Grade by Grade
A. Literacy Connections and Applications / C. Comprehension: Understanding and Responding to Texts · Understanding and Responding to Texts

Pictures, Graphics and Design: How They Help Us Understand

C1.4 A2.4 A2.5About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can explain how pictures add to what the words say.
  • I can notice how colour, size and layout send a message.
  • I can look at a poster or ad and say who made it, who it is for and what it wants me to do.

Words to know

image
A picture, like a drawing or a photo.
graphic
A picture that gives information, like a map, a diagram, an arrow or a chart.
visual design
How a page is arranged: the colours, the size of letters, and where things go.
media text
A text made to reach many people, like a poster, a TV ad, a video, a website or a cereal box.
audience
The people a text is made for.
message
The main idea the creator wants you to get.
creator
The person or group who made a text.

Pictures talk too!

Pictures are not just decoration. They tell us things. Sometimes a picture shows something the words never say!

If the words say "Mia went outside," the picture might show that it is snowing, that Mia is smiling, and that her dog is following her. Now you know much more.

Words only:"Mia went outside."?What else is going on?
The words say only that Mia went outside. The picture shows much more: it is snowing, Mia is happy, and her dog is coming too.

Ways that pictures and design make meaning

  • Pictures and photos show what things look like and how characters feel (look at faces!).
  • Colours set a feeling: bright yellow and red can feel happy or exciting; grey and dark blue can feel sad, cold or scary.
  • Size: the biggest words or pictures are usually the most important.
  • Graphics like maps, diagrams, arrows and labels explain how things work or where things are.
  • Layout: where things go on the page. We usually look at the top and the middle first.
WINTER FUN DAY!Skating • Sledding • Hot cocoaSaturday, Feb. 7, 1 to 4 p.m.Maple Park • Free for families
A poster for Winter Fun Day.
Worked example

Let's read a poster

Look at the Winter Fun Day poster. How do the design choices help send the message?

  1. The biggest words are at the top: WINTER FUN DAY! The creator wants you to see those words first.
  2. The exclamation mark makes it sound exciting.
  3. The picture of a snowman tells you it is a winter event, even before you read.
  4. The small words give the details: what you can do (skating, sledding, hot cocoa), when (Saturday, Feb. 7, 1 to 4 p.m.) and where (Maple Park).
  5. Now ask the media questions. Who made it? Probably the town or the park. Who is it for (audience)? Families. What is the message? Come to a fun, free winter event. What does it want you to do? Come to Maple Park on Saturday.

Big bold words, a snowman picture and short details help the poster tell families quickly: Come to a free winter fun day at Maple Park!

Media texts want something

Posters, ads, commercials and packages are media texts. They are made by a creator for an audience, and they have a message. Many ads want you to buy something, so they use tricks: bright colours, happy kids, big words like NEW! and BEST!

Ask the media questions:

  1. Who made this?
  2. Who is it for?
  3. What is the message?
  4. What does it want me to think or do?
  5. How do the pictures, colours and words help?
Worked example

Let's look at a cereal box

A cereal box called Rocket Crunch is bright orange with a cartoon astronaut. It says NEW! Blast off with flavour! in giant letters. It is on a low shelf at the store. Who is the audience, and how can you tell?

  1. Look at the pictures: a cartoon astronaut. Cartoons often appeal to children.
  2. Look at the colours: bright orange grabs attention.
  3. Look at where it is: on a low shelf, at a child's eye level.
  4. Look at the words: NEW! and Blast off! sound exciting and fun.
  5. The creator is the cereal company. They want kids to ask for it, so a grown-up will buy it.

The audience is mostly children. The cartoon, bright colours, exciting words and low shelf are all clues.

Same message, different form

The same message can come in different forms: a poster, a radio ad, a video or a website. The creator picks the form that fits the audience. A poster on a school wall is for students and families who walk by. A radio ad is for people who are listening, so it must use sounds and words instead of pictures.

Just for fun

People say a picture is worth a thousand words. So a picture book with 30 pictures is worth 30,000 words. That's a long bedtime story!

Hands-on activity

Picture walk and design detective

You need: a picture book, a flyer or food box from your kitchen.

  1. Picture walk: look at the pictures in the picture book before reading. Tell the story from the pictures only. Then read it. What did the pictures show that the words did not?
  2. Design detective: take a food box or flyer. Find the biggest words. Find the brightest colour. Find a picture or graphic.
  3. Answer the media questions: Who made it? Who is it for? What does it want you to do?
  4. Bonus: draw a poster for something at your home (a family movie night!). Make the most important words the biggest.

Your turn

1

On the Winter Fun Day poster, which words are the biggest? Why?

2

What can families do at Winter Fun Day?

3

A picture shows a boy with a frown and tears. The words say "Leo looked at his broken kite." What does the picture tell you that the words don't?

4

What is the audience of a text?

5

Why might an ad for a toy show happy kids playing with it?

6

A book about the moon uses dark blue and black colours. What feeling might that give?

More practice: warm-up

1

Name one kind of media text.

2

On a poster, are the most important words usually big or small?

3

What is a graphic? Give an example.

4

Where is Winter Fun Day?

5

How much does Winter Fun Day cost for families?

More practice: on your own

1

Who do you think made the Winter Fun Day poster? Explain.

2

A fact book about frogs has a diagram with arrows: egg → tadpole → froglet → frog. How does the diagram help?

3

Why is the Rocket Crunch box put on a low shelf?

4

A poster for a library story time uses tiny grey letters on a grey background. Is that good design? Why?

5

What is the message of the Rocket Crunch box?

Challenge

1

The town wants to tell grandparents about Winter Fun Day. What would you change on the poster or in the form?

2

Two pictures go with the words "The storm came." Picture A shows a cozy family drinking cocoa by a window. Picture B shows a dark forest with bending trees. How does each picture change the meaning?

3

Is a cereal box an informational text, a media text or both? Explain.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

What is usually true about the biggest words on a poster?

2.

A picture book shows a character with a huge smile. What does that tell you?

3.

Who is the audience of a cartoon cereal box?

4.

What does a diagram with arrows usually show?

5.

Which question is a media question?

6.

Why do many ads use bright colours and words like NEW!?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Images, graphics and visual design (colour, size, layout) add meaning to texts. Media texts such as posters, ads and packages are made by a creator for an audience with a message, and the form is chosen to fit (A2.4, A2.5).

How to help at home:

  • Do a "picture walk" before reading a new picture book.
  • At the grocery store, ask: "Why do you think this box is on the low shelf?" "Who is this ad for?"
  • During a TV or video ad, pause and ask the media questions together.

Common difficulties:

  • Ignoring pictures once they can read words. Remind them that pictures carry meaning too.
  • Believing ads at face value. Gently ask, "Is the toy really that big? Do the kids in the ad really get that excited?"
  • Mixing up audience and creator. The creator makes it; the audience receives it.