Objective: (what you want children to learn)

I want the children to learn creative ways to develop their writing skills and their vocabulary. I want the
children to have a photo shoot and create an illustrated book about their lives.

Materials:

disposable cameras, construction paper, glue, pencils/crayons/colored pencils, and stapler.

Scaffolding: (child's prior knowledge this activity is building on)

The children will have basic knowledge of reading and writing. This activity is meant to show students
how photos help tell a story in a book. The pictures provide information but are not enough to tell the
reader everything you want them to know without adding text. It will be very exciting for the children to
get their pictures back and see them. They will be ready to share them!

Procedure: (in detail - how to carry out the activity)

First the teacher would need to get the children familiar with how to use a simple disposable camera.
Some children might already know how to take a photo and can help show the other children what to
do. We will go over how to rotate the film after taking a photo to go to the next slot. There are numbers
on top of disposable cameras to show how many photos are left to take. The teacher will also have to
show them how they cannot have their fingers in the way of the flash, or it will mess up the photo and
moving while taking a picture will make it come out blurry. Once they have become familiar, they will
get sent home with a disposable camera for the parents to help with. They should take pictures of things
of interest at home. The pictures are to tell us about their life in an illustrated book they are going to
make. They can take pictures of a neighborhood friend, or family member, a special place at home, or
maybe a favorite toy. Then we will get the pictures developed and label each child's prints. We will glue
a picture to each page of construction paper and then staple them together to make a book. With the
blank space on each page the children can then write what the picture is meant to portray and how it
goes with their story. The students will then read their books to the classmates and can take them home
to share with family.

DAP support: (page and short quote)

"Print is part of children's world virtually from the beginning, though at first it holds little interest for
them. Infants respond to language and enjoy looking at picture books and being read to. As for print
itself, there are far more exciting things to investigate. Yet by the age two or three, children begin to
develop a degree of print awareness as they experience people around them reading, writing, and using
the printed word for many purposes." (DAP pg. 64)

Open ended questions for children: (questions to make a child think)

Ask children what they want this picture to mean. Make wild guesses as to what this photo is trying to
tell you. The child might shout out "No, that is not what is happening!" You can use this to demonstrate
how to students will have to write some detail about what they want others to know about their
pictures. They will become aware that we must consider our audience when we write. Asking children
questions to get the children to notice and compare to other students. "Do you guys have something
that looks like this or works like this at home too?" Ask them how their book is similar to the other
students. Maybe they have a connection or shared interest. "Anna took a picture of her dog, this is her
favorite pet. What type of dog does she have? Does anybody else have a favorite pet? Who else took a
picture of an animal and why are you interested in this?"

Self-Evaluation: What research would have made this easier? What could I have added to this
assignment? Think about the outcome if you presented this assignment to students?

I think if I got to research a day in the life of an actual second grade classroom, I would be able to get a
better understanding on their interests. It would help to know how to buff this activity so that it can be
fully exciting for the children. Also maybe researching this type of project on google would have helped
with some feedback. I think I could have added to the assignment that the teacher makes a book as well.
Sharing with the students before they even make their book could help with ideas. It would also be a
guideline of what you are expecting their books to look like. If I presented this assignment, I think the
students would have difficulty staying on task at first with the cameras. They are going to play around
and take lots of photos with their fingers in the way of the flash or take blurry photos. I think this activity
is really up to the parents to help participate and help get the project done. The child will be able to do
the writing on the story on their own but will most likely need help with the photographs.