Lindsay Kleiman REED 663

Dr. Pitcher Spring 2010

An Instructional Project

Visualization: A Comprehension

StrategyVisualization can benefit readers by building comprehension and interest, creating motivation, guiding readers in their ability to discuss what they have read, and fostering an enjoyment of reading.

Visualization can help struggling readers make connections to abstract information, in order to make meaning of what they have read.

Teaching Visualization through Gradual

ReleaseThe purpose of my project was two-fold: I wanted my 10th grade English students to improve their reading comprehension, and I also wanted to teach them how to use more creative detail in their writing. I felt that visualization strategies could help with both of these goals.

There are a number of strategies that are effective for teaching visualization. For this instructional project, I selected two to focus on. For the first two days of instruction, I decided to use a strategy called “Sketch-to-Stretch,” a process where students read a passage of text, and then created sketches to explain what the text meant to them. For the third and fourth days, I had them use visualization in order to improve their descriptive writing. I did this by having them look at various photographs and carefully detail what they observed.

To introduce the idea of visualization, I explained that visualization is like creating “a movie in your mind,” and that to do this effectively, students should imagine what they are reading, and try to connect these images to their own feelings, background knowledge, and experiences.

Introduction, Day One

On the first day of instruction, I started my students with a warm-up, where I asked them to imagine their favorite character from a movie or television show, and to write three sentences about what he or she looks like. After they had shared their answers, I asked students to discuss how they created a “movie in their heads” when they visualized.

The students were then asked to close their eyes and visualize as I read several passages of a story aloud. After reading, students discussed what they pictured. I explained that there was no “right” or “wrong” answer to this exercise, because all visuals are unique and individual.

Introduction, Day 1 Continued

Next, I began modeling how to use the “Sketch-to-Stretch” strategy. I explained that I would read a poem aloud, sketch my reaction (what the poem meant to me) on the white board, and then explain my drawing and feelings.

I read the poem “Dreams” by Langston Hughes aloud twice to my class. The first time, I read straight through. The second time, I interrupted myself with “think-alouds” to model my thinking process.

Poem for ModelingDreams

Hold fast to dreams

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird

That cannot fly

Hold fast to dreams

For when dreams go

Life is a barren field

Frozen with snow.

Langston Hughes

Modeling, Day One

On the board, I drew a picture of an empty, snowy field and one leafless tree. On the ground, I drew a small bird with a band-aid on its wing. In the sky, I wrote the word “dreams.”

I explained when I read the poem, the image of the barren, snowy field really stood out to me as being a sad and lonely scene. I said that I drew the injured bird on the ground and the word “dreams” in the sky, because with a broken wing, a bird cannot fly to reach its dreams.

Modeling, Day One Continued

Next, I invited the kids to discuss their reactions to my drawing and respond to what I had drawn. I asked them to explain if they agreed with my drawing, and if they had imagined something different.

A number of kids explained that they had also visualized a bird, but that their birds were still flying, and were attempting to reach their goals. Some said my drawing made it seem like my bird had already “failed” to reach its goal.

Guided Practice, Day One

After this discussion, I invited the students to try this process out for themselves. I distributed copies of a poem by Tupac Shakur called “The Rose That Grew from Concrete.”

A student read this poem aloud as the other students followed along. After reading, I guided the class by asking some thought-provoking questions, such as what a rose in the concrete might symbolize, and why it would be usual and difficult for a rose to survive in such a setting. I also asked them what images they saw in their minds when they listened to this poem.

“The Rose That Grew from Concrete”

Guided Practice, Day One Continued

After discussing their reactions, and guiding students into visualizing this poem, I released them to draw what they had imagined, by using a “Sketch-to-Stretch” template.

After they finished sketching, I asked students to explain what they had drawn and to discuss their rationale by writing a reflective explanation on the bottom of the “Sketch-to-Stretch” template. I circulated the room to offer help while students worked.

