Picture to Picture
Goal: The goal is to develop the student's ability to verbalize from a
given picture, and to increase the length and complexity of the student's
expressive language.
1. Structure Words
B
2
SIZe
number
B
G B
movement
where
background
1
7
6
9
4
10
n
perspective
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d
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
2. Picture to Picture
• Student describes a given picture.
• Teacher questions with choice and contrast.
• Student touches and verbalizes each structure word.
• Teacher summarizes, saying, "Your words made me picture ..."
• Teacher looks at the picture.
• Teacher and student compare teacher summary to the picture.
3. hnagery Practice Mter Picture Description
• Teacher and student look again at the picture they have just described.
• Teacher takes the picture away.
• Student describes her imagery, saying, "I pictured .. ''
• Teacher questions to direct her imagery: "What did you picture for...?"
• Teacher may take a turn and tell the student a part she imaged to prompt
the student's imagery.
• Teacher looks for signs that the student is imaging.
• When the student has completed describing her imagery, they look at the
picture again.
Group Instruction
The Picture to Picture lessons are easily modified to accommodate the involvement
of a group, large or small. Try to think of the group as a collective individual so the
interaction is similar to the one-to-one that you have experienced in this manual.
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Picture to Picture
Follow this procedure:
0
Show the picture to all the students, but during the lesson don't look at
it yourself.
• Randomly choose students to describe the picture.
0
To keep students engaged, have each do a thumbs-up or thumbs-down
after another student has had a turn verbalizing. If a student gives a
thumbs-down, he or she has to verbalize why.
• Have students take turns checking through each structure word, or pass
the structure words out and call out the name of the word to be
verbalized: "If you have the size structure word, hold it up and then tell
us all about that part of the picture."
• You give a summary with, "Your words 1nade me picture .. . "
• Students give you thumbs-up or thumbs-down. Again, if a student gives
you a thumbs-down, he or she has to explain why.
• You and the students look at the picture together and compare your
verbalization to the given picture.
The same random selection is appropriate for the Imagery Practice After Picture
Description lesson. Quickly show the picture again and challenge the students
to recall it with their imagery. Question randomly and nse the thumbs-up/ down
activity to keep all students engaged.
89
•
Word Imaging
T
he nonverbal code of imagery awaits us for direct and explicit instruction for
the smallest unit of language--a word. The goal of the Word Imaging step
is to develop the student's ability to create mental representations for a word, thus
laying the foundation for more language: a phrase, a sentence, or a paragraph.
At the Word Imaging step, the student describes her visualization of a single
word using an instructional format very similar to Picture to Picture, but with an
important difference: the teacher's langnage is structured specifically to stimulate
the student's imagery Now the teacher says, "What are you picturing for ... " rather
than, "Your words are making me picture ... " As in the Picture to Picture lessons, the
teacher questions for details, the student checks through the structure words which
generate a detailed verbalization, and the teacher summarizes the imagery created
by the student's verbalization. In short, the student creates a mental representation
for a word (visualizes) and then describes her imagery to the teacher (verbalizes).
As discussed earlier, there is a range of imaging ability from individual to individual.
Individuals with poor imaging ability report that their images are dim, lacking
color and motion, while individuals with good imaging ability report that
their itnages are vivid, intense, and n1oving, son1eti1nes including auditory and
oliactory sensations.
Many adults-even doctors, teachers, speech therapists, business professionals,
and college students-indicctte they fmd it difficult to visualize concepts. Their
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
difficulty to create mental representations is also linked to degrees of difficulty
in comprehension, expressive language, problem solving, creativity, and critical
thinking. Considering that even professionals might have difficulty visualizing,
you must expect that visualizing may be very difficult for your student. She will
need direct stimulation, thoughtful interaction, and consistent practice to develop
her nonverbal code of imagery. She will also need your diagnostic abilities, your
logical pacing, and your patience and genius.
A Look at Sofie Now
As we start the overlap to Word Imaging, Sofie has only had a few lessons and
naturally there isn't a noticeable change in her affect and behavior. She is still shy
and still very quiet in social situations at home and in school. But during the Picture
to Picture lessons, she now verbalizes spontaneously, describing most of the detail
in a picture with litde questioning from me, and she easily reverbalizes through the
structure words. She also spontaneously self-corrects or adds information prior
to my summary, seemingly aware that her words create mental representations.
