Visualizing and Verbalizing: Can you direct me?

[Writerdaddy]

Hi,

 

I am overseas and cant order books, but would like to use the visualizing and verbalizing approach with my twin b/g 8-year old fluent decoders and poor listeners. I have read online samples at the press.

 

Since I cannot use this approach with the official materials, I was hoping to implement it in read alongs. Here are the main things I have, from browsing samples, come up with to do:

 

1. At pauses in the reading, when some scene or object is described or visually evocative thing happens, ask them to picture it in their minds and describe what they see to me. Sometimes, I read back over the relevant text.

 

2. Ask the kids what they would do, or how they would feel, if they were this or that character in this or that situation. Ask them, if appropriate, what do they see now, in this position? Or smell, touch, etc.

 

3. Ask kids to draw a scene that they have just read/heard about

 

Can you think of some other ways i could incorporate v/v, specifically, into our reading?

 

Any online resources you can recommend. I believe that this idea of a visual gestalt is on the right track, although my main reason for believing in it, I have to admit, is simply because that is how I process and experience narrative myself.

 

Thanks!

 

Alan

[Twigs]

This is from a google search on visualizing and verbalizing (I can't figure out how to post the link!)

 

PPT]

 

 

 

The Steps of Visualizing and Verbalizing

 

sabrinalasher.cmswiki.wikispaces.net/.../Visualizing_and_Verbalizing...

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File Format: Microsoft Powerpoint - Quick View

Visualizing and Verbalizing Lindamood-Bell “If I can't picture it, I can't understand it.” -Albert Einstein. Symptoms of Weak Concept Imagery p. 29. Difficulty with ...

 

 

Here are some resources that may be helpful.

 

http://swearercenter.brown.edu/Literacy_Resources/jacobifinal2001.html

 

http://www.readinglady.com/mosaic/tools/Sensory%20Images%20handout%20by%20Deb%20Smith.pdf

 

http://www.unce.unr.edu/publications/files/cd/2006/fs0676.pdf

 

http://online.edfac.unimelb.edu.au/LiteracyResearch/pub/teaching_strategies/Intake17/JMelki_TS.pdf

 

Best Wishes.

Edited April 17, 2012 by Twigs

[Amy Jo]

Explain the goal first (something like we are going to learn to picture things in our heads, and since I can't see in your head, you'll have to tell me what you see). Next step (going from memory) was to have the child look at a picture and tell you about it (this may be just a quick check of the child's vocabulary & expression, or you may have to teach them to notice detail - the main thing is to cover the verbalizing part here, so you know the child can describe a picture to you). Then move onto visualizing, starting with single words: 'cowboy' 'boat' - ask what color things are / ensure it's not a black & white image. Then add a little more detail, so you have a phrase: a cat under a chair. Then a single sentence, then a small group of sentences, one at time. Short paragraphs. A few short paragraphs, again one at a time. Two, then three or four paragraphs at a time. I bought one of the Stories books when we got past single sentences, because my son had to start at the beginning. If I hadn't been able to do that,I think I could have pulled off just using the free samples.

 

This is as far as I got officially, since we did V/V first (DS was 7) THEN worked on reading, so he couldn't do any of the read on your own parts. (He can do more, but he picked that up in regular stories, I gradually read more before asking for a narration.) I think the last ones were single, then multiple, pages. All this can be done as a group btw, she gives tips for that in the back.

 

Don't focus on next steps/thoughts with V/V when starting out, focus on details - what does the child see. (But don't beat the details to death either.) What kind of clothes, what colors are they, what actions are they doing, where are they, etc. Your twins might be better at this than my son, we had to start at the very beginning. Oh, and the book doesn't encourage making the student draw, unless they are very good artists. It's hard to get the picture in your head onto a piece of paper, and failing to do that can lead to discouragement. And re-reading to check facts is fine, and encouraged when something is missed / remembered incorrectly / etc.

