What is Visualizing
Good readers concentrate on and construct mental images as they read a text. By using prior knowledge and past experiences, readers connect to the author's story and create appropriate, personal pictures. Through guided visualizations, students learn how to create mental pictures while they read. (Reading Rockets Inc., 2015)
Donna Wilson makes a great case of visualizing and why it is so effective,
"The images that form in your mind as you read -- we call them "brain movies" -- can be more exciting and memorable than a Hollywood film. More to the point for teachers, guiding your students to visualize as they read is an engaging and enjoyable way to boost comprehension and retention." (Wilson, 2014)
Wilson goes on to say that visualization should be a strategy that is explicitly taught. She cautions that assuming children are naturally imaginative may not be true for each student. Even those that possess an active imagination need guidance in the active process of visualizing characters, settings, and actions in a story as they read. (Wilson, 2014)
Using Visualizing in the classroom
To help achieve a confident classroom of effective visualizing students, Wilson offers several steps to help assist:
(Wilson, 2014)
Visualizing and creating images while reading requires students to be active participants in the texts they are reading which, in turn, helps improve comprehension. (Reading Rockets Inc., 2015) To further students comprehension while relating this topic to writing, students can keep a writing journal that details the text they are reading by describing their visual interpretation of characters, settings, and actions throughout the story. They may even go as far as adding a weekly additional entry of a visualization they experiences about a specific scene in the book. This writing journal activity would satisfy the Minnesota 6-12 writing benchmark: Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to write about or explain a topic.
Tie it to writing
In addition to writing journals or papers assigned, there are a great amount of worksheets available to incorporate writing into this literacy strategy. The worksheet below features directions that require a written description of the text as well as a draw image from the students that they visualized while reading the text.
(Reading Rockets Inc., 2015)
Good readers concentrate on and construct mental images as they read a text. By using prior knowledge and past experiences, readers connect to the author's story and create appropriate, personal pictures. Through guided visualizations, students learn how to create mental pictures while they read. (Reading Rockets Inc., 2015)
Donna Wilson makes a great case of visualizing and why it is so effective,
"The images that form in your mind as you read -- we call them "brain movies" -- can be more exciting and memorable than a Hollywood film. More to the point for teachers, guiding your students to visualize as they read is an engaging and enjoyable way to boost comprehension and retention." (Wilson, 2014)
Wilson goes on to say that visualization should be a strategy that is explicitly taught. She cautions that assuming children are naturally imaginative may not be true for each student. Even those that possess an active imagination need guidance in the active process of visualizing characters, settings, and actions in a story as they read. (Wilson, 2014)
Using Visualizing in the classroom
To help achieve a confident classroom of effective visualizing students, Wilson offers several steps to help assist:
- Chose a text with vivid, sensory-rich details and read the text aloud.
- Introduce words or concepts that may be new to the students. Utilize photos, websites, and other imagery to help students create appropriate visuals.
- Hold a discussion with your students about differences between reading a book and watching a movie. Show students that while you read or hear a story, your brain creates its own visuals.
- Prompt your students to create a mental story while they listen to the selected passage. Tell them to think about characters, settings, as well as actions.
- Read with inflection and emotion. Put major emphasis on striking and descriptive language.
- When you are finished reading, wait quietly to allow students to finish translating the text they heard and then ask for volunteers to share specific imagery or a scene.
- Discuss personal experiences and how they assist in building visuals while reading. Ask questions about characters, settings, and actions that were similar to people, places, or things in the student's lives.
- Take note of how many students find that visualizing is a helpful tool for better understanding and comprehension.
- Encourage students to continue the practice of visualizing while they read on their own or in groups.
(Wilson, 2014)
Visualizing and creating images while reading requires students to be active participants in the texts they are reading which, in turn, helps improve comprehension. (Reading Rockets Inc., 2015) To further students comprehension while relating this topic to writing, students can keep a writing journal that details the text they are reading by describing their visual interpretation of characters, settings, and actions throughout the story. They may even go as far as adding a weekly additional entry of a visualization they experiences about a specific scene in the book. This writing journal activity would satisfy the Minnesota 6-12 writing benchmark: Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to write about or explain a topic.
Tie it to writing
In addition to writing journals or papers assigned, there are a great amount of worksheets available to incorporate writing into this literacy strategy. The worksheet below features directions that require a written description of the text as well as a draw image from the students that they visualized while reading the text.
(Reading Rockets Inc., 2015)
The following video is a great tutorial on how to use Visualizing as a reading strategy. It also features the use of a "double entry journal" which adds a writing element to this strategy as well. This video speaks clearly on the purpose of the strategy and gives a fantastic example of visualization used properly with a specific text example.
This video offers a song that perfectly describes visualizing and is very beneficial because it can be shown to elementary and intermediate age levels to help them understand what visualizing is and how it can be used while reading a text.
References:
Wilson, D. (2014, May 20). Brain Movies: When readers can picture it, they can understand it. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
Visual Imagery. (2015). Retrieved May 29, 2015, from http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/list_group_label
Wilson, D. (2014, May 20). Brain Movies: When readers can picture it, they can understand it. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
Visual Imagery. (2015). Retrieved May 29, 2015, from http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/list_group_label