Most encouraging, she shows outward signs of imagery when we practice imagery
immediately after she has described a picture, often looking up or defocusing her
gaze to remember a specific part of the picture.
In general, Sofie sometimes appears apathetic and passive during the instruction,
and she doesn't often respond to my humor or generate humor herself.
Word to Picture to Imagery
The Word Imaging step begins with a recall of imagery-memory. The student
sees and recalls a given picture, helping her experience this phenomenon called
"imagery." Students often express that they don't know what it means to visualize,
to picture something. They ask if their picture should look like a movie screen,
or a television screen, or a printed picture. Given that they may have experienced
difficulty creating mental representations, perhaps experiencing dim or fleeting
images, they seem unaware of their imagery or what it is to imagine something. A
considerable amount of time may be spent explaining what it is to imagine, what
imagery looks like, so it is easiest and best to have a student experience her own
imagery through recall/ memory. I often ask a student to remember something
very familiar to her, like her room, her pet, a family member: "Think of your
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Word Imaging
pet. If you can see that, you are visualizing, imagining, picturing." I then ask for
recall/imagery for something specific in her imagery: "What color do you picture
your pet?"
Introducing imagery from memory enhances and simplifies the imagery experience,
develops imaging ability, and aids in awareness of mental imagery. The lesson
below begins with Sofie hearing a word, looking at a picture of the word, and then
describing her imagery after the picture is removed from her view. To not overload
her memory, I use one of the pictures from the Word Imaging Book in the Visualizing
and Verbalizing Kit. These pictures are very simple, with few details and few colors.
I question to develop her imagery and we look at the picture occasionally to assist
with memory for specific elements. She reverbalizes through the structure
words for details, and then we share the summary of the picture before we view it
one last time.
SAMPLE
LESSON
II
Word to Picture to Imagery
Setting the Lesson
Nanci: Drawing one head and thought bubble, ''I'm going
to say a word and also show you a picture of the
word. Then I'll take the picture away and you try to
picture it in your mind."
Sofie: "Okay."
Beginning the Lesson and
Questioning
Nanci: "Good. Here is a picture of
an elephant. Take a good look at it.
You can picture it in your mind."
Sofie: She studies the picture of the
elephant for a few seconds.
Nanci: ·"Now I'm going to hide the
picture, turn it over like we're putting
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
it to sleep." I turn the. picture over on the table. "Even
though you can't see the picture anymore, you can
imagine it in your mind. What do you picture?"
Sofie:
Tell me as much as
you can about what
you're picturing.
"An elephant."
Nanci: "Right. Tell me as much as you
can about what you are picturing for the
elephant. Use words to help me know what
you are picturing. Think of those structure
words we nse. For example, what color are
you picturing?"
Sofie: "Gray. The elephant is gray. And ... he
has big ears and big feet."
N anci: "Great. Tell me as much as you can, like
do you picture him sitting or is he ... "
Sofie: "He is standing and I think he has his
trunk in some water."
Nanci: "Great. What did you picture for the
size of his trunk? Was it long or short?"
Sofie: "It was a long trunk."
Nanci: "Great job! What do you picture for
his head, besides his ears? Does he have eyes?
What else do-"
Sofie: Interrupting, her eyes going up, "He has
an eye and he has a tusk. I don't remember
what the water looks like though."
Looking at the Picture Again
for More Detail
Nanci: "Me either! Let's look at the picture
again and see if we can get even better pictures
in our mind:' We look at the picture together,
and then I put it face down on the table again.
"Now what do you picture? Anything more?"
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Word Imaging
Sofie: "Yes. He has his long trunk in some blue water in a big
yellow bucket. And ... and he has a tail. A little tail."
N anci: "Right. I can picture that too. I can also picture a
blue sky. Did you picture that part?"
Sofie: Eyes up, "I don't remember."