 

Look at / print ALL the samples from the grade level story books and the multi-grade story books. That should give you a fair idea of the type of stories you need.

 

I first read the book through inter-library loan from the community college. Idea Chain is a similar program. I bought my copy through Amazon's marketplace, and later resold it there. (I mention these in case any of the options will help you.) You might ask on the Special Needs board, they are super helpful. I sold my book when we were done, so I'm sure I've forgotten things. But hopefully this helps. It's a good program, but it requires a long sit-down with the manual to figure it out.

[Alessandra]

Hi,

 

I am overseas and cant order books, but would like to use the visualizing and verbalizing approach with my twin b/g 8-year old fluent decoders and poor listeners. I have read online samples at the press.

 

Since I cannot use this approach with the official materials, I was hoping to implement it in read alongs. Here are the main things I have, from browsing samples, come up with to do:

 

1. At pauses in the reading, when some scene or object is described or visually evocative thing happens, ask them to picture it in their minds and describe what they see to me. Sometimes, I read back over the relevant text.

 

2. Ask the kids what they would do, or how they would feel, if they were this or that character in this or that situation. Ask them, if appropriate, what do they see now, in this position? Or smell, touch, etc.

 

3. Ask kids to draw a scene that they have just read/heard about

 

Can you think of some other ways i could incorporate v/v, specifically, into our reading?

 

Any online resources you can recommend. I believe that this idea of a visual gestalt is on the right track, although my main reason for believing in it, I have to admit, is simply because that is how I process and experience narrative myself.

 

Thanks!

 

Alan

 

I (and many of my IRL friends) use the workbooks only. (I have a used, previous edition of the TM, but it is not really necessary.)

 

The best advice I'd give is to go into a lot of detail about each reading. I was about to summarize, but (as pp said) the samples on the Gander Publishing website are excellent. I looked at Book 3b and the four page lesson they show is typical.

 

On the first two pages, making a picture of the text & understanding the sequence of events.

-- there is a short paragraph, with vocabulary

-- there are 3-4 questions for each sentence at the start of the book and for 2 sentences grouped together by the end of the book.

-- then sentences are arranged randomly and student must put them in order

-- then a few lines for writing a short summary

 

On the second two pages of a lesson

-- questions that are not directly addressed in the text -- student must make inferences

-- then one whole page where the student makes up a story based on the text - no wrong or right way to do this, IMO.

 

What I find special about V & V is the amount of time spent on encouraging the reader to make a picture in his/her mind. For example, in lesson 7 from this book, the story is about an 8' tall ostrich. Questions: 'What did you picture for the ostrich's height?' 'How do you picture 8 feet?' It is easy for a kid to read '8 feet' and have no picture. Just think of an adult reading that something was five fathoms deep -- how many of us have a mental picture of that? Or, in a piece about the Star-Spangled Banner, the book asks. 'How do you picture the dawn?' The text doesn't say, but kid could answer that sky was pink or cloudy or misty or full of smoke from the battle or rainy.... No right answer, but there should be some kind of image in reader's mind.

 

The other sections -- on sequencing and on making inferences can be found in other reading comprehension programs.

 

You could certainly do this yourself by using simple non-fiction books or even paragraphs from the internet. Obviously it would be a lot more work for you.

 

Oh, and one more thing. Even though V & V is laid out in workbook format, I found it best for dc to do it when I was right there. First, dc would give a verbal answer, then write it down. Often, they would ask if they had the right answer, and I would tell them that there isn't just one right answer. Sometimes they would just draw a blank and need a little prompting -- it was a help for me to be alongside, so that there was no frustration. adding: I am saying 'they,' but I did it with one kid at a time.

Edited April 17, 2012 by Alessandra

[Writerdaddy]

Wow, thanks!

This really adds some dimensions to it for me. Especially helps me to back up right to the beginning in introducing this.

I got on this tack because the workbooks were recommended to me by someone on this forum.

