Humans have always used visuals to communicate.

Cave paintings tell us stories from the distant past. Art, cartoons, illustrations in children’s books, infographics, sketch notes, and photos all engage our senses.

Online, images are shared on social media to visually communicate experiences, emotions, and information. 

Visual literacy is the ability to interpret and create visuals to communicate. It's an excellent way to encourage interaction and critical thinking in a language classroom at all levels. 

Ellii’s new weekly What’s the Story? category from our Visual Learning resources section is the perfect way to get your students' creative ideas flowing. It takes one intriguing photo and puts students’ reasoning, analysis, and evaluation skills to the test. 

In this post, I’ll show you my six-step process for how I used the picture in The Hidden Jar resource to deliver a three-hour class. Let's get started!  

Step 1: Describe the Photo

I displayed the image above on a whiteboard for all to see. I then asked students to look at the photo and describe what they could see in pairs, then feedbacked their ideas as a whole class. I wrote any new vocabulary on the whiteboard (e.g., high heels, desert, sand, coins, etc.). 

Step 2: Focus on a Target

We’ve been working on adjectives in class. To encourage vocabulary recall, I asked the students to work in pairs to make a list of adjectives associated with the picture. Then we added that list to the board.

The students said:

• "She is hot."
• "She has dark clothes."
• "She feels worried."
• "It is windy."  

Step 3: Discuss Character Thoughts 

When using photos in class, one of the best ways to incorporate critical thinking is to ask students to get inside the character’s head. 

I drew a thought bubble from the woman and asked students to consider what she might be thinking. 

The students said:

• "I’m hungry."
• "Where is that other jar?" 
• "I hope no one sees me."

Step 4: Discuss Before & After

To encourage students to think in more detail about the photo, I asked them to first discuss what happened before the photo, then what happened after the photo. 

Some students found this difficult in pairs, but once a few ideas had been shared as a whole class, there was no stopping them! 

Before

• "Maybe she stole the money." 
• "She was at work." 
• "She’s on holiday." 
• "She works as a pilot. Her plane crashed."

After

• "She was hungry so she went to McDonald’s."
• "She ran away." 
• "She went back to work."
• "She had a shower."

Step 5: Add Another Character

I wanted to add another element to the story. Since the image was projected on the whiteboard, I just drew a stick figure at the side. I then asked students to discuss in pairs who this person was and to make a dialogue between them. 

By now, my students’ imaginations were flowing. When they shared ideas, there was lots of laughter. 

The students said:

• "It’s a security guard. They shout at each other." 
• "It’s a kind person. They try to help her, but she runs away."

Step 6: Read Then Write the Story

I wanted students to do a little reading and to think even deeper about the picture. So at the break, I quickly created a short paragraph about the image.

I asked students to read it and answer the comprehension questions. Then we spent some time noticing and discussing the grammar and vocabulary.

Lastly, I asked students to write a short paragraph about what happens next. Here's an example I wrote to give you an idea:

I did this with my beginner class, who are familiar with the simple present, the present progressive, and the simple past, but still need support in selecting the correct tense and collocating the verbs.

Throughout the lesson, I helped students with emergent language and changing tenses where necessary. 

Post-Lesson Takeaways

One of the best things about using an image this way in class is that it can be used for language learners at all levels. I’d love to try this visual literacy activity again with a more advanced class. 

Overall, I was a little nervous going into class with just one photo, but I was pleasantly surprised by 

• my students’ creativity
• the usefulness of the language that emerged
• the quantity of speaking and writing produced 
• the smiles and laughter throughout the lesson 

Ellii has an ever-growing bank of What’s the Story? resources. Watch for a new prompt each week! Which one will you try first? How would you use these images in class? Let me know know in the comments below!

Related

• How to Use Pictures as Grammar Prompts