Nanci: "Let's look at the picture one last time and see about
the sky and anything else we want to say about the
elephant, like his size and where he is. Pretty soon
we're going to check through those structure words
and we want to have as much visualized as we can
before we go through them." We look at the picture
for a few seconds, then put it down on the table. "Now
what do you picture?"
Sofie:
"A blue sky. He is a big elephant and his tusk is white
and long. He is standing in green grass and nothing
else is around him."
Checking Through the
Structure Words
Nanci: "Great picturing! Let's check through our structure
words." I put the words out with the picture still
hidden on the table. "Touch each word and tell
me what you are picturing for it-then turn
the card over and put it to sleep."
Sofie: Touching the what card, "I pictured an
elephant." Touching the size card, "And it is
a big elephant with big ears and ... and ..." Her
eyes go up. "And big feet ... and a little tail ...
and a long tusk." Touching the color card, "It
is gray and there is blue water in a bucket, oh
the bucket is pretty big, not a little bucket ... and there
is green grass."
Sofie continued to check through the structure words, just as she had done
successfully in the Picture to Picture lessons. When she came to a structure word
that wasn't included in her imagery, we looked at the picture again.
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
Sofie: Touching the background card, "I don't
remember any background, I'm not picturing
anything for that."
Nanci: "'Let's see." Turning the picture over,
"Let's see if there was some background or if
you were right in not picturing any." I turn the
picture over and we both look for one specific
part, the background. "Is there any background
in the picture?"
Sofie: "No. There is nothing, just the green grass
and the blue sky:'
Nanci: "Right! You were right to not picture anything. No
flowers, no other elephants, nothing. Good on
you, Sofie."
Sofie:
Smiling, "Thanks.
structure words?"
Should I do the rest of the
Nanci: "Yes. Put them all to sleep and then we'll tell each
other what we pictured."
Teacher and Student Summarizing
His trunk is in a
bucket of water.
Nanci: "Okay. Let's talk about what we pictured, then we'll
look at the picture and see if we got it all. My turn
first. Your words made me picture an elephant. It
was a big elephant with big ears and big feet. He is
standing in green grass. How did I do? Thumbs-up
or thumbs-down?"
Sofie: Doing the thumbs-up sign, "You did good!'
Nanci: "Thanks. Your turn. Did you picture more?"
Sofie: "His trunk is in a bucket of water.
and the bucket was big and yellow."
Blue water
Nanci: "Great. You can have more on your turn if you
want. You've earned a lot of Magic Stones so far. I'll
give you a stone for every detail you get! Think of
your structure words and you'll get all the details."
96
r
Word Imaging
Sofie: Smiling, "Okay. He had a little 'tail." I give her a
Magic Stone. "I remember that little tail. Hmmrn.
He was standing so we conld see his side and he had
an eye and a long tusk." I give her two Magic Stones.
"He was outside. The sky was blue. It looked like he
was moving his trunk and we could hear him sucking
up the water ... "
Nanci: "Great job! Look at all the stones you have. I'm going
to give you an extra stone because you showed me
how little his tail was. Gesturing helps me picture and
also helps me know you are picturing."
Sofie: Smiling, "Thank you."
Teacher and Student Looking at the Picture
Nanci: Showing the picture, "Now we get to look at the picture
and see if we pictured-remembered-everything."
Now we get to look at
the picture and see if we
pictured - remembered everything.
Sofie: "We got everything. But, well, did we
say his tail has a little bit of hair on
the end?"
Nanci: "No we didn't! Great job, Sofie."
I
97
~·
Visualizing and J/I?Ybalizing
Lesson Summary:
Word to Picture to Imagery
• Teacher says a word and then shows a picture of the word.
• Student studies the picture, and then the teacher turns the
picture over.
• Student verbalizes her imagery recall.
• Teacher questions to extend the student's imagery recall.
• Student and teacher look at the picture as needed to image and recall
specific details.
• When the student's verbal description is complete, she checks through
the structure words to be sure all relevant details are included in her
. visualizing and verbalizing.
• Teacher and student summarize their collective imagery with the
teacher beginning, "Your words made me picture ..."
• Teacher and student look at the picture to be sure they included
all details.
