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Photo-Essays

In the fall of 2002, ESIP first began to look more closely at photography and its possible uses in the classroom.  ESIP staffers Leesa Green and Sutton Stokes presented some ideas for creative uses of the photographs in some of Seymour Simon's books at the 2002 "Science Stories, Classroom Stories" event.  They were particularly interested in Simon's photo-essays, both for the power of the arresting photographs to attract reluctant readers, and for the unusual opportunities they offer for spicing up literacy instruction in the science content area.  Building on this initial interest, they wondered what would happen if cameras were given to elementary students who were then encouraged to produce their own photo-essays.  An opportunity came about to work with ESIP teacher Betty Lobe, her colleague Susan Katenkamp, and their third-grade students.  What follows is the process by which Sutton, Betty, and Susan familiarized the students with photography and photo-essays before having the students make their own individual photo-essay books.

What is a photo-essay?

When we use the term "photo-essay" we are referring to a specific form of children's trade book.  The word essay comes from the French term "to try."  Writers often use the essay form to try out new ideas or explore other types of new territory.  The word photo refers to the use of photographs rather than drawings or paintings to illustrate these books.

Teachers know that photographs and illustrations can support text, but in photo-essays that relationship is often reversed; the photographs lead the text.  In photo-essays, you'll likely notice the photographs first. 

• The photos are chosen with the same care and precision with which the writer chooses the words.
• The photos are high quality and are featured prominently in the page layout.
• Each photograph contains a wealth of information and may generate an equivalent wealth of questions and wonderings before the reader even approaches the text.
• Rather than merely providing a caption to the photographs, writers of photo-essays are often responding in depth to what the photographs make them feel or wonder.

Beginning activities with photo-essays

The combination of strong writing with intriguing photographs makes for a powerful teaching tool.  You might consider using the photo-essay in part, perhaps using the photographs without the text.

• Have your students write captions for the photographs.
• Use the photographs as story starters.  Ask the students-- what would you title this picture?  What happened just before this picture was taken?  What will probably happen next?
• Have your students look at the photographs.  What do they need/want to know to understand the photograph better?  What questions are raised by the photograph?  What questions does it answer?

Making your own photo-essays

Before you can begin to have your students make their own photo-essays, they will need to be familiar with photo-essays, in general.

• Gather together a wide variety of photo-essays.  Introduce them to your students.  Draw attention to the photographs.  Look at and discuss how the different books are formatted.  (Click here for a bibliography of science photo-essays.)
• Discuss relevant author's craft issues-- Does the author pick the pictures first and then write, or the other way around?  How does a book illustrated with photographs differ from one that is illustrated with drawings? 
• Ask the students why photographs might be used rather than illustrations.  Keep a chart paper list of their responses.
• Ask the students to compile lists of what they might like to make a photo-essay of.
• Have the students compare different photo-essays on the same topic.  How are they different?  How are they similar?

Once the students have had a chance to read and browse through a wide selection of photo-essays, they will likely be interested in the photographic skills that were involved in the process.  A basic understanding of photography skills will be needed to make the photo-essays.

• Have photography "how-to" books on hand for your students to look at.  (Click here for a list of photography "how-to" books.)
• Discuss the difference between candid and posed pictures and the advantages of each.
• Show examples of common photo mistakes-- heads cut off, backlighting, flash on windows.  Ask the students-- Is everything in the picture?  Where's the light?  Was the photographer standing too close or to far from his/her subject?  (Click here for some examples of photos showing common mistakes.)

Students will also need to be familiar with the cameras that you will be using, whether those cameras are disposable or digital. 

• Explain and demonstrate how the cameras work
• Figure out the limitations of the camera.
• Give the students practice working with the camera, perhaps by having them work in groups to take pictures.
• Give the students particular assignments-- Each student must take one picture of a plant, one picture of a person, one picture of a non-living thing.
• After students have taken their pictures, have them self-critique.  What stories do the pictures tell?  Is that the story that really happened?  Is it the story they wanted to tell?  Is everything in the picture?  Is the lighting right?  Did the photographer stand the correct distance from the subject?

Once the students have learned some photography basics and have become familiar with photo-essays and their cameras, they will be ready to take the next steps toward making their own photo-essay.  These steps may proceed at different speeds for different students depending on prior knowledge, writing ability, and other factors.

