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Literacy
Through Photography is a multi-lesson curriculum program combining visual literacy and writing. Teachers
are trained to incorporate visual imagery and writing into core classroom teaching. Each lesson
is linked directly to Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills
objectives for English Language Arts, and meets the standards
set forth national curriculum mandates of No Child Left Behind,
and the National Council of Teachers of English Standards
for the English Language Arts. The curriculum can easily be
adapted to accommodate different age groups, class sizes,
and teaching schedules.
The Curriculum interconnects photo-based image-making and diverse kinds of writing, from narrative essays to poetry. Students in the Literacy Through Photography
program are given the opportunity to work with cameras and create images that follow the specially designed
lessons plans around four main themes, SELF, FAMILY, COMMUNITY, and DREAMS.
Their photographs (film-based and digital) serve as effective catalysts for the related writing assignments. FotoFest offers students and teachers a year-end public display of the student work. The year-end projects range from wall mounted posters and collages of photography and writing to three-dimensional installations and video presentations. |
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Self
Portrait |
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GOALS |
The
goal of the SELF lessons is to motivate students to
think about who they are. They learn about the elements
of a portrait and six different photographic techniques
they can use to create their own portrait. After creating
their elf-portraits, students focus their energy on
creative writing exercises that encourage them to express
strong emotions in writing.
Self Portrait Shot List
(40 minutes) |
"... It felt like I was crying in earth so I went through all the eight Planets. I felt really angry. My posture was to show my muscles. I stopped at Neptune and got made because I did not like freezing cold places so I wanted to conquer Neptune. I am the king of Neptune!!! "
Raheem Babajite, KIPP SHINE Prep, 2008 |
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The Family |
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GOALS |
In the FAMILY lessons,
students learn to “read" a family portrait. They
spend time researching their family trees and obtain
information about their heritage. They interview and
create “character sketches” of important
family members. In their writing assignments, students
are encouraged to explore their feelings, both positive
and negative, about the relationships within their families,
and conceive of ways to capture those feelings visually-
in photographs, and verbally through their writings. |
"In this picture you can see the
love that I feel for my mom and the love that she feels
for me.
This is what we do every morning before
I go to school. She blesses me…all my comings
and goings. She is afraid that one day I will not return
from the streets of the neighborhood. This is why I
always have her in my heart.'
Mario Cruz, Wheatley High School, 2005 |
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Community |
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GOALS |
The goal of the COMMUNITY
lessons is for students to explore their relationships
with their communities and to communicate their positive
and negative feelings about their communities. They
spend time thinking about how to capture the essence
of their communities in photographs. |
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Dreams |
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GOALS |
Through DREAMS lessons,
students are encouraged to explore their imagination
and detail their dreams…their sleeping dreams
and their daytime fantasies. They spend time thinking
of the best ways to capture dream images in photographs
and through writings. |
| LTP ESL |
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Early in
our history with Houston ISD classes it became evident
that Literacy Through Photography was an especially
effective tool in ESL (English as a Second Language)
classrooms. In fall 2005, the new LTP ESL curriculum
was made widely available for the first time. The program
has been piloted in select LTP classrooms in HISD for
two years. After extensive review, all lessons have
been reviewed and modified for use in ESL and LEP (Limited
English Proficiency) classes, and linked to English
Language Arts Objectives for Speaking, Listening, Writing,
and Reading. |
| Earth Curriculum |
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As an educational extension
of the FOTOFEST2006 Biennial, The Earth, a new four-lesson
curriculum has been created to lead students on personal
investigation of their relationship with the Earth.
Students will learn about the Earth’s history,
cycles, and sustainability through a series of stories
about differing cultural views about its existence,
and creative writing assignments. |
| Just a Drop - Water Curriculum |
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FotoFest developed the Just a Drop water curriculum
during the FOTOFEST2004 Biennial as part of its Literacy Through
Photography (LTP) program to teach elementary and
middle school students about water issues and water
conservation. With the four-lesson Just a Drop water
curriculum, students in grades 5 through 8 are introduced
to new perspectives on personal, regional, and global
water issues through factual information about water,
maps, photographic images, experiments, creative writing
exercises, and photography assignments. |
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