Prepared by Roberta MacQuarrie Teacher-Librarian Gibson Elementary May 2010

Information Literacy To provide intellectual access to information through learning activities that are integrated into the curriculum and that help all students achieve information literacy by developing effective cognitive strategies for selecting, retrieving, analyzing, evaluating, synthesizing, creating, and communicating information in all formats and in all content areas of the curriculum.” Information Power: Building Partnerships for Learning, ALA (2009) “The focus on information literacy and its applications in the ‘new literacies’ means that students make inquiries based on thoughtful questions and use the knowledge they gain to take social action, make informed decisions, and solve problems.” (Dorian & Asselin, 2005, p. 16)

New Literacies  What are the new literacies?  Revolves around the Internet and IT  No clear definition because new technologies are emerging rapidly  In schools it is best to focus on the Internet and the new network environment  Clear that the traditional definition of literacy and literacy instruction is insufficient if we are to prepare students for the future  New technologies require, or as Richardson phrases it in his article, What It All Means, “…demanding that we re-examine the way we think about content and curriculum, and they are nurturing new, important shifts in how best to teach students.” (Richardson, 2006, p. 127)

Visual Literacy “As images continue to evolve as the dominant text of our society, students of all ages need the experience of reading such texts in order to be successful.” ( Williams, 2007) “It's no longer enough to read and write. Our students must learn to process both words and pictures. They must be able to move gracefully and fluently between text and images, between literal and figurative worlds.” (Burmark, Assn for Supervision & Curriculum. March 2002)

Albert Einstein “If I can’t picture it, I can’t understand it.”

Examples of Visual Texts Copyright © Black Cockatoo Publishing PL 2008 (4 slides)

Block Diagrams

Labelled Diagrams

Picture Books

Relation of Text to Image

Wordless Picture Books

Inferring

The Power of Photography

Photographs hotography hotography e.html e.html (Canadian History)

Web Sites

Art Images and Interactive Art Sites Alta Vista Images Interactive Site Art Gallery in NB Inside Art: Interactive Site More Famous Paintings and going behind the painting: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. -excellent Primary: Carmine’s Landscape Adventure: Intermediate: Canadian Illustrators: bac.gc.ca/3/10/index-e.html And ef/3/7/index-e.htmlhttp://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/206/301/lac-bac/celebrating_dk_khalsa- ef/3/7/index-e.html

Elements of Photography Light and shadow Focus Space Shape Line Scale Value Colour Feelings TextureAngle FramingDominance ContrastRepetition VarietyBalance Mood Great Resource for reading photographs:

Analyzing Visual Images and Design in Picture Books What is fore-grounded and in the background? Consider the path your eyes follow as you approach the image. What catches your eyes first? Is it important? What colors dominate the image? What effect does this have on you as the reader? What is the artist trying to get you to look at through leading lines, colors, contrast, gestures, lighting? Are there any recurring symbols or motifs in the images? Consider size and scale. What is large? Why are certain elements larger than others? Does this add to the meaning?

Graphic Novels Story Telling/Literature: Reader Narrator Juxtaposition Protagonist/Antagonist Metaphor/Simile Symbol Speech Bubble-Dialogue Visual Art Perspective Line Shape Texture Shadow/Shading Style Negative Space Tone (Contents, Presentation: words and pictures) Zoom In Zoom Out What’s there? What’s not? Consider the gutter- (Between the panels- What happened?) Great Resource: Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics

Mind Mapping: Concepts

Mind Mapping: Books

Websites

Incorporating Visual Literacy Using Author Galleries Digital Cameras Photographs downloaded from the Internet Flash Drives Themes prepared by students and teacher Students prepare slide show and some text- narrative, poetry, imaginative, argumentative, social justice, etc. Final presentations are showcased in a slideshow (iPhoto, PowerPoint, etc.)