Interpretation Strategies

Approaches to Discussing and Writing about the Videos, Photographs and Poems

The following exercises are designed to assist teachers with leading students through approaches to discussing and writing about the videos, photographs and poems in this resource. They include inquiry-based and intuitive responses as well as a thorough visual analysis and can be done individually or in small groups of 4-6. Before beginning any of the exercises, have your students spend a few minutes watching a video, carefully looking at a photograph or reading a poem and then ask them to respond.

Inquiry-based Lessons for:
Videos
Photographs
Poems

1: # (Hashtag) (Suggested for all grade levels, 4-12)
Ask students to choose a word or two to describe what the video, photograph or poem communicates to them as if they were creating a #. Have students share their # with the group or class. Each # description becomes an opportunity to ask leading questions, such as “What suggests this # to you?”  Students should cite specific details seen within the video, photograph or poem to support their responses. It’s fine for more than one student to have the same #. One-by-one have students say their # aloud to create a group or class poem inspired by their interpretations.

 2: One Sentence (Suggested for all grade levels)
Have each student write one sentence to describe what the video, photograph or poem communicates to them. Each one-sentence interpretation becomes an opportunity to ask leading questions, such as “What suggests this sentence to you?”  Students should cite specific details seen or heard within the work to support their responses. Options: one-by-one, have students recite their sentences to create a group or class poem inspired by their interpretations; or collect the sentences and read them aloud, one after another, with few pauses, to create a group or class poem.

3: Explore and Respond (Suggested for all grade levels)
Have students watch a video, read a poem or look carefully at a photograph.  Ask them to respond to these questions:

• What is happening in this video, photograph or poem?  What makes you say that?
• What did it make you wonder about?
• What else did you notice?
• What surprised you?
• In what way has your thinking about Native Americans changed? •    What else can you see?
• Continue along this line to hear several comments.
• Ask why they think this piece was created.

4: Haiku (Suggested for all grade levels)
Select a video, photograph or poem or have students select one and respond to it by creating a haiku.

5: Rap (Teachers decide if appropriate for their grade level)
Select a video, photograph or poem or have the students select one to respond to by creating a rap poem/song.

Note:  Numbers 6 and 7 are specifically for interpreting the photographs.

6: Stand in the Photographer’s Footsteps (Suggested for all grade levels)
This exercise introduces students to the artistic language and design of a photograph. Photographers make decisions about composition and content when creating an image. To have a photograph communicate their ideas clearly, artists consider numerous details when making the photograph.  Angle, framing, light and shadow, and color are important considerations.

Angle is a term that commonly refers to the vantage point or direction from which the artist photographs the subject. Have students spend five minutes just looking at an image, and then ask them to respond to the following:

• Can you determine the angle from which the photograph was taken? Above, below, eye-level?
• What effect does this have on the way the image appears?
• How might the photograph have changed if it had been taken from a different angle?
• Explain your reasoning.

Framing is another technique that affects the composition and content of a photograph.  The photographer frames the subject, determining where the edges of the image will be.  Through framing, the photographer decides what is and is not included within the picture.  Select an image and discuss framing through the following questions: 

• To what in the photograph does the frame or outside edge draw your attention?
• What details within the frame contribute to your knowledge of the subject depicted?
• What do you think might be outside the frame of this photograph?
• Why do you think this particular frame was chosen?

Some of the most powerful photographic influences are light and shadow.  Light reveals subjects and their details, creates shadows, and often contributes to the mood or feeling of the work. Shadows can obscure subjects and details while contributing to the mood of the work. Observe the quality of light and shadow in the images:

• How would you describe the light in this photograph (for example, natural, artificial, bright, harsh, soft, etc.)?  What leads you to this conclusion?
• From what direction is the light coming?  How do you know?
• Does the light contribute to the mood or feeling of the work?  If so, how?
• Does shadow obscure details and create mood? Discuss.

Color
If the work includes color, how does color function within the composition? Does it draw attention, encourage your eye to move or add to the mood? Discuss.

• Is the color in this work soft and subdued or vivid and bright?  
• How does this use of color affect your feelings and thoughts about the image?

7: Learning to Look (Suggested for grades 6-12)
This lesson works best when looking at a carefully composed photograph with strong design elements. It encourages an in-depth, formal analysis, and suggests teachers pick and choose the visual elements most applicable to the work being discussed.   

As a beginning exercise, have a student describe the photograph briefly in a sentence or two. Looking carefully at the photograph, talk through the four categories described here.  Select the properties in each category that seem most related to the photograph being discussed.  Note:  This exercise works best when comments and responses relate to something seen within the work.

Visual Elements within the Photograph: What you see

Light and Shadow
Does the light seem to be natural or artificial?  Harsh or soft? 
What direction is the light coming from? Describe the shadows.
Are they subtle or do they create strong contrast?

Value 
Is there a range of tones from light to dark?  Squint your eyes.
Where is the darkest value?  The lightest?

Focus
Are parts of the image clearly in focus?  Are some parts out of focus or blurry?
Note: The range between the nearest and farthest things that appear in focus define the photograph’s depth of field.

Scale
Discuss the size of the objects within the work. Does the scale seem natural? Explain.

Space
Is the space shallow, deep, or both?  Do overlapping objects create a sense of space?

Shape
Do you see geometric or organic shapes?  Are there positive shapes, such as objects, or negative shapes representing open spaces or voids?

Line    
Are the lines thick, thin, curvy, jagged, or straight? Point them out.

Color    
If you are looking at a color photograph, what colors do you see?

Texture    
Can you determine the textures of things in the photograph? Point them out. Do you see visual textures within the photograph? 

Design of the Photograph:  How things are arranged

Angle
From what vantage point was the photograph taken? Imagine the photograph taken from a higher or lower angle or view. How does the angle affect the photograph?
    
Framing    
Describe the edges of the view: What is included?  What does the framing draw your attention to in the photograph?  What do you imagine might have been visible beyond the edges of the frame?

Dominance    
Close your eyes.  When you open them and look at the photograph, what is the first thing you notice?  Why is your attention drawn there?  Are there other centers of interest? How are they created? How do the focal points help move your eye throughout the photograph? 

Contrast    
Are there strong visual contrasts—lights and darks, textures, solids and voids, etc.? Point them out.

Repetition    
Repetition of visual elements can create unity - a sense of order that holds the work together visually.  What elements are repeated?  Do they contribute to a sense of unity?

Variety        
Variety often creates interest.  Can you see a variety of visual elements such as values, shapes, textures, etc.?

Balance    
Is the visual weight on one side of the photograph about the same as the other?  How about top to bottom and diagonally?

What the Photograph Communicates: Feelings and mood
Based on what you have seen, what do you think the work is about?  Why do you think the photographer made this image? What words and thoughts would you use to describe it?