Image challenge - how to teach critical thinking through INSTAGRAM

Image Challenge - week seven

This is part two strictly devoted to Instagram. This time, however, I'm looking at this tool from a bit different perspective.  If you haven't read part one, just scroll down and enjoy the activities.

Critical thinking and Instagram?

At first glance it doesn't seem to have anything in common. But if we take a closer look, then we realise that with information and images overload, we have to learn to look critically at things that surround us.  It is what visual literacy is all about. It is the ablility to interpret visuals, as well.

It is estimated that there are over 400 mln active users daily on Instagram. And if each of them posts at least one photo a day, the number of uploaded photos every single day is staggering.

(source:http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/important-instagram-stats/) 

What it means is that we can't take everything for granted and what is more we shouldn't let our students believe in everything they see. Those pretty and sexy looking girls, those well-built, handsome men, those perfect lifestyles with glamorous cars and amazing parites that never end. If we don't teach our students crtical thinking, it will lead to constant frustration and anger. After all, their lives aren't as stunning as they would like them to be. Celebrities also set unrealistic standards for their followers.

That is why, in today's post I would like to present you a quick lesson plan that includes elements of images together with critical thinking. It is perfect for pre-intermediate + students, age 13+. 

The truth behind Instagram photos

Warm up

For a start, ask a few questions:

1. Do you use Instagram? If yes, how often? If no, why not?

2. What kind of things do you post? Photos of you and your friends or maybe photos of objects? What objects ?

3. What other things do people post and why?

4. Do you follow any particular people? (some would say that they follow celebrities, you can ask which ones and why)

5. Are there any photos that you don't like? Which ones and why? etc.

Activity

Tilda Lindam, a model with an excellent sense of humor, decided to show the truth behind the photos posted on Instargram as well as vanity in creating photos. In a series of photos she showed the reality. Let me show you what she did.  (Source:http://www.boredpanda.com/truth-behind-instagram-photos-cropping-chompoo-baritone/)

Take those four pictures (there are other photos available if you have a bigger group) and divide your students into groups. Each group gets an Instagram photo (without background) and a set of questions. Give them 4-5 min to discuss the photos.

Example:

Take a small picture posted on Instagram and ask a lot of questions concerning the lifestyle of a person. For example:

Students' version

                                              

1. Who do you think posted the photo? Is it a man or a woman? What makes you think so?

2. Where do you think the photo was taken? How do you know?

3. What kind of a lifestyle does the person have? Is it a typical businessman or a teenager?

4. Why can't it be a teenager's room? (they would say it's too clean)

5. What do you think is on the walls? Are there any other furniture? Which ones? etc.

Original photo

Now students swap and discuss another photo. There should be at least two changes. Then you can show the original photos and ask additional questions:

1. Were you right? Why not?

2. Why do you think people post untrue images? What is the reason?

3. Do you sometimes post such photos? Do you know anybody who does? (sometimes students even show who does it and they discuss if it looks convincing or not)

4. Should we believe then in everything that is posted on social networking sites? Why? Why not?

To finish the topic you can play a film:

Youtube address: https://youtu.be/QD3Ws3hsZgQ

Hope you will enjoy it:)

Image challenge - How to use INSTAGRAM creatively in the class

Image Challenge - week six

#instagram #can #be #fun

Another week, another challenge. This week inspired by a great conference that I have just attended in Thessaloniki, (sorry for a week absence but duties need sacrificies, promise to catch up), I would like to share a few ideas connected with using INSTAGRAM creatively. This is part one focusing on creativity. Part two will be devoted to critical thinking - soon on the blog:)

One of the workshops entitled “And you call it art?” was run by two excellent speakers from Poland, Hanna and Monika. In general, they were telling how to incorporate art into the classroom, but they also showed a fantastic activity concerning the use of Instagram. That, of course, inspired me to write the following post and think about other activities that can be done with the use of Instagram. Thanks girls:)

I expect that some people may not be familiar with Instagram, so let me briefly explain what kind of app it is.