Known Noun Imaging
As soon as the student has experienced some success visualizing a word from a
given picture, overlap her to creating a mental representation from just a word--a
known noun. A known noun is a word that the student is familiar with, and has
perhaps experienced.
fu it was important to choose appropriate pictures to verbalize in the Picture to
Picture step, it is equally important to choose appropriate words to visualize in the
Word Imaging step. The primary criterion is that the word be familiar and basic;
the secondary criterion is that the word be high in imagery For example, the word
tree is a familiar, basic noun, but it is not high in imagery. A large tree with green
leaves might be the essence of the image. However, in Western cultures Christmas
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Word Imaging
tree is likely to be familiar and it is also full of attributes from which the structure
words can elicit loads of detailed imagery.
You may also choose a low-imagery word but develop detailed imagery through
your questions. For example, the word horse is common, familiar to many, but not
necessarily high in imagery as compared to words like clown or doll. However, you
can ask questions, using the structure words as your mental model, to create a vivid,
detailed image for the word horse. Add elements of movement and background,
such as the horse running and jumping over a white fence or rolling over in a
grassy field. It is important to keep your questions primarily focused on the horse
doing something or being somewhere, rather than leading your student into a new
direction away from the known noun horse.
You are aware of your student's general oral vocabulary level and you will use
known nouns and questions appropriate to her level. Here is a sample of known
nouns used frequently in V /V instruction because they are familiar and high in
imagery: clown, doll, cowboy, pirate, Christmas tree, birthday cake, and airplane, as well
as all kinds of animals, such as fish, cow, dog, cat, duck, pig, tiger, lion, and bird. While
person nouns such as brother, mother, or father may be familiar as well as high in
imagery, do not use them as known nouns. Although easily recalled, people are
generally too difficult to describe.
Let's look in on a lesson with Sofie as I overlap to saying a word and asking Sofie
to visualize and verbalize it. Note that I drive the sensory bus with the question,
"What does that word make you picture?" not only to meet the goal of the lesson
but also to familiarize her with language that links imagery to word meaning. This
awareness of concretizing vocabulary with imagery can later be applied to basic
vocabulary development, and to content and language arts in school.
As I question with choice and contrast, I continually diagnose whether Sofie is
showing outward signs of visualizing, noting if she looks up or defocuses her eyes.
Although not written into the sample lesson, I also give her Magic Stones as
immediate feedback, something she enjoys even at the age of twelve.
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
II
SAMPLE
LESSON
Known Noun Imaging
Setting the Lesson
Nanci: "I'm going to just say a word this time and you tell me
what you picture. Clown. What does that word make
you picture?"
Beginning the Lesson and
Questioning
Sofie: "I picture a down."
Nanci: "Right. What does your clown
look like?"
Sofie: "Just a regular clown."
Nanci: "Hmmm. Does he have clothes
on or is he ... ?"
Sofie: Interrupting, "He has clothes on!"
Nand: "Great. Help me know what
you are picturing for your clown. Start
at the top of his head and go down.
Does he have hair, does he have a
hat on?"
Sofie: "He has a hat on."
Help me know what
you are picturingstart at the top and
go down.
Nanci: "What are you picturing for his
hat? Is it a little hat or a big floppy hat?
Think about your structure words and
tell me as much detail as you can."
Sofie: "His hat is little ... and black. A
little black hat. He has red hair."
N anci: "Great. What are you picturing
for his red hair? Is it short and curly or
long and stringy?"
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UVrd Imaging
Sofie: "It is red and curly. It sticks out on his head."
Nanci: "Okay." Gesturing in wide movements from my head,
"Are you picturing it sticking out like this far from his
head or this far?"
Sofie: Gesturing with her hands, "This far. Really big."
Nanci: "Great. You're picturing red curly, fluffY hair that sticks
way out." I gesture. "And he has a little black hat on.
Keep going down the clown. What
are you picturing for his face? Are you
seeing a white face and a red-?"
Sofie: Interrupting with a litde
excitement in her voice, "He has a
white face and a big red nose. His
nose is big and round too. And he
has black lines around his eyes ... and
a big smile for a mouth. His mouth
is red."
Nanci: "Wow. Great visualizing.
Now I can see that too. Keep going.