Planning:

• Students plan their topic as they would any piece of writing.  What is their topic?  What is their purpose?  Who is their audience?
• Ask the students what pictures they plan on taking?  (It's a good idea to set minimum and maximum number of pages for the books, although students should be encouraged to take a few extra or backup pictures.)

Storyboards:

• Introduce students to storyboards.  Explain that a storyboard is how artists and authors get a sense of what a book will look like.  Emphasize that it is a very rough draft.  Have the students complete storyboards for their intended photo-essay.
• The storyboards are critiqued with the teacher and with fellow students.  An "Acceptance" means that students are ready to move on.

Taking the Pictures:

• Students then receive their cameras.  Give a refresher on how to use them.  Have students revisit their storyboards to refocus on planned photographs. 
• Firm dates should be established for film to be returned to class.  Advise students that they might be disappointed in their photographs…it is a learning process.
• After photos have been developed, return them to the students.  Students then select which photos are to be included in their books.
• Once photos have been selected, students work on the accompanying text…on scratch paper.

Final Steps:

• Once the text is completed and the final photograph selection has taken place, have students use Powerpoint (or other preferred program) to type their text and lay out their pages.
• Completed pages may be laminated, bound, or put online, as desired.
• Completed photo-essays are shared with classmates, perhaps a few at a time or at a special celebration of this large publishing event, complete with invited guests.

Why use photo-essays?

In these increasingly structured times, it may be hard for some educators to think of justifying the use of class time for a photo-essay/photography project.  The important thing to remember is that photo-essays are not intended as a departure from or add-on to what you are already doing in your classroom.  Rather, they are another approach to goals you already have to meet but for which you may be running short of new ideas.  Photography, and the photo-essay, can be a means of introducing some variety into science, language arts, and other content areas while helping your students gain skills that will be applicable across the curriculum and –even better-- in their lives outside of school.  No matter what shape your photography/photo-essay projects take, they can be made to support any number of media literacy and art standards.  Depending on which content area(s) your projects focus on, you can tailor your projects to fit subject-specific standards as well.

Media Literacy

We live in a media age.  Students will experience millions of media images over the course of their lives.  It is vital that they learn how to "read" these images, particularly when the majority of images are intended to change opinions, influence purchases, or otherwise get something out of the viewer.  Students who don't receive instruction in media literacy will be at a great disadvantage.

What does media literacy instruction look like?  Diverse organizations such as the Association of American Pediatrics (http://www.aap.org), the National Communication Association (http://www.natcom.org), the Look Smart Project (http://www.ithaca.edu/looksharp/) and Just Think (www.justthink.org) offer guidelines and suggestions that mesh with the photo-essay project.

Science

The photo-essay is definitely applicable to science standards, particularly the observation and inquiry standards propagated in the National Science Education Standards (NSES). 

Examples of applicable NSES standards: (From the NSES "Science as Inquiry" standard)

• "Fundamental abilities and concepts that underlie this standard include…employ[ing] simple equipment and tools to…extend the senses."
• "Fundamental abilities and concepts that underlie this standard include…communicate investigations and explanations." (NSES, 1996, p. 122)

How do science photo-essays support technology, the science curriculum and inquiry?  Students:

• develop questions about a particular topic or area of interest, conduct research, gather information, and explain their findings in their science photo-essay
• examine various photo-essays on the same topic and learn that there are many different approaches to a scientific subject
• are introduced to worlds outside of their own and examine connections between science and scientists and how their work is presented in the photo-essays.
• develop technological and scientific skills in the use of cameras, scanners, computers, and book binding machines
• consider the properties of light and motion and their role and effect in the photographic process

Language Arts

The photo-essay is definitely applicable to IRA/NCTE Standards for the English Language.

Examples of applicable standards include:

• "Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts.  They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics."
• "Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes."

How do science photo-essays support the language arts curriculum?  Students:

• gain experience analyzing the structures, conventions, visual features, and text features of the photo-essay and exhibit their knowledge and understanding of this particular literary genre by creating their own photo-essays
• use critical thinking skills to compare, contrast, explore, interpret, and critique their own writing and that of others
• draw upon what they have read, discussed, and experienced to plan, write, revise, and publish their own photo-essays with the aid of technology
• examine author's and illustrator's craft and reflect upon and discuss the many possible approaches and styles taken by authors and illustrators of photo-essays, including their own and that of classmates

For another example of how you might use photo-essays in your classroom, click here.

For examples of students' photo-essays, click here.