                   

What is it all about?

INSTAGRAM – is another app perfect for all photo lovers as it allows you to take pictures or use the ones that are on your mobile and post it on your wall, similarly like on facebook. You can give your photo a title, usually using hashtags###. However, that is not all. Photos are public on Instagram. If you want people to have to ask permission before they follow you, set to private. The cool factor of Instagram is the fact that they have 11 different filters you can use to upgrade your photos. Even boring photos can look amazing with some of these filters. Instagram, like any other social network, is based around having friends or followers. On Instagram you ‘follow’ people. Another thing you can do is like photos and comment on them. Both are appreciated. Instagram lets you see which of your Twitter and Facebook friends are using it and easily start following them. So that’s the gist of how Instagram works.

On some blog the other day, I saw a post about Instagram and that is another interesting aspect of using Instagram. The woman called it: An Education on our Shared Humanity. What she meant was that it “gets a glimpse into the everyday lives of people who she’ll never meet, who live in completely different cultures than she does. What she’s found is not so much how different we are, but how alike we all are. People all over the world celebrate weddings and birthdays, cherish their children and pets, appreciate a nice sunset or beach scene, like to drink and are obsessed with food.” Can it be used in the class then? Of course, it can.

Students, as it has been underlined in my posts regularly, carry their mobile phones with them all the time. That is why, using photos as a way of engaging them with the language outside the lesson is a fantastic idea and Instagram seems to come in handy. I have been using mobile phone as homework for quite a long time now. Students have to be aware, however, that such homework has the same value as ‘millions of copies’ with exercises that we give them. Soon they simply get used to it. So let’s get to work. 

#english #outside #class

One of the ways to use Instagram, especially if you live in a bigger city is to ask your students to take photos of examples of English that they see on the street. Then students hashtag them and comment on form, grammar, content and have a further discussion. This activity makes them fully aware that English simply surrounds them. Perfect for elementary and pre-intermediate students of various ages – even adults. Here are some examples:

#englishsigns #funnysign #liverpoolstreet #holidayfun

In the first case, students use their basic vocabulary to hashtag the photo with the vocabulary they know. while in the second one, it can be used to teach various meanings of the word operate, for example. Unfortunatelly, students usually associate it only with the hospital as a synonym of the word 'surgery'. In reality, it has a lot of meanings and the example from the photo proves it.

OPERATE:

Verb (used without object), operated, operating.
1.to work, perform, or function, as a machine does:
This engine does not operate properly.
2.to work or use a machine, apparatus, or the like.
3.to act effectively; produce an effect; exert force or influence (often followed by on or upon):
Their propaganda is beginning to operate on the minds of the people.
4.to perform some process of work or treatment.
5.Surgery. to perform a surgical procedure.
6.(of a drug) to produce the effect intended.
(source:http://www.dictionary.com)

*optionally you can use “hashtagging” with elementary group to let students introduce themselves in the class. Students write for example: #adam #12 #football #sport #tall. Then a teacher collects their sentences and puts the sheets of paper around the classroom and students have to guess who it might be. Students are not so scared to present themselves as it involves very basic vocabulary and they usually know it well.

#caption #it




                                       

That can be used in many ways. Students just have to take a photo referring to the topic that you are currently covering. Let's say, it's a chapter about FOOD. Ask your students to take a picture of their breakfast and add a creative caption under it. Of course, they have to include vocabulary that was taught during the lesson. the words like nutritious, delicious, yummy etc. Students bring their 'mobile homework' and compare the answers. The best photo with the best caption will be printed out and put on the board. It can be a photo of a week or a photo of a month.

                                    

We can't forget that our students take photos anyway. They are extremely creative and we, as teachers, should encourage them to show it, to express themselves and to show their individuality.

Remember that you can also use the existing photos and search in the box by writing, for example, #breakfast and you will see over 54 million photos connected with breakfasts. How can we use it? Culture differences or/and similarities is another idea worth considering. Especially, if you teach international groups.

