There are strong links between photography and writing. This is true in substance and process, as well as language. The world of photography provides a visual, concrete language (angle, focus, point of view, close-up, panorama) that is enormously helpful in teaching writing. Lo and behold, we may discover that students are already familiar with this terminology. It makes sense for teachers to bring this visual language into the writing classroom.
There’s a great deal of overlap between the craft of photography and the craft of writing. It turns out that photography can illuminate the craft of writing and help us understand it in a whole new way.
The craft lesson is a pithy, streamlined, high-quality approach with practical ideas that stretch young writers. These lessons draw on the photographic world and build on links between photography (images) and writing (text). They apply to photography and writing and, hopefully, illuminate them both.
Each craft lesson has been designed to fit into the minilesson portion of your writer’s workshop. Here are a few suggestions about how to use them:
Below, check out a sample craft lesson from from Focus Lessons:
Capturing Arresting Detail
Young writers often take a “soft focus.” They write in generalities and don’t pull in close. In fact, a story about an everyday event—eating lobster, putting a worm on a hook, wiping the face of your baby brother—can come alive if the writer pulls in close and uses precise description. In my young adult novel, The One O’Clock Chop (2007), the main character is digging clams when he pulls something heavy from the bottom. It turns out to be a (gulp) dead body. I decided to pull in close to describe it: I’d never seen a dead body before, and the drowned corpse looked pretty gruesome—the too-white skin, the man’s tongue hanging out like a strip of wide, soggy ribbon. There was a strand of seaweed on the chin. I stared at the mouth. (7) The first seven words are literally true. I wanted to “write small,” but I had never seen the corpse of a drowned person, so I had to use my imagination. What would the skin look like? The tongue? Elizabeth, a fifth grader, went on a trip to visit her great-grandmother in Guatemala. Notice the vivid detail she uses to make the story come alive. I woke to the smell of tortillas being made. I slowly stepped onto the cool tile floor as I crept around the wooden dresser and out the door. I went into the kitchen to find Mama Lita, my great-grandma, making tortillas with my mom. Mama Lita saw me in the corner and asked (in Spanish): “Do you want to help me make tortillas?” I nodded and hurried into the kitchen. She explained the process. I tried to keep up with her but couldn’t since I didn’t understand Spanish that well. Instead, I watched her carefully and put together bits and pieces . . . I helped her make them, slowly putting one ingredient in after the other, and laughing with her as she told jokes. |
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The above has been adapted from Focus Lessons by Ralph Fletcher. Learn more at Heinemann.com
His newest book, Focus Lessons, helps teachers use the natural links between writing and photography to enhance their instruction. Another recent title, Joy Write, explores the value of giving students time and autonomy for the playful, low-stakes writing that leads to surprising, high-level growth.
Learn more about Ralph at his website RalphFletcher.com and follow him on Twitter @FletcherRalph.