Guided Practice: Work Time

Students working on their projects

Student Work

One student felt that this poem was a

metaphor for struggle. In his reaction, he wrote, “I drew a picture of a rose

growing from concrete as a metaphor and a

man caught between a rock and a hard place.”

Student Work ContinuedAnother student felt like

this poem was about growing up successfully

under difficult circumstances. He wrote, “A rose grows to be just as beautiful as any other rose, even though it comes from

a rough place.” When I talked with him

individually, he also explained that he chose to

exclusively color in the rose, on order to symbolize

that it was the only beautiful thing in an

otherwise ugly environment.

Guided Practice, Day One Continued

Once students had completed their sketches and responses, we participated in a class response circle, so that I could guide students in the process of discussing their work. Student volunteers shared their drawings and explained their ideas, as others students offered response and feedback.

Gradual Release, Day Two

The next day, I refreshed students on the idea of visualization through an opening discussion, and then picked up where we had left off. The previous day, the students had participated in introductory and guided practice activities. I felt that students were ready for the next phase of gradual release.

I distributed fresh “Sketch-to-Stretch”templates and another poem to students, “April Rain Song,” by Langston Hughes. I asked students to read the poem independently to themselves, and then to sketch their reactions as we had done the previous day.

“April Rain Song”April Rain Song

Let the rain kiss you Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops

Let the rain sing you a lullaby The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk The rain makes running pools in the gutter The rain plays a little sleep song on our roof at night And I love the rain.

Langston Hughes

Independent Practice, Day Two

Once again, students read, sketched and reflected while I circulated the room. I noticed that by the second day, students were arguing with each other about the “right” way to visualize the poems. I had to stop and re-teach the idea that there is no correct way to visualize and that everyone’s ideas are valid.

Student Response

One student explained that he felt this poem had a very optimistic tone. He wrote as his response, “The rain

washes all the worries and fears of the perso

n.”

Independent Practice, Day Two

After students had finished, I invited them to repeat the sharing process we had done together the previous day, but this time, to work exclusively within their table clusters. I reminded students that when responding, they should explain how their ideas differed, but that they still needed to respect the idea that all visualizations are unique and valid.

Students took turns presenting and discussing their work.

Group DiscussionsAs I circulated

the room, I noticed that even

though many students had

similar drawings, their ideas about the tone or most important points to visualize were

different. The students seemed really intrigued by each other’s interpretations.

Closing Reflection

To conclude the class on Day Two, I had students reflect on the following ideas in their learning logs:

How did drawing what you visualized help you to understand what you were reading?

How is visualization similar to making a movie in your head?

When I asked students to share their responses, one of my students who normally struggles with reading said that visualizing helped her “see the details.”

Days 3-4: Descriptive Writing through

VisualizationOn Day Three, I decided to challenge my students a bit more by having them use their knowledge of visualization to write descriptively.

I explained that I wanted students to examine a photograph and then write about it as though they were describing the images they saw to a person who had lost their vision. I stressed the idea that it was critical for them to be as descriptive and precise as possible.

Descriptive Writing: Modeling

I began modeling this activity by posting a photograph of a large whale that was circled by thousands of tiny fish on the projector.

Before writing, I pointed out something things that I saw, and modeled think-alouds about the best ways to describe what I saw.

On the board next to the photo, I wrote, “An enormous whale swims beneath the ocean and turns its face up to the right, as though gazing at the sun. In a circle around him swim too many tiny white fish to count. Swimming together, their bodies mold together like shingles on a roof. Their tiny tails swim in all directions. The water around them is a mixture of navy and turquoise, with tiny ripples of water reaching up towards the surface.”

Descriptive Writing: Guided Practice

To guide students on this process, I posted another photograph on the projector. This time, I showed a man riding on a horse across the road that was covered in numbers. I asked all of the students to write descriptively about what they saw, and then to share their descriptions.

Descriptive Writing: Independent PracticeWhen students were ready to be released on their own, I gave each table a different photograph, and had them write descriptively about the photograph. Then, students presented their writing to their table, so that other students could offer them feedback.

