A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

“How do you make sense of what you see when you look at an image, especially if that image comes with no caption, headline, links or other clues about its origins? What can constructing meaning from an image teach you?” – The New York Times

​I’ve always loved The New York Times “What’s Going On In This Picture” feature. Each week, they choose a picture and ask students to answer three simple questions: What’s going on in this picture? What do you see that makes you say that? What more can you find? Students are allowed the opportunity to form their own interpretations and share ideas. They are encouraged to post their findings and cite evidence to prove their argument. Throughout this process, students are engaged, developing critical thinking skills and constructing knowledge. 
 
As teachers, we are always looking for lessons to meet our content standards. Both The New York Times and the Library of Congress have lesson plans and teaching resources already created (or that can be modified) that incorporate their images and non-fiction informational texts. As we teach students techniques for critically evaluating images/documents, it is also important to remember that we are teaching them skills that will help them identify fake news and become better digital citizens.  

Below is a list of potential lesson ideas and teaching resources:

• Create your own version of The New York Times Learning Network’s “What’s Going On In This Picture.”
• The New York Times has a Learning Network site that offers content specific lesson plans and learning materials. Lesson examples: “Dangerous Numbers? Teaching About Data and Statistics Using the Coronavirus Outbreak and “Where 2020’s Record Heat Was Felt the Most.”
• The Library of Congress expanded this concept to include all types of primary sources. They created Teacher Guides and Analysis Tools for analyzing motion pictures, maps, political cartoons, oral histories, etc.
• The Library of Congress also has a comprehensive education site. This site offers a teacher’s blog along with teacher-created lesson plans. Lesson examples: Titanic (bias), Nature’s Fury (interpreting and constructing meaning), or To Kill a Mockingbird (historical perspective).
• We have created a Primary Sources libguide that includes an additional list of teaching ideas and resources. (i.e. How to locate primary sources using our databases/online resources along with other lesson plan websites.)

​If you think you have a lesson or an idea that might be created/adapted using images or primary sources, just let Barb or I know. We’d love to help you!