What is he wearing? Is he wearing a
clown suit or regular clothes?"
Sofie: "He has a clown suit on that
looks like big pajamas and... hmmm ...
I see red polka dots on the suit. The
suit is yellow."
Is he wearing a down
suit or regular clothes?
He has a clown suit on ...
I see red pol-ka dots on
the suit.
Nanci: "Got it. Are you picturing big
red polka dots or little red dots?"
Sofie: "Big dots. And he has a big
thing around his neck, a ... a ... a collar.
It is purple. And fluffY. Sticking out
like this." She gestures.
Nanci: "Great! Keep going. Does he
have arms and legs? What do you see
on his hands and feet?"
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
What are you picturing
him doing? Where is he?
Sofie: "He has white gloves on and
he has big, big feet with ... " Eyes up,
"With black shoes."
Nanci: "Wow. Great. What are you
picturing him doing? Where is he?
Is there anything around him?"
Sofie: "He is in a circus and he has a
big blue ball in front of him."
Checking Through the Structure Words
I continue to question Sofie for some detail about the circus and some
detail about what he is doing with the ball. I need to make sure she is really
visualizing a circus, not just saying the word circus. I need to make sure she
has the clown moving, as movement is important to imagery. Yet as I question
her, I also need to make sure and not question to so much detail on the
circus or the ball as to interfere with the clown, which should be the focus of
her imagery. When I feel that her clown is high in imagery, I direct her to check
through the structure words to refine, reverbalize, and establish her imagery.
Note how comfortable and successful she is with this task, thus she quickly and
confidently generates details for each word. Also note, more importantly, how fast
we go through the structure words. I don't request extensive detail for each word,
as that would make the lesson too long, losing the necessary lesson energy.
Nanci: "You've done a great job visualizing, and you've created
a really good clown." Putting the structure words on
the table, "Let's check through the structure words
and see if you have everything. Touch each card and
quickly tell me again what you pictured."
Sofie: Touching the what card, "I pictured a clown. He was in
.
"
a circus.
N anci: "Right!" Putting a Magic Stone on each structure
word card, "You've gotten a lot of Magic Stones in this
lesson. I'll put one on each card and when you tell
me about that word, you can take the stone. You don't
have to turn the card over. I think you have them all,
but let's see."
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Word Imaging
I pictured
a big clown, with a little hat.
And he had big feet. He has
red hair. Oh, and a white
face with a b1g
red nose.
Sofie: Touching the size card and taking
the stone, "I pictured a big clown, with a
little hat. And he had big feet. And a big
nose ... and... he had lots of big hair. Oh,
tile ball was really big too." Touching the
color card, taking the stone, artd smiling,
"There is a lot of color in my picture. He
has red hair. A yellow suit witil big red
dots, a purple collar." As she talks, she is
automatically gesturing for his hair artd
for his collar. "He has black shoes. Oh,
artd a white face with a big red nose artd a
big red smile. Huunm. He is standing artd bouncing a big
blue ball."
Nanci: "Great. Keep going."
Sofie: Smiling, touching tile number card, and taking the stone, "I
see one clowu ... one nose ... one hat... two eyes ... two legs
artd two hands ... one ball:'
Nanci: "Great. Keep going."
Sofie: Touching the shape card, taking the stone, and starting
to light up, "Okay. I see a round nose and a pointed
hat, like a triangle at the top. I didn't tell you that, but
that is what I see."
Nanci: "Great. You also saw a shape for the things on his snit
and the shape of the ball."
Sofie: With some excitement, "Yes. The dots are round and
the ball is round:'
Nanci: "So good, Sofie. Look how good
you are imaging. Keep going."
Sofie: Touching the where card artd
taking the stone, "I see him in a circus.
There are people sitting and watching
the clown ... and ... he is in a circus ring."
Touching the movement card and taking
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
the stone, "He is bouncing the balL Up and down,
like this."
Nanci: "Great. We pictured him bouncing the balL Keep
going, I think you pictured them alL"
~------------,ir
/
.f!
-~---~\\
-----·,,
\\ background \.
