Digital Images in the Elementary Classrooms

Visual Literacy!!!!

• The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn” – Alvin Toffler

• We need not only to permit, but encourage

our students to create, explore, and even mess around when it comes to their education.

Students love to take pictures and they have grown up in the era of

pictures and digital technology tools.

By using pictures, we personalize students’ writings and projects. Either because

they are about themselves, their families and friends, or just because they are

pictures that they took or chose themselves. We know students are

going to be more interested and more likely to expand on subjects when it is

personal. It also gives them value to their lives.

Some considerations:

• Parental permission when publishing pictures online or paper.• When you take pictures, make sure students don’t have name

tags on or clothing articles that have their names exposed.• When printing pictures, make sure students understand the

responsibility of choosing to print only pictures they need.• Camera safety: First thing you have to do is teach proper

handling and rules of camera. You could even require each student to pass a safety test, before they are allowed to use the cameras.

• Make sure students understand about taking appropriate and inappropriate pictures. Sometimes taking “fun” pictures can be all right, but they have to be able to differentiate between fun and inappropriate.

A few more considerations:• When you are planning a project, make sure you have

charged your batteries or have extra batteries available.

• When using digital images they have not taken themselves (internet, software programs, magazines, etc.), make sure they understand about copyright and citations, etc.

• Use the camera a lot in front of the kids, so they get used to them. Also, you know how kids are, if grown ups are doing it, they want to do it also. Tell them why you are taking pictures and how you and they will be using pictures throughout the year.

Camera Basics:• 1. First thing to teach them, is handling the camera (wrist strap). You may even

want to get neck lanyards for younger kids. Remind, Remind, Remind!!!! Make sure they understand cameras are expensive and there is a responsibility when they have one.

• 2. About the camera: Stick to the basics at first. Just the buttons they will need to know to do the projects you will be having them do. You can always teach them about more advanced features as the year goes on.

ON/OFFMode Dial (again just the basic ones at first)Flash on/offLCD displayShutter buttonLensZoom buttonFunction button

• 3. Wait to teach them about viewing, deleting, etc. the pictures until after you have had them take some pictures.

• 4. Taking the picture: This seems easy, but there are some

simple techniques you can teach them that will save time and improve their picture taking skills. Talk to them about the importance of steady hands and even how and when to use a tripod.

a. Push the shutter button half way down. This will give you a frame,

focus the camera, and check/adjust the light level. b. In most cameras you then get a green light. If it doesn’t turn

green, this usually means there is not enough light.c. Push the shutter button the rest of the way.

Using these simple techniques, will allow for steady pictures and also

allow you take better pictures when there is any kind of motion by the subject.

• 5. Have the students take some basic pictures of others or objects

in the room.

• 6. Talk about the Modes and the Mode dial: You may want to keep this as simple as AUTO, Flash and Playback for now. Tip: A lot of newer cameras have a document mode for taking pictures of student work. Put the camera on a small tripod for steadiness.

• 7. Discuss Playback mode: How to activate it, the viewfinder screen,

how to navigate through the menus, and the key features they will need to know at first (viewing, saving, deleting, etc.). Then have the students view their pictures and save and delete some. Discuss the advantage of having a digital camera, where they can immediately check the pictures to make sure they have good ones and delete the bad ones.

• 8. You can then work on the Zoom buttons and Flash button. Have

the students experiment taking the same pictures with different settings and then discuss the differences. And when they may use the different settings.

• 9. You can also decide on a good time to bring in different camera

angles. Demonstrate taking pictures from the side, below and above. Be CREATIVE!

• Take some photos yourself beforehand to demonstrate, distance (zoom in/out), lighting (with and without flash, and different direct and natural lightings), and different angles. Let the students play around with them.

• Now you can have the kids take some pictures and experiment. Have them be creative and practice saving and deleting on the camera. Get them in the habit of checking the pictures right away.

• The next step is teaching the kids to get the pictures off the camera and onto a computer. Depending on the camera, there are several possible ways to import pictures to your computer. Most cameras come with software that lets you do that. But many of the new cameras allow you to just connect by either USB or Firewire. Once you connect a wizard walks you through getting the pictures onto your computer. Also, with the memory sticks and a card reader on your computer you can import right to your computer.

• So that is a very basic crash course on introducing the camera to your students. But this session is more on uses for digital images, cool websites associated with digital images, and resources for you and your students.