However the workbooks themselves seemed.... well... kind of *workbooky* to me (what else could they be, of course) and it seemed a lot of the answers could be arrived at without any visualization. But this is the second time it was said to me that it's the workbooks I really want, so...

 

Again thanks. Can't wait to put this to good use.

 

Alan

[Alessandra]

Wow, thanks!

This really adds some dimensions to it for me. Especially helps me to back up right to the beginning in introducing this.

I got on this tack because the workbooks were recommended to me by someone on this forum.

However the workbooks themselves seemed.... well... kind of *workbooky* to me (what else could they be, of course) and it seemed a lot of the answers could be arrived at without any visualization. But this is the second time it was said to me that it's the workbooks I really want, so...

 

Again thanks. Can't wait to put this to good use.

 

Alan

 

I was one of the people who recommended them. Actually, they are not workbooky in the sense of encouraging mechanical answers. You do have to visualize to answer the questions -- you won't fine the answers in the text, and there is no "right" answer.

 

You could use the method w/o the V&V books, but it would require a very patient teacher to ask so many detailed questions. I know I couldn't do it!

[Writerdaddy]

Hi!

Just reading this moments after my first session using the sample questions and the introductory visualizations and picture work as recommended in the thread and links.

 

It did try my patience a bit, even with the samples. The kids I think were a little better at picturing than they were at verbalizing.

 

Have not tried the workbook samples yet. So far, it was not exciting or interesting work to do this with them but I think it is necessary so I will try my best to get through it.

 

Remediation is not much fun!

[Alessandra]

Hi!

Just reading this moments after my first session using the sample questions and the introductory visualizations and picture work as recommended in the thread and links.

 

It did try my patience a bit, even with the samples. The kids I think were a little better at picturing than they were at verbalizing.

 

Have not tried the workbook samples yet. So far, it was not exciting or interesting work to do this with them but I think it is necessary so I will try my best to get through it.

 

Remediation is not much fun!

 

Oh, frankly, if a method is not at all enjoyable, then I would probably switch to something else. What works wonderfully for my family just might not be a match for yours. There are a lot of reading comprehension methods out there -- teacher stores are full of reading comp workbooks/programs, plus there is homeschool stuff.

 

I remember that you said you were not in this country -- quite a few people on the board are in the same position. Perhaps you could do a new post asking what online programs or free online materials might be available.

 

Sorry my suggestion did not work, but don't lose hope!

[Writerdaddy]

No, thanks so much and I will keep up with this. It is another case of me being fairly sure my child needs it, and their difficulty with it being just more evidence of the need. Although my children could probably do just fine forever in the public schools and with that sort of testing, I think they need remediation in order to gain the reading and comprehension skills that make a thoughtful child. Or perhaps I should say one child, my daughter, it doesn't really matter what sort of education she has, she will still be whatever force is inside her wants her to be. Her twin brother, however, is vulnerable to outside influences and mainstream culture and needs to be led and formed somewhat. I didn't realize it until so late.

 

So, visualize it will be.

 

The workbook samples, it turned out, were a lot easier going as they are so directed and focused.

 

thanks again,

 

Alan

[Alessandra]

No, thanks so much and I will keep up with this. It is another case of me being fairly sure my child needs it, and their difficulty with it being just more evidence of the need. Although my children could probably do just fine forever in the public schools and with that sort of testing, I think they need remediation in order to gain the reading and comprehension skills that make a thoughtful child. Or perhaps I should say one child, my daughter, it doesn't really matter what sort of education she has, she will still be whatever force is inside her wants her to be. Her twin brother, however, is vulnerable to outside influences and mainstream culture and needs to be led and formed somewhat. I didn't realize it until so late.

 

So, visualize it will be.

 

The workbook samples, it turned out, were a lot easier going as they are so directed and focused.

 

thanks again,

 

Alan

 

Good luck! I hope it works for you. The actual program (as opposed to making up your own) is easy to use. It has so many detailed steps to understanding. And, even thought kids may need a little prodding, no wrong answers. So it is a good confidence builder.