Photos in the Classroom

Double Rainbow
Originally uploaded by flopper

I think pictures are a great technology to use in the classroom. Not only are they a great way to share images that children see on a daily basis, but are a perfect way to bring animals, countries, people, and much more into the classroom that the students rarely or never get a chance to see. Images from across the world, or even just from several cities over, may seem foreign to students who don't have the opportunity to see them, so bringing those objects in with pictures gives a simple idea of what the object looks like and its relative size/habitat. I think this can be especially useful for at risk students in cities who have the disadvantage of not being able to travel out of the inner city. These students may have a harder time identifying with objects that appear on tasks such as standardized tests, that ask them questions about plants, animals, or other things that they are not familiar with. The same goes for children who live in rural areas and are not able to picture what a skyscraper looks like, or what sitting in traffic is. By using pictures along with explanations and questions, children can see almost anything they want to and get the opportunity to experience things they would not otherwise have access to.