Teaching and learning sequence
Telling a Story with Photography
Author: Jane Nicholls
Last updated: May 2009
What do my students need to learn?
Ascertain that students are new to photography. This would mean that while they may be able to use the camera to take photographs, they do not think about the composition of those images. Students need to learn to use images effectively as part of visual language learning and to complement their written and oral language activities in the classroom.
Curriculum links
Principles: Which principles underpin your planning in this sequence?
Values: Which values will you model and explore as you teach this sequence?
Key competencies: The following competencies are specifically developed in this unit:
• Using language, symbols, and texts (identify, form, and express ideas effectively through photography)
• Thinking
• Managing self
• Relating to others
Learning area: English
- Processes and strategies AO: Which processes and strategies will you want students to use?
- Mode: Viewing and Presenting
- Curriculum level: 3
Assessment links
English, level 3: Viewing and presenting
Presenting
Purposes and audiences
• Show a developing understanding of how to shape texts for different purposes and audiences.
o constructs texts that show a growing awareness of purpose and audience through careful choice of content
Ideas
• Select, form, and communicate ideas on a range of topics.
o forms and expresses ideas and information with increased clarity, drawing on a range of sources
o adds or changes details and comments to support ideas, showing some selectivity in the process
Language features
• Use language features appropriately, showing a developing understanding of their effects.
o uses visual language features to create meaning and effect and engage interest
o uses a range of vocabulary to communicate meaning
The English exemplars
can be used for assessment.
What do I need to know and do?
Select from and adapt the teaching and learning tasks below to meet the identified needs of your students.
Learning tasks
- 1)
Learning task 1: Talking about elements of effective photography
Expected time frame:
1+ lessons
This task involves examining the composition of photographs to explore how this contributes to the story told.
- 2)
Learning task 2: Demonstrating elements of effective photography
Expected time frame:
3+ lessons
This task involves students working collaboratively to take a photograph that demonstrates an element of photography. Students display their photos in an analogue or a digital medium, and then develop a rubric to be used in self, peer, and teacher assessment of images.
- 3)
Learning task 3: Combining elements of effective photography
Expected time frame:
1+ lessons
This task involves groups of students working collaboratively to take a photograph that conveys an emotion. Students share their knowledge gained in previous tasks to agree to shape one image.
- 4)
Learning task 4: Explaining elements of effective photography
Expected time frame:
2+ lessons
This task involves groups displaying their compositions in an analogue or a digital medium and explaining the choices they made during composition. Students use the co-constructed rubric to provide peer and self assessment and set goals for future work.
What is the impact of the teaching and learning?
Assessment: Consider all the student descriptions of photography compositions, for example, by contrasting the initial discussions about images in learning task 1 to the students’ explanations of composition in learning task 4. Consider also the results of the students’ self and peer assessment using the co-constructed rubric.
Next steps for learning: You may decide to give students given the opportunity to create and justify another image, working with feedback provided. Take all this evidence into account in deciding how far the students have achieved their purpose and what the next steps are.
Informing future teaching: Having now identified evidence of students learning progress, reflect on the effectiveness of your teaching approach and note any possible improvements.
