PICTURE TALK

Donald L. Bouchard
Picture Talk is designed to elicit oral/written communication. It consists of a series of photos illustrating various
situations. Each photo is to be used separately as the basis of a language lesson for practicing grammar and
vocabulary. Lessons developed around each photo contain five segments: Words for practicing vocabulary; Facts for
developing literal comprehension; Interpretation for eliciting inference clues; Imagination for developing
oral/written connected discourse; and Application for relating the pictorial content to the students’ experience.
Students at the elementary, intermediate, and advanced stages of language instruction can benefit from practice
with the visuals. The difference in linguistic complexity at each level will be in terms of expanded phrases, choice of
lexical items, number of modifiers, and expanded sentences: advanced students will be more explicit and abstract in
their descriptions than intermediate or elementary students, but all will derive beneficial language practice by
eliciting information from each picture.
Presentation of each picture should be done at a level visible to the entire group. Follow-up language practice
should generally be accomplished in pairs or small groups.

SUGGESTED PROCEDURE:
1. Words.
a. Under the headings nouns, verbs, and modifiers, elicit vocabulary from the students by pointing to the items in
the picture (see sample lesson). Students may work in pairs or small groups to elicit vocabulary before sharing their
information before the entire class. The words should be written on the chalkboard.
b. Suggest additional vocabulary that has not been given or is unfamiliar and which may be important to the
development of the discourse.
2. Facts.
a. Point to the words on the chalkboard and elicit sentences based only on the information illustrated in the photo
(see sample lesson). This may be done with the entire class or in small groups. Write out all sentences on the
chalkboard or have the students write them in their notebooks.
b. With the entire class, direct a student to ask another student a question on the information in the photo.
Example: “Student X, ask student Y where the telephone is…”
or “Student X, ask student Y to describe the little boy…”
Once there has been enough practice appropriate to the students’ language level, direct the students to ask questions
and provide answers in pairs or in small groups.
3. Interpretation.
a. Have the students develop sentences based on what they think is occurring in the photo (see sample lesson).
These sentences may be written on the chalkboard or in the students’ notebooks. Encourage students to give
conflicting statements, since the information at this level is purely speculative. The interpreted information should
be based on the relationships between the people; the people and the objects; the objects; or the elements outside the
photo.
b. Ask questions related to what is not shown in the photo (see sample lesson).
4. Imagination.
a. Individually, in pairs, or in small groups, have the students develop an oral or written narrative by 1)
providing a title; 2) developing the narrative. The length and complexity of the narrative will, of course, depend on
the students’ language level.
b. When they are completed, present the narratives to the entire class; summarize the narratives in oral or
written form; and/or dramatize them.
5. Application.
a. As a culminating activity, have the students select an element of the photo that reminds them of a real of
fantasized event (see sample lesson).
b. Have the students develop their stories in the same manner as described above in the section ‘Imagination’.
 SAMPLE LESSON

WORDS Nouns Verbs Modifiers

telephone woman pants apartment fear have reach afraid strange
head hands hair kitchen make run scream tremble shock
dishes arms counter house be sit demand wonder quickly
boy blouse dinner child

FACTS The woman is holding on to the counter.

The woman is on the floor. The child is reaching out for something.
The child is sitting on her lap. There are dishes on the counter.
The woman and the child are casually dressed. The telephone is off the hook.

INTERPRETATION There is someone or something else in the room/apartment/house.

The woman and child are mother and son. The woman was interrupted while making a telephone call.
The woman is afraid. The woman is fearful for herself and her son’s safety.
The child is not afraid. The child is not aware of the danger in the situation.
It is dinner time. The woman has recently been doing housework.
IMAGINATION Title: The Intruder
(Elementary)
It was 7 pm. Marilyn was with her son, Jeff. Dinner was almost ready. The doorbell rang. Jeff ran to the door.
He opened it. A big man ran into the apartment. He had a gun. Marilyn saw the gun. She screamed. She went to
the telephone. She called for help. The man took the telephone from her hands. Marilyn and her son fell to the
floor. She was afraid. Jeff was not afraid. He reached for the gun. The man was surprised. He didn’t know what
to do. He suddenly ran away. Jeff scared the man!
(Intermediate)
It was 7 pm. Marilyn and her son Jeff were preparing dinner. They heard the doorbell ring. Jeff ran to the door
and opened it. A big man ran into the apartment. He had a gun in his hand. Marilyn saw the gun and screamed.
She tried to call for help. The man quickly knocked the telephone from her hands. Marilyn and her son fell to
the floor. She was trembling, but Jeff was not afraid. He tried to reach for the gun. The man was so surprised he
didn’t know what to do. Suddenly he ran out of the apartment. Jeff scared him away!
(Advanced)
It was 7 pm. Marilyn and her son Jeff were preparing dinner, when they heard the doorbell ring. Before
Marilyn could stop him, Jeff ran to the door and opened it. A big man pushed his way into
the apartment. He held a gun in his hand. As soon as Marilyn saw him, she screamed. She hurried to the
telephone to call for help. The intruder quickly ran up to her and knocked the phone out of her hands. Marilyn
and her son fell to the kitchen floor fearful of what he was going to do next. She was trembling, but Jeff seemed
strangely unafraid. He held out his hand to grab the gun. The intruder suddenly didn’t know what to do. He
came to the apartment looking for money. But this child was so bold that he was shocked. Then, as quickly as he
had entered, the intruder ran out of the apartment and disappeared. Jeff had saved the day!
APPLICATION Describe a time when someone unfamiliar came to your apartment/house or when you met a strange
person on the street.