L__________JL _________~ \.. _____,_ ~
Sofie: Touching the mood card and taking the stone, "I picture the
clown as happy. He has a smile on his face:' Touching the
background card and taking the stone, "I pictured the circus
in the background with people and children laughing and
clapping." Touching the perspective card and taking the
stone, "Hmmm. I didn't tell you, but I picture this sort of
from above, kind of a litde higher than the clown."
Nanci: "Right! We've talked about how you are not in the
· picture when you are visualizing. But you look at
the picture like straight on or up above, and it is great
that your view is kind of what is called an aerial view.
Keep going, only two more left! Look at all the stones
you have!"
Sofie: Touching the when card and taking the stone, "I picture
this as during the day, I think. I can't really tell because
the clown is in the circus tent:'
N anci: "Right. It is hard to tell, so we'll just think it is in the
daytime, not nighttime. Keep going."
Sofie: Touching the last card, the sound card, and taking the
stone, "I didn't picture any sound."
Nanci: "That's all right. Let's add some. What sound can
you picture? Like the ball bouncing, some music,
children clapping?"
Sofie: "I can hear the children laughing and clapping."
Nanci: "Great. Show me clapping and laughing."
Sofie:
Claps but doesn't laugh.
Nanci: "Good job clapping, we can hear that in your picture."
Laughing a little, "Here's the sound of laughing. We
can hear that in our picture too." Humming the circus
sound, "And here is the sound of circus music."
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Word Imaging
Teacher Summarizing
Nanci: "My turn. You be the teacher. Your words made me
picture a clown with lots of curly red hair and a little
black hat on his head. He had a white face, a big
round red nose, little black eyes, and a big red smile on
his mouth that went like this. How
am I doing?"
~~--·~~-(l
~---~-
Your words made
me picture...
s-1~)'·~
~-.___.
0
~
Sofie: Smiling, "Good."
Nanci: "He has a yellow clown suit
on, with big red polka dots, and a
purple collar ... a big purple collar, like
this. He has white gloves and big,
really big feet with black shoes. How
am I doing?"
Sofie: Still smiling, "Good."
"Are you going to tell more?"
Shyly,
N anci:
"Yes.
I'm not through.
Your words made me picture him
bouncing a big blue ball and he is in
the circus. I picture children laughing
and clapping. I can picture them and I can hear them.
I also hear some music. And I see all this from kind
of above."
Sofie: Shyly, "Good. Did you tell me the shape of his hat?"
Nanci: "Nol Your words did give me a picture of the shape. His
hat is like a triangle. Right?"
Sof1e: Smiling happily, "Right."
Note that imagery is again stimulated as Sofie listens to my verbal summary. She is
dual coding verbal to nonverbal, creating images from what I said and con'lparing
that imagery to her own. This is evidenced when she catches something I left out
of a verbal summary Her imagery and memory are being developed.
105
Visualizing and Verbalizing
Lesson Summary:
Known Noun Imaging
• Teacher says a known noun and asks the student to picture it.
• Student verbalizes her imagery.
• Teacher questions with choice and contrast to develop and extend the
student's imagery, now using phrase, "What are you picturing for ... ?"
• Student checks through the structure words for details.
• Teacher summarizes, "Your words made me picture ... "
• Teacher looks for signs the student is visualizing.
Modeling Imagery
In the Word Imaging lesson above, I modeled some of the detail such as for the
sound structure word. Modeling is appropriate and helpful. Students doing V /V
in groups often progress as well or better than students doing V /V in one-to-one
instruction. At first that was puzzling. How could group instruction be as good
or better when individualized instruction can be customized specifically for the
student's needs? The answer is that in group V /V instruction, students take turns
adding to a collective image, which adds details that enrich and enhance imagery.
The added details may not have been thought of or created by a single student in
one-to-one instruction. This rich and complex whole can be modeled or created
by the teacher. You can add or model imagery that enriches the whole by adding
and gesturing movement or sound. Your additions should also make the lessons
light and fun, as joy in the lesson increases the lesson energy-that needed element
for attention to the sensory information of imagery.
Teacher Imagery Is Necessary for a JMnd Imaging Lesson
Unlike a Picture to Picture lesson, in which you have seen the picture before you
give it to the student (thus assisting you with recalled imagery), the Word Imaging
lesson requires you to visualize. You must have good imaging ability and you must
106
Word Imaging
pay attention to your imagery. Good imagery cannot be assumed for every teacher.