• A digital camera can be used as a make shift projector as an overhead microscope or calculator.

Remember the whole thing is not about taking pictures; it is about using the

camera and digital images to encourage creativity in your students and tie these

into your entire curriculum.

Ok, so we have the pictures, now what?????

• First thing I talk about is editing the pictures. There is some really great software that does a lot of really cool things with pictures, but again we want to start with the basics. We need to We also don’t want to have to spend a lot of money. There is a lot of free photo editing software and there is a lot of free Web 2.0 tools out there you can use. Here are a few.

• Microsoft Photo Editor or Picture Manager (depending on your version of Office) – some basic editing like Brightness, Color, Crop, Rotate, Red Eye Removal, Resize and Compress the image.

• iPhoto (not free, but some bundles come with it). Can do some very complex photo editing.

• Picnik – free Web 2.0 tool that is very easy to use, but has some very powerful tools. You can save to flickr, myspace, facebook, twitter, etc., to you computer, or even email it.

More Photo/Imaging Editing• Picasa – free software you can download from Google. Also very

powerful. Windows and Mac versions.

• PhotoPlus SE – free software download from Serif. www.freeserifsoftware.com. Windows.

• Lightbox Image Editor – www.lightboxeditor.com download Windows.

• Photo! Editor – http://pho.to/editor download Windows• Splashup – free Web 2.0 pretty sophisticated• Aviary suite – free Web 2.0 suite of editing tools• Pixenate – free Web 2.0• Snipshot – free Web 2.0• Picture2life – free Web 2.0• Pixlr – free Web 2.0

So now we have our pictures all ready to go!!!!

• Remember the importance of stressing copyright and citations to your students and make sure you model that when you use images you get from anywhere.

• • There is a lot of subscription sites on the web, you can get images

for your use and there are also cd/dvd’s you can purchase that contain all kinds of images, clip art, and even music.

• • But, there are also sites that have free images. But even those in

some cases allow you to use them how you want, but you have to cite the source.

• • Don’t limit yourself to just pictures you take or images you find in

programs and online. There are a lot of other sources. Some examples:

• photographs post cards wall paper• greeting cards drawings art work• carpet mementos jewelry• book covers flowers leaves• plants fabrics personal papers

The internet has provided us with almost limitless amounts of free graphics, images, sounds, photographs, music, etc. Again, just make sure you understand and follow any

copyright laws that go with each site.

• Here are some “free” resource sites you can find on the web!• Creative Commons – public domain to use and share media of all kinds.• Wikipedia Commons – public domain of educational media content.• Pics4learning – thousands of images donated for free license for teachers and

students.• Smithsonian Images – over 2.5 million historical images.• Library of Congress – US resources of all kinds.• Public Domain Images – public domain pictures.• Microsoft Online – clipart, photos and music.• OpenEd – believe the world’s knowledge is a public good and should be open to

all.• Kitzu – digital “kits” for education.• Kaboose Clip Art – some free kid’s clip art.• Google and Yahoo Images – search engines for images on net, but can be

inappropriate• DK Clip Art – photos and clipart that can be used for schoolwork.• NASA Image Exchange – thousands of images of the NASA program and space.• ccLearn – division of Creative Commons dedicated to realizing the full potential of

the internet to support open learning and open educational resources.• ccscience – division of Creative Commons dedicated to sharing works of science.

• Free Foto – largest collection of free photos on Internet• Free Images – free digital photos.• Open Knowledge Foundation - open knowledge site for sharing just about

anything.• Timtim – free online drawings and drawing tool.• Animation Station – free animated graphics.• US Government Photos and Multimedia – free US government resources.• Yahoo! Kids Animals – animal clip art and photos.• Earth as Art – Landsat-7 satellite photos.• Agricultural Research Service, Image Gallery - animal, insect, and plant photos • Bureau of Land Management, Digital Photo Library -plants and animals photo

searchable by state.• Celebrating Wildflowers Northwest Coloring Book – Wildflower Illustrations• Curtis Botanical- Botanical prints• Forest Service St. Paul Field Office - fungi, tree, flower and other plant photos.• NOAA Photo Library - Ocean life, including marine mammals, fish, and shellfish

photos.• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Digital Library System, Gateway to Digital Media –

photos and line art, see individual libraries for types of images.• USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service - plants, trees, and wildlife photos.• Yellowstone National Park - wildlife photos.• U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Sound Clips - birds, mammals, and amphibian/reptile .wav

and mp3 files.

