Visualizing

Proficient readers scan and interpret text, forming a mental image of what is happening.

Successful reading is an active process that takes place between a reader and the text. Visualizing is an important part of this process. As proficient readers scan and interpret text, they form a mental image of (“visualize”) what is happening. This means that they can fill in details that the text may not spell out, supporting their comprehension.

The ability to visualize is different for each student. But most students need some help to learn how to use all of their senses as they create a vivid image in their mind as they read. Struggling readers, in particular, can have difficulty creating mental images of what they read. Multiple and differentiated models, practice, and support—drawing on UDL principles—will help your struggling readers learn how to bring text to life as they read, and may also be effective for your other students.

See the Slide Show Introduction to Visualization

Skilled readers see more than just the words on a page

Skilled readers see more than just the words on a page—they see, hear, and feel as they actively engage with a text. In short, they visualize as they read. Consider differentiated ways to describe, model, and prompt use of the strategy to engage every student.

Context

Margaret Flynn, a second year teacher, is teaching Grade 5 for the first time. Several of her students have learning disabilities, and many of her students are Latino. All of her students speak English. But, many speak Spanish at home with immediate or extended family.

Last year, Ms. Flynn began to use technology in her teaching. She discovered that technology engages students and gets them excited about learning. It helps her meet the needs of her students who benefit from multiple representations of information—the use of visual and auditory clues to support their understanding of the text. She feels lucky that her classroom is right next to one of the school's two computer labs. And, she signs up regularly so she and her students can use this terrific resource.

The class has been reading about U.S. history and the American Revolution. Ms. Flynn wants to give her students a better way to connect with the events of the time. She knows that visualizing life in Boston can help them better understand the key concepts in the text. So, in the next lesson she will have her students listen to a first-person account of the Boston Tea Party and try to imagine what life was like for people in Boston at that time.

Ms. Flynn will directly teach students how to visualize what is in the text. This will fit in very well with the vivid, first-person accounts of the Boston Tea Party she will use. She also plans to use an online game that will let students take on the role of a young boy living in Boston just before the war begins.

Lesson

Before Reading

Ms. Flynn explains that they will read a first-person account of the Boston Tea Party. She tells the class that "first-person account" means that someone who participated in the Boston Tea Party wrote the text.

Next, she has them talk a little about what was going on in the colonies during this time. In the discussion, they draw on previous class work and picture themselves living through these times. She asks: "Does anyone remember what kinds of things were going on that made life hard for people living in the colonies at this time? Before they started fighting?"
One student recalls that they were not happy. Ms. Flynn asks, "Can anyone else remember why this was the case?" The students start to talk about the fact that the people didn't want England to boss them around, and that they didn't have their freedom. Once again, Ms. Flynn asks them to imagine themselves in this situation. What would their facial expressions show? Most students have no trouble "acting out" the way their expressions might convey their feelings of dissatisfaction. When she asks them to explain why the colonists felt this way, the class agrees on the following three big ideas:

1. They weren't free
2. They didn't want British people telling them what to do
3. They wanted freedom

She shows several pictures on her interactive whiteboard of people from that era that she found on Google Images. She asks each student to choose one of the pictures and imagine that he or she is that person. "Just close your eyes and create a visual image of that person, but put yourself in the situation," she suggests.

To further prepare her students for reading, Ms. Flynn points to an image drawn from the event on her whiteboard and asks them to describe what they see in the picture:

Ms. Flynn tells her students to close their eyes and describe what they saw in the picture. She asks them to share their description with their neighbor and to jot down some key words of things they see in the picture. She explains that when you talk about images, it helps you understand what you read.  Next she reads the text under the picture and asks, “How many of you shared the image of the ships with your neighbors?” The images of the Indians? The images of the boxes being thrown off of the ship? What else did you hear in the text and see in the image?”

Ms. Flynn displays the following text and reads it out loud:

"Immediately after a detach’t of about 20 men disguised as Indians was seen to approach in single file by the west door of the Church. They marched with silent steps down the isle and so passed by the south door brandishing their tommahaws [sic – tomahawks] in that direction. … On leaving the church, they proceeded in the same order in which they entered it, down Milk Street through that part of town which led to Gray’s and Tiletson’s wharves where the tea ships lay. Arrived at the wharves they divided into three troops each with a leader gained possession of the ships quietly and proceeded to lighten them of their cargo by hoisting out the boxes and emptying their contents into the dock. No noise was heard except the occasional clink of the hatchet in opening the boxes and the whole business was performed with so much expedition that before 10 o’clock that night the entire cargo of the three vessels were deposited in the docks. Many a wishful eye was directed to the piles of tea which lay in the docks and one poor fellow (5) who could not resist the temptation had filled the lining of his cloak with about a bushel of the plants. He was soon observed by the crowd and the process of lightening him of his burden was short. He was dragged a little distance on the wharf to a barrel and was soon furnished with a coat of tar and shavings."

(Editor's Note: the following was contributed by Dr. Catherine N. Ball, Ph.D., Georgetown University, in April, 2006, who found Samuel Cooper's obituary in Marriage and Death Notices from Alexandria, Virginia Newspapers, vol. 2: 1838-1852, Wesley Pippenger, 2005, p. 68.)

