<p> CLICK! Using Photography to Make Writing Connections.</p><p>“Photography... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything. ~ Aaron Siskind</p><p>My daughter, Holly, has a hobby of carefully arranging photos from our family albums into collage frames which are displayed throughout our home; each collage captures life events in such a way that that tells a story. There is the first day of school, swim lessons, soccer games </p><p>(and injuries), sandcastles at the shore, prom, high school graduation...all memorable milestones.</p><p>Words are not necessary; the photos speak for themselves. Photos depicting relevant life events can also serve to elicit powerful narratives from our students’ life experiences. </p><p>While teaching Middle School Language Arts, I encountered both those students who seemingly immerse themselves in writing fueled by thoughts, ideas and life experience as well as those students who struggled with writing as they labored over both what to say and how to say it. For the latter group, writing became an arduous undertaking as they mentally grappled with the cognitive task of capturing ideas and creating a text. As one seventh grader put it, “It’s like the idea battery in my head died and needs a jumpstart!” </p><p>I readily admit, writing can become a daunting task for students when confronted with a blank piece of paper and the ideas just… won’t… come. Watching students anguish as they became bogged down in conceptual exploration, I employed the usual tactics such as oral sharing, brainstorming and journaling to help tap into life experience, spark ideas and guide their writing. Although each of these strategies were helpful in generating topics, I found assignments that employed photographs as visual prompts seemed to speak to the student in such a way that inspired heartfelt writing. Students’ thinking, and subsequently their writing, seemed less forced and more genuine. It became apparent to me that photos can serve as an effective conduit for self expression and meaningful reflection. Making Connections in Two Languages</p><p>In any writing program, it is vitally important to convey to our students that writing is self-discovery. In the process of delving into personal reflection, students should be given the liberty to express themselves through a variety of creative mediums that motivate, inspire and bridge connections to life experience. Photography is a lot like writing in that like written prose, photos convey a message. Rosenblatt’s Reader Response Theory (1938) suggests that reading is a transaction between the reader and the text whereby the transaction elicits a response from the reader. The same holds true for photography: as we observe photo images, we respond to it and oftentimes from the perspective of life experience. </p><p>Integrating visual implements with writing is very effective; writing to illustrations is a form of creative expression that enables students to think critically about what they are seeing and then write about the ideas gleaned from their perspective. As Rochelle I. Frei (1999) explains, “…Art can provide a window into how children negotiate their understandings of images and their knowledge o the world” (386). For example, Samantha, a sixth grader, wrote the following in response to an image depicting what she perceived to be a European coastal town: </p><p>“I love this picture because it brings back memories of snow and how cold it </p><p> was. I remember riding the same kind of boats and how scary it was to me since I </p><p> was only eight back then. I like how the buildings have bright colors that compliment</p><p> the colors of the mountains and the water. Since I used to live in Holland, this looks </p><p> like Holland with a European appearance. Also, if you look closely you’ll see that </p><p> the road is right next to the coast to the port with those beautiful huge white trading </p><p> boats.” ~ Samantha Beth Olshansky suggests in her article Artists/Writers Workshop: Focusing in on the ART of </p><p>Writing that visual images offers opportunities for meaning-making in two languages—the language of pictures and the language of words. As students connect with photo images, they essentially ‘read’ the image and based on their own meaningful interpretations, generate a response. The following journal entry (in response to a photo on animal neglect) is an example of how students can become emotionally engaged while exploring personal connections:</p><p>“I think it's very sad that people seem to need visual aids to remind them of the </p><p> evil in our society. Only when confronted with cruel pictures such as this do people stop</p><p> ignoring that such problems exist. My first thoughts upon studying the picture: anger, </p><p> disgust, hopelessness, and fear. I feel angry and disgusted that this is a real photo, </p><p> which means a real animal was abused to the point of death. Next, I feel hopeless for </p><p> our society because I know this happens even when the camera is off...leading to my </p><p> fear that animal cruelty won't stop.” ~ Hannah </p><p>Photographs as Meaningful Writing Prompts</p><p>A particularly effective strategy is for students to select photos - such as family snapshots, postcards, greeting cards, or advertisements - and keep them at hand in their journals or writing portfolios to utilize as a visual writing prompt. This approach serves to establish a readily accessible ‘idea bank’ for a multitude of writing tasks. As the student observes the photos and makes connections, he/she is essentially reflecting on personal experience, generating story ideas, and exploring voice. </p><p>Activity:</p><p>1. Ask students to select a photo from their “idea bank”. Allow sufficient time for students </p><p> to observe and think about the photo, jotting down in their journals initial response and reactions to the image. The teacher might provide verbal prompting in the form of </p><p> questioning: “What do you see?” “How does the image make you feel?” “Can you </p><p> personally connect with the image?”</p><p>2. Next, have students analyze persons, details and possible circumstances the photo </p><p> illustrates. This serves to develop inference skills, build vocabulary, and generate ideas </p><p> that can be incorporated into descriptive and narrative writing and help the student think </p><p> more creatively.</p><p>3. In pairs, allow students to share their observations of their photo selections orally which </p><p> encourages the student to take thinking processes to areas perhaps not considered. </p><p>4. The final step is to have students engage in a free write. Because it is an informal writing </p><p> process, students can further explore ideas without yet committing to a ‘main idea’.</p><p>Additional Activities:</p><p> a. Students exchange their photos with other students so they can analyze </p><p> differences in perspective and discover how life experience directly influences </p><p> personal interpretation and voice. </p><p> b. Students use a collection of photos and arrange them in such a way to create a </p><p> storyboard. This emphasizes critically important information and facilitates </p><p> organization and pace. </p><p> c. Allow students to role play individual interpretation of a photo before creating a </p><p> text. This activity addresses differentiated learner needs. The following writing sample indicates how one student incorporated details in his writing. The photo was an image of a single running shoe, laces unraveled. </p><p>“It was my big brother Mike who taught me how to tie my shoes. I came </p><p> inside from playing outdoors, my shoelaces trailing after me like usual, and Mike, </p><p> sitting at the kitchen table eating this huge bowl of Fruit Loops told me that he was </p><p> going to teach me how to tie my shoes. Out of the blue just like that! So anyway </p><p> that’s how we ended up on the kitchen floor in a huddle over my Nikes tying and </p><p> untying the laces until I got it sort of right. Mike told me directions “make one loop </p><p> and wrap it around, okay now make it another loop”. Finally I got it to where it was </p><p> a big sloppy bow on the verge of untying. And you know what he said? Good job!</p><p>Obviously, those laces ‘spoke’ to that particular eighth grader.” ~ Kevin </p><p>Pathways to Writing that are Inspiring and FUN </p><p>It is helpful to find pathways for self discovery that are meaningful to the student and visually ‘speak’ to the student. Because of this personal attachment, students are more likely to invest more ‘self’ in their writing and write more in depth. Therefore, it makes sense to begin with individual student experience and allow their writing to evolve as they make connections. </p><p>Perhaps even more important is to convey to the student that writing is an enjoyable exercise. Students can be inspired to play with ideas and visual imagery as they discover various modes of creative expression. Incorporating photography with writing is a stimulating way to ignite the imagination and put life, energy and fun into writing! </p><p>______</p><p>Frei, R. I. (May 1999). Making Meaning with Art: Children's Stories. Language Arts 76.5: 386-382.</p><p>Olshansky, B. (July 2006). Artists/Writers Workshop: Focusing in on the ART of Writing. Language Arts, Volume 83, Number 6.</p>