linguistic

gestural
spatial
visual
aural

All texts are multi-modal, meaning they communicate their messages to a reader in a variety of ways.

Were going to use 5 terms to help us view texts multi-modally (see wheel, above). These terms come from the New London
Group, a collection of education and literacy scholars who first promoted the concept of multimodal literacies (Arola,
Sheppard, and Ball 4).

Linguistic Mode: word choice; the delivery of spoken or written text; the organization of writing or speech into
phrases, sentences, paragraphs, etc; the development and coherence of individual words and ideas.
Visual Mode: color, layout, style, size, perspective.
Aural Mode: music; sound effects; ambient noise/sounds; silence; tone of voice in spoken language; volume of
sound; emphasis on accent.
Gestural Mode: facial expressions; hand gestures; body language; interaction between people.
Spatial Mode: arrangement; organization; proximity between people or objects (Arola, Sheppard, and Ball 4-12).

All these modes help a writer convey meaning. Intentionally combining them can be very effective.
Remember the Grumpy Cat example?

Lets look at

Print texts: poem; your Developing Curiosity Essays

Digital texts: your blog (see Exemplary e-Portfolio #4 on Canvas); your e-Portfolio

Speaking of e-Portfoliosone linguistic choice I am intentional about is writing e-Portfolio not E-portfolio or E-
Portfolio. Why do you think that is?

Arola, Kristin L, Jennifer Sheppard and Cheryl E. Ball. Writer/Designer: A Guide to Making Multimodal Projects.
Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2014. Print.