A Picture Spawns a Thousand Words

Fifteen of my family members gathered at my house for the Thanksgiving weekend. For three days we feasted on turkey, pie and family stories. Laughter laced the ebb and flow of conversation and cameras flashed frequently.

One brother shared photos from his recent vacation on which he tracked down a tiny picturesque farm in Vermont, where our grandparents had lived for decades. We had thought the place would be long gone, but he found the house and barns still standing, lovingly restored by the current owner.

The pictures in his slideshow narration sparked many memories and lively discussion ensued. Photos have a way of stimulating our thinking, and it was fun to listen to the words my siblings and parents used to reminisce. “Grammy always had that black potbelly stove goin’…I remember finding the wooden sleigh in the barn… weird ball lightning dancing in the iron sink…What about Grampy bringing Princess the pony into the den?”

Photography serves as a catalyst for communication – something which the Literacy Through Photography (LTP) writing program has tapped into. This classroom-based educational component of FotoFest International is designed to help students improve their writing skills through visual imagery. LTP has been used successfully for 20 years in the Houston Independent School District by more than 25,000 pupils and teachers.

Even earlier than that, I remember a teacher using images to prompt creative writing in one of my classes as a child. I just ate that up! I had a healthy imagination, so written words were a way to express what was going on in my head and heart.

Big Universe’s Author tool offers the same benefits, allowing children to select from thousands of images in the graphics library and then to create a story to go with them. They also can upload their own photographs and scanned artwork with guidance from a parent or teacher and then write about these personal images.

Not only will children sharpen computer skills, but they also will incorporate visual arts with language literacy and learn to express themselves. In the end, they will have a book to show for their effort and skills to navigate our increasingly media-driven culture.