I have noticed, as an elementary school teacher, that many students are visual learners. If they cannot physically see it, then it takes them longer to grasp. This makes sense because this generation has information at their fingertips that they can see it whenever and wherever they want. Lawrence (2022) says it best, " We are visual creatures as much as we are textual creatures" (p. 109). Students need to be able to see and practice the skills that are being taught. Visuals assist with critical thinking, keeping attention, and encouraging participation in the classroom (Fanguy, 2023).
There are many ways to increase visual design in the classroom. Teachers can use many different visual aids to help students grasp a new concept. This could be images, graphs, diagrams, and infographics. Another option is to use presentations. Teachers can use presentations to assist during instruction. For example, when I was a first grade teacher, I would create slides for our reading curriculum. It would help students visually and also interact with students to keep them engaged.
Teachers should also explore various digital tools to assist with creating visuals in the classroom. Some of these options are Canva, Pictochart, and Easelly.
Visual Design infographic by Keley Barnhill One type of visual teachers can create is infographics. Infographics are "visual representations of complex information and they typically meld some combinations of charts, graphs, images, words, and numbers- often in clever and striking ways that are capable of telling stories just as well as blocks of text, and often in less time" (Noonoo, 2023).Elementary students are constantly being introduced to new material and ways of thinking. Using visuals in the classroom help students to refer to prior knowledge and to solve problems. "Visuals help students remember more than before, infographics are a great way to make sure kids really pay attention to important things, like rubrics for their project" ( Doyle, 2019). Infographics can be used for any grade level or subject. Fanguy (2023) gives the example of a kindergarten teacher creating an infographic of step by step expectations for student transitions.
I think that many kindergarten through second grade teachers shy away from using visual design is because they think it is too complicated and the students will not understand, but it can be used in many different ways. While the most beneficial use is for educational purposes, infographics can also be made for expectations, introductions, and as communication within the school (Fanguy, 2023). Walters (2023) states "infographics can be effective educational tools thanks to their ability to break complex information into easy-to-understand components and to make dense data engaging." There are many benefits to incorporating infographics into classrooms. Some of those benefits include:
- targeting different learning styles
- holding attention
- improving retention and recall
- simplifying complex topics
- enhancing storytelling (Walters, 2023)
While trying new things can be stressful, teachers have the opportunity to be creative and meet each individual student's needs. Start small and begin by designing posters or a presentation for your classroom. You will discover the many benefits that visual design has in your classroom.
References
Fanguy, W. (2023, October). How to Use Infographics in the Classroom (Plus Templates). Piktochart. https://piktochart.com/blog/using-infographics-classroom/#importance
Lawrence, D. (2022). Digital Writing: A Guide to Writing for Social Media and the Web. Broadview Press.
Noonoo, S. (2023, January). Using infographics to build media literacy and Higher-Order Thinking skills. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/infographics-media-literacy-skills/
Walters, C. (2023, May). The Benefits of Infographics for Education. Content Marketing Agency | Content Marketing Services by CopyPress. https://www.copypress.com/kb/infographics/the-benefits-of-infographics-for-education/#1
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Through my teaching, I have also come to realize that students are very visual and concrete in their learning. As you pointed out from Lawrence "we are visual creatures" (2022, p.109). Using graphics and visuals in our teaching can support student learning, but also shifting to having students create content can help to prepare them for life after school. Dr. Dan Kreiness shares some easy ways to start engaging students as content creators and not just content consumers. These ideas are centered on using Nearpod products as it is posted on the Nearpod blog, but many could be adjusted to fit products that you already have available as a school. One of my favorite examples from Kreiness is "storytelling through photo/video creation" (2024). So much of the content that is produced is a video now. Allowing students to create fun and engaging videos for school is a great way to create automatic buy-in for students, but also still maintaining the expectations of mastering the content taught. Just letting students show that in a different way!
ReplyDeleteKreiness, D. (2024, September 6). 5 ways to empower students as content creators. Retrieved October 3, 2024 from https://nearpod.com/blog/5-ways-to-empower-students-as-content-creators/
Lawrence, D. (2022) Digital writing: A guide to writing for social media and the web. Broadview Press.