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A page in Maya's book has nine words under the picture: It started to rain. Sam walked his dog.
The picture shows a dog wearing a red collar. Do the words say anything about a collar?
Pictures and Text Working Together
Describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear; use pictures to support and extend comprehension
What a learner can do afterwards
- Use pictures to predict or confirm story events
- Describe what is happening in an illustration and how it relates to the text
- Explain how an illustration adds information not stated in words
1 · Read
A picture book has words and pictures on each page. They work together to tell the story. The picture can show you more about the words.
Try it together
Maya sees a picture of a boy holding an umbrella. The words say, 'It started to rain.' The picture shows what the rain looks like.
Try it together
Some pictures show more than the words say. A picture of a dog might show a red collar. The words never mention the collar at all.
Words can do a job that a picture cannot. A picture cannot tell you a name. It cannot tell you a sound. It cannot tell you what someone is wishing for. The words say those things for you.
A picture can also help you with a tricky word. If you get stuck on a word, look at the picture and think about what would make sense there. Then look at the word again and see if it fits.
On a new page, look at the picture before you read. Ask yourself what seems to be happening, and make a guess from what you can see. Then read the words and check your guess against them. Sometimes the words surprise you, and that is worth noticing too.
Pictures and words are a team. Pictures add clues and extra details, and words tell you things a picture cannot show.
2 · Watch
3 · Play
Try it yourself
Nine words, one picture. Tap everything the picture tells you that the words never say.
Take it off screen
Print a worksheetA4 with an answer key page for grown-ups. No screen, no internet.
Where it sits
Where this leads
Then practise
21 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.