After students had worked finished working on one photograph, I switched them to a different photograph.

Sample Student WorkOne student wrote,

“There is a tree and it is very tall. It is

covered with butterflies. It is so full

with butterfly. The only way I could tell that it was a tree was that

other trees surrounding it. The sun

is beaming down between the tree tops. The butterflies are just ganged together. You can’t see any part of

the tree only the vines that from it.”

Day 4: Discussion, Reflection and

RewritesAfter they had finished their descriptive writing pieces, I broke my students up into a jigsaw. I assembled new student groups, composed of one student representative for each picture. In their new groups, I had my students present their original pictures and written descriptions to the group. I challenged students to close their eyes while listening to each description, and then looking to see if the actual photograph matched their visualization.

Once each student had a chance to read their description, group members offered their feedback on how the presenter could improve his or her written piece. They were asked to offer suggestions regarding the use of descriptive language and ways to optimize the readers’ ability to visualize.

After these group descriptions, I asked students to revisit their original descriptions, and to make revisions based on the feedback from their classmates.

Student Presentations

Students share their descriptive writing and receive feedback from their

classmates.

Closing Reflection

At the end of class, I asked students to reflect on the following in their learning logs:

What is the connection between writing descriptively and visualizing an image in your head?

How did you actively use visualization when writing your descriptions of the photographs?

How does visualization make your writing stronger?

Colleague Reaction

I shared the visualization strategies that I used with a colleague of mine, Mr. Goldfarb, who teaches 8th grade language arts at another school in Baltimore City.

He used these same strategies with his students using The Giver as his primary text, and found great success.

He recounted his experiences in replicating my lesson plan in a phone call conversation.

Response from Colleague: Phone

Conversation“These visualization strategies definitely helped my students to better understand what they were reading as we’ve been working through The Giver. I started the same way as you, but instead of poems, I pulled some descriptions of the various memories from the book, and had the students draw them using the “Sketch-to-Stretch” model. I also replicated your descriptive writing strategies. I used your pictures to model and then pulled other images related to some of the book’s scenes. This strategy forced my normally-reluctant writers to really pay attention to visuals and incorporate that into their writing. These activities were also very engaging for my students, especially for my IEP students who struggle with reading. The work produced was very thoughtful. I also used your reflection prompts, and in reading them, I could tell that my students were really benefitting from using visualization.”

Conclusion and Reflection

Overall, I found that teaching visualization through gradual release was really successful in my classroom, and truly aided my students in making meaning of texts. While I always try to teach using the gradual release model, I found that when I really forced myself to follow the steps of this model, it helped my students to truly understand what I wanted them to do. This encouraged them to put forth more effort than they often do.

I could definitely see some growth in my students through the process of gradual release. When we first began illustrating “The Rose That Grew from Concrete,” many students had very similar, literal interpretations. But by the time we read “April Rain Song,” I could already see their sketches become more personal and meaningful.

The biggest challenge that I found was that students were often combative with each other about what the “right” visualizations and descriptions should be like. I found that I was re-teaching the idea that all visualizations are valid more times than I had anticipated.

Conclusion and Reaction Continued

In doing this project, I really learned the importance of taking the time to do each stage of gradual release, especially modeling. I really believe engagement results from students thoroughly understanding the task, and what is expected with them. I also learned that it is crucial for me to explicitly teach reading skills, as well as the normal curriculum content.

In the future, I will be sure to use gradual release whenever teaching my students a new skill or strategy. I will also make more of an effort to incorporate reading strategies into my instruction.

I hope that my classmates can learn several different techniques for teaching visualization strategies in their own classrooms. I want them to also be able to teach students about “making movies in their heads,” and the important of creating mental images in order to connect to abstract ideas and better understand what they are reading.

References

I used the following websites to assist with my instruction:

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson229/sketch.pdf

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/siteindex/photogallery/