A Picture File adds a visual element to the teaching of phonics and is a great tool for teachers of kindergarten, students with English as a second language and students with learning difficulties. For more advanced students the sections of the file can be extended to encompass such areas as blends, rhyming or compound words.
The potential uses of a Picture File are only limited by the teacher's imagination. It can be used to introduce letter-sound correspondence through a variety of sorting, classifying, matching and identification games. It can provide a visual stimulus for writing and art activities, supply visual aids for science and social studies lessons and even be used in mathematics to add a visual element to the teaching of graphs and time.
How to Create a Picture File
For portability, a concertina folder is best, but a filing cabinet will also work. Label each section with a letter of the alphabet, blend or other relevant heading. Cut pictures from magazines or old books. Where copyright allows, print pictures from the Internet and create some colorful drawings of your own. The more variety you have in your pictures the more useful your file will be.
Laminate every picture. This will ensure that your resources will last. File the laminated pictures in the appropriate sections and your Picture File will be ready to use.
If funding is not a problem, you may choose to purchase a commercial picture file. Though more expensive, this option will save time. Take note though, commercial picture files are often categorised into groups that are not alphabetical, so while they may be more useful for social studies and science units, it would take longer to find appropriate pictures for a phonics lesson.
Using a Picture File to Teach Phonics
When learning letter-sound correspondence, repetition and multiple experiences are key elements. This can sometimes make it difficult to keep your students interested. The following activities are examples of how students can work independently or in groups using the resources from a Picture File. Most provide a physical element to learning sounds that will keep students motivated and prevent phonics lessons from becoming boring.
- Create one or more letterboxes to label with the sounds being taught. Students sort through a pile of pictures and 'post' them int the appropriate letterbox.
- Place a number of hoops on the floor and label each one with a letter. Give each student a picture and have them take turns placing their pictures into the correct hoop.
- Seat students in a circle and scatter pictures across the floor. For each student, the teacher calls out a sound and the student must locate a picture that begins with that sound.
- The teacher holds up one picture at a time. The students must determine which sound the object in the picture begins with and write the corresponding letter in their handwriting book.
- Pictures are placed face down upon the floor. The student plays a game of concentration, turning over two pictures at a time to find matching pairs. Pictures are deemed to be matching if they begin with the same sound.
Although a Picture File is an invaluable tool for teaching phonics, it can also provide useful resources for almost every subject area, depending upon the needs of the teacher. Once established it requires very little maintenance but keep in mind, the more you build your Picture File the more useful it will become.
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