Mr. McCoy's Designs

Rationale:

 

After students become fluent readers, they can begin to make the transition to reading to learn. In order for them to do so, they must begin to comprehend the texts they are reading. One method that improves text comprehension is visualization of the events. Visualization helps students understand what a text is telling them. It can also help students become more engaged in the text and the instruction.  

 

 

Materials:

 

-National Geographic article: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/11/151109-south-pole-antarctic-explorers-shackleton-expedition/

-Markers/crayons/colored pencils

-Handouts with passages from the article

 

Procedures:

 

1. Say: “Sometimes when we are reading an article, it is difficult to understand what is going on because the text is dry and a little boring, but I have a way to help with that! It’s called visualization. When we visualize something we are reading, we make up a mental picture of the story. So as we read this article about an explorer today, I want you to practice visualizing what is happening.”

2. Say: “Today we are going to read about Henry Worsley, a British explorer who is wants to be the first person to hike all the way across Antarctica without any help, all by himself! But first, there are a few words in the article that may help you to understand what is happening a little better. The first word is traverse. To traverse something means to go across it. The opposite of this would be to stay in one place. Have you ever tried to cross somewhere new on your own? Do you think you can help me finish this sentence: The football team _________ the length of the field to score a touchdown. The next word is sustain. This means to support or supply with food, water, and other necessities of life. How would your life be different if you had to find all of your own food? Try to finish this sentence: The mother kangaroo _________ her joey with food until it is old enough to find food for itself. The last word is expedition. An expedition is a journey made for a specific purpose. Have you ever traveled somewhere for a specific purpose? Try this sentence: Columbus’s _________ to India for the spice trade ended with him discovering America instead.”

3. Say: “Now that we know some of the words that might help us understand this article, we are going to read it and practice our visualizing skills. Have any of you ever dreamed of being an adventurer? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be the first person to every go somewhere new? How do you think it would feel to know that you would go down in history as the first person to ever successfully explore an entire continent on your own? Well, we will have to read to find out what it was like for Henry Worsley, hiking across Antarctica on his own.”

4. Say: “Now I am going to show you how I might visualize part of this story. ‘As summer dawns in the Southern Hemisphere, a seasoned Antarctic explorer is hoping to add his name to the Polar record books on the centennial of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated Endurance Expedition. Henry Worsley, a 55-year-old British ex-army officer, is endeavoring to become the first person to cross the Antarctic continent alone, unsupported, and unassisted.’ [Close eyes] I see a sun rising as one man walks alone across an empty white field.”

5. Say: “Now that you have seen me visualize, I want you to try it! While I read the next part of the article, I want you to close your eyes and try to imagine what is happening. “Shackleton never even began his crossing, as his ship was crushed in the ice of the Weddell Sea shortly after he arrived, and he and his 28-man crew spent the next two years in an epic fight for survival.” Would anyone like to tell us what you visualized?”

6. Since we are all experts at visualizing now, I want everyone to practice visualizing while they read the rest of the article on their own.

7. Say: “Now that we have all read the entire article, I am going to pass out sheets of paper with a part of the story on them. I want you to read the passage on the paper, visualize what it means, and then draw a picture of the images you come up with. On the back of the card, I want you to write out in your own words what your picture represents.”

 

Resources:

 

Dunn, M. Vivacious Visualization. Retrieved from: http://lmd0015.wix.com/literacy-designs#!contact/c1d94

Synnott, M. (9 November 2015). This Man Will Spend 80 Days Walking Antarctica Alone. National Geographic. Retrieved from:

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/11/151109-south-pole-antarctic-explorers-shackleton-expedition/