Research indicates that good readers see pictures as they read and poor readers do not. While most students instinctively know to see what the text is presenting, those who do not intuitively do so can be taught to think this way. Visualization is connected to metacognition; that is, thinking about what you are thinking. The value of visualization is that the process teaches the type of reflection required for good comprehension to take place.
Encourage students to think of their eyelids as screens on which to see pictures or to stare at a blank wall and pretend it is a screen. Most students recall visually by rolling their eyes upward toward the ceiling. Remind them often to see the pictures.
Some of the following activities take only a few minutes to complete. The final goal is for students to apply visualization during their own reading. Practice each activity until the students are comfortable. Then proceed to the next level of difficulty.
Activity #1 - Color and Geometric Shapes
1. Present geometric shapes of different colors to the students.
2. Choose one shape and ask students to look at it carefully.
3. Remove the shape and ask the students to see the shape in their minds by either closing their eyes, staring ahead at a blank wall, or rolling their eyes up toward the ceiling.
4. Let students experiment to determine which of these ways works best.
a. If a student claims he cannot see the shape, ask him to draw what he remembers.
b. To draw the shape, he must use visual memory. With practice it will be easier.
5. Explain that good readers see pictures or movies as they read. This ability to run the movies or pictures while reading leads to good comprehension and good recall. Stress the value of this.
Activity #2 - Concrete Objects
1. Present students with an interesting object (i.g., a toy, a flower, a sports object).
2. Ask students to use their senses to look at the object, touch
it, listen to it (if it makes a noise), taste it (if appropriate).
3. Ask students to look up at a blank wall and describe the object to the class or to a partner. Extend the activity by asking, "What else can you see?"
Activity #3 - Distant Concrete Objects
1. Ask students to recall something from home by looking up at a blank wall and forming a visual picture (i.g., their room, the kitchen, the family car, a special toy).
2. Ask students to share what they see with the class or with a partner.
3. On some occasions, you may want the students to draw a picture of what they see.
Activity #4 - Listening to Narrative
1. Read a short, descriptive story or poem to the students and ask them to listen with their eyes closed or while looking up at a blank wall. Keep your selection very brief.
2. After each short section, ask students to describe what they saw as you were reading. Use this process frequently.
3. Occasionally, you may allow them to draw what they saw as they listened.
Activity #5 - Reading
1. Encourage students to see as they read for themselves.
2. Remind them often to do this! With experience, students can run visual movies as they read.
Activity #6 - Writing
1. Always include visualization with creative writing.
2. Encouraging students to visualize as they write will promote use of elaboration and details.
Activity #7 - Self Esteem
1. After students become comfortable with using a blank wall as a screen, encourage them to see themselves being successful students. Athletes use this technique to see themselves running races, shooting baskets, hitting baseballs.
2. Ask students, "How would your face look if you did well on your spelling test? How would you sit? What would you tell your mother?"
3. "How would you look if you were a confident reader/writer? See yourself writing/reading easily, quickly, and successfully."
4. Guide students to recognize that successful students actually use different facial expressions and body language as they learn.
5. Teach less successful students to "act" like the more successful learners in the classroom.
Activity #8 - Self Talk
1. Acting like a successful learner includes monitoring self talk.
2. Students can be encouraged to listen for self-defeating messages, such as "I'm stupid. I can't do this."
3. As students begin to notice negative self talk, they can respond with a positive message, "I can learn. I am getting better every day."