After sharing this primary source, Ms. Flynn reads aloud a shorter, simpler version of the text:

Soon, about 20 men disguised as Indians came through the church in single file holding up their tomahawks. When the left the church, they headed down Milk Street toward Gray and Tiletson’s wharves where the ships with the tea were docked. When they arrived at the wharves, they split into three groups, one for each ship. Each group assigned a leader. They quietly boarded the ships and began to open the wooden chests of tea with their hatchets. They emptied the tea onto the dock. After several hours, all of the tea was on the docks. One bystander was tempted and put lots of tea in his pocket. Others saw him do it and made him empty his pockets, then took him aside where they tarred and feathered him.

After reading this paragraph, Ms. Flynn stops and tells the group that sometimes it's hard to really understand what is going on when reading about events that took place a long time ago. One way to get a better understanding is to try and feel and see what a person living at that time might have felt or seen—just like they have begun to do. She explains that this is called visualizing. "It's a little like making a movie in your mind of what you are reading."

She suggests they try to "make a movie" together and asks the class:

• What do you think the men looked like, based on this description? How did they move through the streets?
• What were they wearing? What were they holding?
• What do you think the men usually looked like?
• How do you think the men looked and behaved when they saw the man stealing tea? How do you think the man felt when he was caught? What would it have been like to be tarred and feathered?

Students answer and start to put together a picture of what this scene might look like. Ms. Flynn asks if they think the men looked scary, funny, sad, and/or strong? She asks them to explain their answers. Then, she encourages them to imagine if it is day or night, cold or hot, or raining, and if the men are scared or excited. She asks them to predict what might happen next.

During Reading

Ms. Flynn feels that the class has the background knowledge they need. And, they have a beginning familiarity with the strategy of visualization. Now it's time for them to extend their visualization practice. She takes the class next door to the computer lab where the computer coordinator has the software program Mission US already booted up.

She divides the students up into carefully chosen pairs. Though Mission US has many supports and multimedia tools built in that can support varied readers, there are sections of text that are not read aloud. To address this, Ms. Flynn pairs students who are not strong decoders with students who are. She asks them to go to the Meet the Characters page and pick at least five characters to listen to. Next, they need to try the game Demo. Once they have finished these two preliminary tasks, they can play the game Pennywhistle Hero. In this game, they take on the role of a young boy in pre-revolutionary Boston as he learns his new trade of printing. He meets many people in the town who have different opinions about the British.

Students can navigate the game on their own or with minimal help. They move through the game, listening to characters talk about their concerns about politics and other issues in Boston. As they listen, they gain new vocabulary words. Since many of her students are English Language Learners, Ms. Flynn allows them to use Word2Word, a multilingual dictionary, to provide real-time support for the new words. (Using Word2Word is an example of Guideline 2.4 Promote understanding across languages).

Visually, students see what a town might have looked like back then. They also learn a bit about the kinds of tasks and jobs children their age had to complete as part of life at that time.

After her students play through some rounds of the game, Ms. Flynn asks them to turn off their computers. She engages them in talking about what they have seen, heard, and learned about life during this time in Boston. She projects a copy of the original list of possibilities about why colonists were not happy:

Why were the colonists unhappy or dissatisfied?

• They weren't free
• They didn't want British people telling them what to do
• They wanted freedom

Ms. Flynn asks the group if they have anything to add. After a brief discussion, the group adds three more reasons.

Why were the colonists unhappy or dissatisfied?

• They weren't free
• They didn't want British people telling them what to do
• They wanted freedom
• They wanted to rule themselves and make their own laws
• They didn't want to send money away
• They didn't want to pay someone else's taxes

More discussion follows. Ms. Flynn also engages her students in role playing to help them make sense of the account they read.

After Reading

Ms. Flynn asks her students to share something about one character they met while playing the game. "Describe something visual that stood out to you about the character," she requests. She suggests they start with "I picture my character doing …" After all of the students share their thoughts, she asks them to write about why their characters were behaving that way and what the consequences were.

Later, she asks students to write summaries and include pictures they draw. She uses their summaries as her informal assessment. From the summaries, she is able to tell if students understand the key concepts and are successfully forming mental images to help them make meaning of text. (Ms. Flynn allows students to respond to the text using text and images demonstrating Guideline 4.1 Vary the methods for response and navigation).

Reflection

Ms. Flynn uses journal writing to reflect on her work with students, plan lessons, and jot down new ideas and tools to try. Today she writes, "Mission accomplished. The game and read-aloud kept students interested. Offering more than one way to learn about events and history makes a big difference. Even if reading/language is a barrier, everyone can participate when I draw on the principles of UDL. All of the students made great points during discussions. Most really "got" the dynamic between England and the colonists and cited important points in the text. The summaries show that almost everybody is making strides in RI.5.3. and RI.5.7. And, most seem to "get" visualization. Keep using the "making a movie" analogy—that helped. Next time, check in with Miguel, Alita, Bonnie, and Steve more often to see how they're doing. Might want to offer more support in the lab, play the game with them, or spend one on one time talking about the event/game." Ms. Flynn records these reflections in her PowerUp Planner.

Find more resources in our PowerUp Resources & Research Database.

Find more resources in our PowerUp Resources & Research Database.