I took this picture in Barcelona last spring break. Here a man is using sand to express himself. When talking about literacy, I am constantly returning to the four major categories:reading, writing, speaking, and listening. I like this picture because it tells me that I can "read" anything, even sand.
We have learned that literacy is much broader than any of us realized. I think the whole class is amazed with the things we can "read." From art to dance, animals to maps, our definition keeps growing much larger than just reading, writing, speaking and listening.
ReplyDeleteExpressing yourself can take on almost any form you can think of; having the literacy skills to "read" it though is a whole different story.
I am bad at "reading" people or judging character. I don't know what other people are thinking and when I try to guess, I am usually wrong.
Does anyone have an example of something they are not literate in?
Another type of literacy that could be included in reading the sand would be how high or low the tides are at different times throughout the day. People are able to determine where the tide has been based on the layout of the sand, created by the waves crashing onto shore. In addition, sometimes seaweed is washed onto shore and the height of the tide can be measured this way as well. This may be helpful information for people who are planning on building businesses next to the beach. These people would want to ensure they were not going to be flooded from the tide. Furthermore, there are generally more seashells after the tides have gone through as well, which would be another visual way to read the sand. I love this picture; it makes me want to go to the beach!!
ReplyDeleteI agree. We can read anything, even sand. This just reminds me of a presentation I had to give in my art methods class a few weeks ago. I topic I had to present on was visual literacy. I filled my presentation with images that people do not commonly think of as "reading" but we as a culture are reading and interpreting things everyday. This sand sculpture is a perfect example.
ReplyDelete