This is part one of using Instagram in the classroom. Hope you liked the ideas and you will try it with your students this week. Soon PART TWO!!! New ideas about teaching critical thinking through Instagram. Enjoy:)

Image challenge - How to use PINTEREST creatively

Image challenge – week five

Why and how to use Pinterest in the classroom

During my last visit in Malta at the Image Conference I met Andreia from Brazil, who had a powerful workshop about the way she uses Pinterest in her classroom. I liked it a lot but thought that it may be too complicated or not interesting for my students. Then, one evening I decided to give it a try and that’s how it started – love at first sight. When we talk about visual teaching in the classroom - Pinterest is a must!

What is it and how it works?

Pinterest has quickly become a favorite online tool among educators in the past few years. The concept is simple. You find images you like, and pin them to your Boards.  You create boards based on categories you create. You could have a board for home inspirations, arts & crafts, cooking, quotes, fashion etc. Using online “pinboards” teachers can save everything from photos to blog posts in one easily accessible and usable place. All need to do is log in (can be done by Facebook account) and here you go.

Pinterest is also a social networking site.  You can follow other people on the site that you know or don’t know, people whose pins you like, your friends, etc.  You can scroll through pinboards by subject to look for visual content that you like from pinboards that other people have pinned.  If you see a picture you like from another pinboard you can pin it and add it to one of your own pinboards.

Compare and contrast

But how to put it into practice? Let me give you an example. You are looking for some photos referring to the topic of extreme sports. All you need to do, is to type a phrase ‘extreme sports’ in the search box and a huge selection of photos concerning this topic together with website links will appear. You can save them, print them out or just show your students and have a compare and contrast activity. Let’s use those two first photos shown in the attached picture that I have taken (extreme skiing and paragliding). Students work on their mobile phones or if you have an individual lesson you can use yours. Ask your students to compare and contrast them and decide which sport they would like to try and why. Students can also choose the pictures to describe for the other students. Great pair work activity. You can also modify this activity. Ask your students to create a board called ‘extreme sports’ at home (with maximum 20 extreme sports) and bring it to the lesson saved on their mobile phones. Students working in pairs compare their boards first and then various activities can follow. 

For example:

1.       Choose the most daring/exciting/unusual/difficult sport from you list. (practice of adjectives)

2.       Name three the most risky sports that you wouldn’t like to do and why.

3.       If you had some spare time which of the sports would you like to try and why.

The list of topics for discussion is endless. Be creative and rack your students brains. It’s also great for FCE/CAE students to practice Part Two of the exam - compare activity. 

Brainstorming activity

Imagine you are covering the topic of environment and you need a creative warm up activity. Divide your students into two teams. Ask your students to create the board called: how to be eco or ecology in Pinterest and ask them to add any images they like. (It can be done at school or at home) Then students compare their images and discuss which ideas are the best. Each team has to choose maximum 5 best ideas. Then, the teacher writes down their ideas on the board and introduces necessary vocabulary. You can also use the images to create an information board in the classroom (they just print out the pictures they enjoy and put them on the board creating a kind of a collage) or a magazine cover (students using graphic programs or just a sheet of paper to create the cover of the ECO magazine with suitable photos and headlines). As you can see, there are plenty of ideas to use it creatively.

Why should we use Pinterest?

Because Pinterest provides a place where the user can VISUALLY bookmark photos and we do teach visual generation students. They love browsing websites full of interesting photos more than reading pages of texts. It is easy and creative and for sure mind stimulating activity. 

Source: http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/professors-peers-pinterest.jpg

If you got interested in it and want to know more there are plenty of ideas to use Pinterest in the Internet. One of them is TEACHTHOUGHT.COM, where are listed 37 ways teachers can use Pinterest both for their own use and the classroom use.

Website address: http://www.teachthought.com/social-media-in-the-classroom/37-ways-teachers-can-use-pinterest-in-the-classroom/

REMEMBER! - The use of Pinterest is just endlessJ