Often teachers have watched a Word Imaging lesson and commented that they
might not be able to hold the imagery the student is creating for them. However,
teaching V /V very often develops or improves imaging ability. Don't give up.
Do Questions Create Imagery?
The questioning in V /V instruction is very important, and appropriate questioning
does create imagery. Not only is it important to drive the sensory bus to bring
imagery to conscious awareness, it is important to subtly change the questions to
fit the goal of the lesson.
I noted this earlier, but it's worth stating again: remember to change your language
just a little to meet the goal. For example, if the goal is to direct the student to
attend to her verbalizing, as in Picture to Picture, say, "Your words are making me
picture ... " if the goal is to direct the student to attend to her visualizing, as in
Word Imaging, say, "What are you picturing ... ?" As simple as that seems, many
V /V instructors, even though quite experienced, often slip into using language not
quite appropriate for the goal of a lesson.
Since we have just experienced aWord Imaging lesson, and contrast aids perception,
let's experience this inefficient questioning now. Below is an example in which
my language does not directly call the student's attention to imagery; instead, my
language calls attention to her words and what they make me image.
Not-Quite-Right Language
Sofie: "His hat is little ... and black. A little black
hat. He has red hair."
Nanci: "Great. Your words made me picture a little
black hat. What should I picture for his hair?
Is it short and curly or long and stringy?"
Sofie: "It is red and curly. It sticks out on
his head."
Nanci: "Okay." Gesturing in wide movements from
my head, "Should I picture it sticking out
this far from his head or this far?"
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
Now note the difference in the following, where I direct her to attend to
her imagery.
Right Language
Sofie: "His hat is little ... and black. A little black
hat. He has red hair."
Nanci: "Great. What are you picturing for his
red hair? Is it short and curly or long
and stringy?"
Sofie:
"It is red and curly.
his head."
It sticks out on
Nanci: "Okay." Gesturing in wide movements fi:om
my head, "Are you picturing it sticking out dJis
fur from his head or this far?"
There is only a small difference in the focus of the language, but it is important
to be aware of appropriately driving the sensory bus to more quickly establish the
sensory-cognitive input of imagery. However, having said that, students will make
progress even if your language isn't quite right. So work on your awareness, but
don't give up if your language isn't perfect.
In teaching numerous V /V workshops, questions have come up that have helped
me clarifY specific steps or concepts. One specific question has stuck in my mind
for many years. ln observing me doing a Word Imaging lesson in which I was
giving choices to help imagery, a professional asked," Are you creating the images
for the child?" My simple answer was then and is now, "Yes, I hope so. That is
my goal." If the student could image easily, she would image. If I could tell her
to image, I would. Since you cannot tell someone to visualize and assume that is
enough instruction to enable them to experience rapid, vivid imagery, you have to
ask direct questions and give choices to help facilitate imaging activity.
Visualizing a Personal Image or an Object
Word Imaging begins with a recalled image in the Word to Picture to Imagery
step described in the first section of this chapter. Sometimes it is also helpful
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Word Imaging
for the student to visualize a personal image or an object before they visualize a
known noun.
Personal imaging allows the student to recall something that is highly familiar such
as a pet. Choose something that has been personally experienced but is also simple
to describe. As discussed earlier, although family members may be personal, they
are not always easy to describe. The same is true for an individual's living space
such as a bedroom or home. Choose a part of the living space to visualize and
verbalize, and keep the verbalization simple by not asking questions that will lead
to a lengthy description. The goal of personal imaging is to familiarize the student
with the phenomenon of imagery.
Visualizing an object may also be a little half step or an additional activity for your
student. The student looks at an object, touches and feels the object, and may close
her eyes and be able to still "see" the object. Then the object is taken away and
she describes what she pictures. The addition of kinesthetic information may aid
her imagery
Olfactory System Enhances Imagery
Other means to aid imagery are sound and smell. While sound is added to V /V
instruction through the use of the sound structure word, I did not create a smell
structure word for obvious reasons, primarily that it would be difficult for the
teacher in most circumstances. However, if your student is experiencing severe
difficulty grasping the concept of imagery, get a scratch-and-sniff book and have
her look at the picture, scratch and sniff, and then take the picture away and proceed
with a basic Word Imaging lesson.
