This article describes a visual language comprised of abstract shapes that has been shown to be effective in communicating prior knowledge between and within members of a small team or group. The visual language includes a set of geometric shapes and rules that guide the construction of the abstract diagrams that are the external representation of…

Despite the fact that to date Visual Literacy (VL) scholars have not arrived at a general consensus for a theoretical organization of the VL field, important conceptual investigations have emerged over the past four decades. In this paper we discuss and synthesize those studies. We then present a first attempt toward a cohesive theory of VL. The…

Teachers can integrate discussion and writing about photographs into the early childhood curriculum to build speaking, reading, and writing skills in any language. Although little available research focuses on photography and early childhood education as related specifically to English Language Learners, several current teacher resources do focus…

Presents a rationale for studying the visual language of film. Reports on three studies that suggest some tentative answers concerning the manipulation of film and some promising approaches to the study of the medium. (RL)

The role of the right hemisphere of the brain in learning is examined, and the possibility of using visuals to improve verbal learning in right brain dominant learning disabled students is suggested. Approaches to stimulate oral language production, aid in the recall of written language, and achieve organizational style in writing through…

In this age of proliferating visual communications, there is a permissiveness in subject matter, content, and meaning that is exhilarating, yet overwhelming to interpret in a meaningful or consensual way. By recognizing visual statements, whether a piece of sculpture, an advertisement, a video, or a building, as communication, one can approach…

It is proposed that visual literacy be defined as the ability to understand (read) and use (write) images and to think and learn in terms of images. This definition includes three basic principles: (1) visuals are a language and thus analogous to verbal language; (2) a visually literate person should be able to understand (read) images and use…

Presents an interpretation of the history of the development of visual and verbal language, and argues for the place of electronic technologies of visual and oral languages in the language arts curriculum. (DF)

A study explored how children respond to visuals and how a program of visual literacy enhances oral and written response to pictures. The first and fifth grades of two schools, one urban and one suburban, with different socioecomic groups of students, were chosen to participate in a 1-year program consisting of one visual literacy lesson per week.…

In advocating written literacy through visual literacy, this paper presents an overview of supporting theory and evidence and demonstrates practical application through visual compositions. The research reported in the first section of the paper includes the general theoretical stance of writing-as-process educators, who believe that the…

This yearbook describes the program undertaken by the Montebello, California Unified School District to assist children's development in the area of language arts by giving them the opportunity to use cameras to record their visual experience and by then using the resulting pictures, slides and films as the basis of language arts experiences. It…