And now the heart of it all: What can we do with these photos and digital images?

• Numbers/letters/colors Counting Identify objects Parts of speech• Greeting cards Thank you notes Locker/desk identifiers Bookmarks• Student works Seating charts Invitations Bulleting boards• Post Cards Student of the Week/Month Posters

• Wendy Ewald’s The Best Part of Me – writing and podcast projects. • Scavenger Hunts: give students a list of objects they must find in the classroom,

school, schoolyard or on a walk you take. Have them take pictures of the items. This can be something specific or something that is related (a picture of a square or some natural form that is a square). Then put together a presentation.

• Give students a portion of a picture and have them identify it. • Use Powerpoint and cropping of a photo to have it show part by part and students

have to identify the object. • Take pictures of students at beginning, middle and end of school year, so they can

see their change. • Make dioramas of themselves, a story, animal, biome, etc

• Give them a picture and they have to describe in a paragraph what is going on in the picture.

• Writing prompts • Insect Hunts: photograph insects, print out and identify and label parts. • Science Experiments: Students must photograph steps of an experiment and then do their lab

report. • Take pictures of sporting events, plays, assemblies, visitations, field trips, open house and other

special events. They can then make reports, news articles, or add to Animoto. • Journal Writing • Patterns and Sequencing • Memory Game: students take pictures and make a memory game. They can be the same picture or

pictures related. • Vocabulary books • Take pictures during the day, to have a photographic record of classroom happenings.

• Can have a photographer of the day.

• Have students take pictures of synonyms and antonyms.

• Comparison and contrast of photos. • ABC books • Number books • Tell a story • Photo essays • Pictures of student’s work for a portfolio • Students dress up as characters in literature or history to add to a report • Estimating size • Finding geometry figures in nature or in their community or school • Make sentences from parts of signs and posters • Make sentences from pictures of parts of speech

• Creating books • 100 Day Book • Pictures to illustrate fractions • Greater than/less than • Take pictures of staff members and create a board so students can learn the rest of the staff • Take pictures to show growth in frogs, students, butterfly, plants, etc for life cycles • Food pyramid • Class newsletter or paper • Parts of scientific process • Students can make a Memory Book of class or themselves at end of year. Can also do a slideshow

for students to have • All about Me posters or presentations • Map of the school or classroom • Have older and younger students work together to create a book

• Take pictures of animals and have students place them in the correct biome or perhaps were they may live around a forest or pond

• Caption writing • Photo contest • Have students take pictures of different facial emotions • Multiple and arrays take pictures showing multiplication carton of eggs =2x6, desks=5x6 • Elapsed time • Graphs • Symmetry – cut picture in half and have students draw other half • Odd/even • Leaf collection

• Tree, flower, or plant guidebook • Cloud Types • Body parts and senses • Phases of the moon • Take a picture of a location outside every couple weeks and note changes • Categorize/sorting objects - animal/plant/mineral, colors; opposites,

solid/liquid/gas • Landmark study • Family Trees • Timelines • State or country info postcards • Trading Cards

• Time Capsules with inputs from each student • Bio-poems • How to essays • Labeling – body parts, simple machine parts, flower parts, etc. • Phonics take pictures of objects that have a specific phonemic sound and make a book or bulletin

board • Give students a picture. They have to start a story about that picture, then pass it on and next

student adds to it, and so on.

• Pictures of words that rhyme • Picture Dictionary • Student Affirmations • Yearbooks • Author page on student books

• Venn Diagrams

• Students have a group of pictures and then have to write on how they are connected

• Pictures of Bulletin boards that you want to use again

• Take pictures of your stations and centers. • Calendars • Attendance/Lunch counts • Photo Quilts • Weekly Job charts • Certificates • Pictures of careers • Pictures of setup projects, assignments or lab experiments for absent students to

use

• Country passports • Take a picture of students face and then they have to draw the rest of the body for

what they want to be when they grow up or a favorite activity or character • “I can _____ “ Books • Season Books • Book/report covers

• Visual Periodic Table • Finger puppets • Pop-up cards

• 3-D photos – print several copies of a picture and cut them out. Paste on foam core and paste together overtop of each other.

• Digital Storytelling

• Perspectives - take pictures from many angles

Kent Williamskwilliams@sharpsville.k12.pa.us