding

Use emotional and intellectual highlights

Create moments of discovery

Allow the viewer to reach their own

conclusions before having them

confirmed or denied

Make sure you have a story that

motivates the audience to want to

understand it

Trends:

• flashy animated simulations

• advanced, high video quality recreations

• real world simulated examples

Nova. (2009, October 22). The Elegant Universe - M Theory (9/11).

(NewParadigmScience, Submitter, & Nova, Producer)

Retrieved November 22, 2009, from YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb2vWj6ITGo

Students can…

• Be asked to find video examples

• Create and submit their own videos

• View videos related to specific topics

Teachers can…

• Create a library of related video shorts and

clips

• Record their own videos to upload

Live Webcasts can…

• Enable students to interact with

professionals in all fields of study

• Give students the ability to ask questions,

and get answers, live

Construct a track

filled with ramps,

hills, and jumps using

a simple pencil tool

Virtual sledder rides

the created course

until he wipes out

Possibilities are only

limited by physics

and imagination

thrice3baked. (2006, December 23). Calculus Class Line Rider.

Retrieved November 20, 2009, from YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rywU3vi08m0

Created by a student as

a class project

Opportunities in

multiple math classes• -curves

• -arcs

• -lines

• -slope

• -parallel lines

• -perspective

• -parabolas

Bridge the gap between

games and teaching

Student-created

simulations used for

teaching all students

Incorporate games

students associate with

time wasting and showing

students that it can be

used as a learning tool

A Mind Map uses words, pictures, signs, numbers, colors, and other attributes to organize thoughts.

In 1960s, Collins and Quillian developed the theory into Mind Maps. Collins can be considered the father of modern mind map.

In 1970s, Tony Buzan have invented modern mind mapping.

Mind map helps you use your right brain.

There are different formats such as flow chart, concept maps, tree chart, fish bone chart, and others.

They all have different purposes.

There are more than a hundred programs for creating mind maps

Paul Foreman created a mind map for children that asked ”What would you do if there was a monster in the bed?”

From: Mind Map Switch Blog

Xmind tutorial Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ao5GakiCsqk

Free Xmind Software download:

http://www.xmind.net/

(from a Math Teacher’s perspective)

Abstract language/notation

• Not learned in a real-world context

Each „strand‟ = a different course

• Algebra 1 & 2, Geometry, Statistics, etc.

A few “word problems” after the “drill & kill”

Visuals: mostly abstract (x/y) graphs, with

maybe a picture or 2 with the word problems

Two trains were traveling

in opposite directions . . .

Learn math through „real-world‟ contexts

Investigations in collaborative teams

Increased use of visuals

• Clipart, photos, videos, etc. related to the context

• Graphing, plotting, simulation, drawing programs

Use of LCD projector, doc camera, smart board

Powerpoint used for all class activities

• Class instructions, book pages, graphs, pictures

• Links to programs and internet sites

U5, Lesson 1 – The Shape of Things (TATS - p. 326)

a) List 3D space-shapes you see in Biosphere 2.

b) Give at least two examples of the 2D plane-shapes used

to make up a space-shape.

c) Pick a space-shape in this room & sketch it. What parts

would you need to measure to describe its size?

Click pic to go to Biosphere 2 site

• Lots of free & cheap repositories

• BUT . . .

– Searching, searching, searching . . .

(to find the right thing for your curriculum)

– Struggles with computer security, red tape

• New tools to make your own, BUT ...

– How to find the right (and best) tool?

– They take TIME to learn and do!(which we teachers don’t have much of!)

Sketchup example.skp

• To transform data into a graphical representation in order to communicate information, concepts, relationships, etc.

• Traditional graphs, used in many disciplines:

Bar, line, pie, scatter, box, map graphs .

• Countless new ways to visualize data, information, concepts, and processes

A “Periodic Table” of visualization methods at visual-literacy.org

Click pic to go to site

HIV Cases in World & Africa

@ http://www.alwayswithhonor.com/#7439

Click pic to go to interactive graph

• Hans Rosling at a 2006 TED conference

• Shows how world economic and social

conditions have changed over timeLife e

xpecta

ncy

Click pic to

watch the

video

• Jonathon Harris at a 2007 TED Conference

• Visualizing the world’s feelings via the internet

Click pic to

watch the

video