Absurd, Fanciful, and PlaJiful Imagery
Fanciful imagery is playful, fun, and intensifies the imagery experience, and it is
easily added to known noun imaging as a means to develop detailed imagery. The
details added to the visualization intensifY the imagery in these early stages of V /V
Vivid imagery is important for the ensuing steps, in which the student is required
to create mental representations for increasingly more language, such as sentences
and paragraphs.
Add the fanciful images after the basic Word Imaging lesson has been completed
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
by your summary. Let your student know you're going to have some fun with the
imagery: "Good job. Your words gave me that good picture that I just described to
you. Let's have some fun with our cat. Close your eyes if you want and let's make
him a pink cat with a little red hat on his head."
Add more fanciful detail and let your student add or change the fantasy: "Let's
put some sunglasses on our pink cat] Picture that and then you take a turn adding
something like little white shoes or roller skates or. .. "
Don't Assume Imagery from a Choice
When we use the Socratic method, students are often questioned with choices to
facilitate imagery. However, you must be careful to not assume imagery: when
your student chooses one of your choices, it doesn't mean she visualized. If you
helped a student create an image with a choice, especially for the "I don't know"
answer, check to be sure that she really pictures it.
For example, if responding to the when structure. word, the student may be given
the choice of "sunny with blue sky and white puffY clouds" or" dark and rainy
with a gray sky." If she says, "Sunny with blue sky and white clouds;' you need to
be sure she really pictured that so you might say, "Okay. Describe what you see.
Tell me what that looks like." Encourage the student to gesture and verbalize detail
to be certain she is imaging.
Practice and Pacing
With imagery, language can be concretized and experienced vicariously. Detailed,
intensified imagery enables individuals to experience concepts through the sensory
input of imagery, which in turn enables them to store and retrieve information
for use in oral and written language comprehension and expression. The Word
Imaging step is to be practiced until imagery for a single word is detailed and
automatic. The length of time spent at this step is driven by the student's response,
not a specific amount of words, lessons, or days of instruction.
It should be noted that the Word to Picture to Imagery step is a step to help a
student experience imaging. You may only need to do one lesson, or maybe a few.
When the student begins to need less questioning from you and is using the
110
f,i!ord lma,ging
structure words with ease, overlap to the next step. You do not have to introduce
all the structure words before you overlap, but do stay in Word Imaging until all are
introduced. Continue to practice until the student is (1) confidently and quickly
able to describe her imagery with very little questioning from you, and (2) including
the details of the structure words.
The mantra for pacing is overlap steps. Don't be afraid to overlap to the next step
hecanse if you do overlap too soon, you can focus on the previous step with less
focus on the new step. As tbe stndent progresses, spend less instruction time with
the previous step and spend more time with the newer step.
It is my experience that V /V students are very often paced too slowly, not too
quickly, losing valuable lesson time and lesson energy. Don't be afraid to move
forward. You can always include some earlier steps in your lessons.
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Visualizing and Verbalizing
Word hnaging
1. Teacher says a known noun.
Help me know what
you are picturingstart at the top and
go down.
He has a hat on ...
it's.little and black. '--:;::11iJ .
· 2. Student verbalizes her itnagery.
112
Word Imasing
What are you
picturing for
his face?
He has a white face
and a big, red nose.
3. Teacher questions to extend student's imagery.
Is he wearing a clown
suit or regular clothes?
He has a clown suit on ...
I see red polka dots on
the suit.
4. Teacher questions with choice and contrast.
113
V1~malizing
and Verbalizing
I pictured
a big clown, with a little hat.
And he had big feet. He has
red hair. Oh, and a white
face with a big
red nose.
5. Student checks through the structure words.
/
'
'>..
~~~·
,§J~
·h.·t..f!
.
., ·~
,.p-"'li'l·.. ~
~~
Your words made
.
me p1cture
...
6. Teacher summarizes.
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