Focus Lessons: How Photography Enhances the Teaching of Writing

by Ralph Fletcher

"Writers, like photographers, are image makers." We teach our students to write using words and sentences that create a desired effect. You might encourage them to zoom in on a small moment, focus on a specific detail, or experiment with a new point of view. The language of writing has a natural link with photography. Linking Photography with Writing In Focus Lessons , Ralph Fletcher makes this connection clear. He offers new ideas about how this link can enhance your instruction. Craft Lessons Ideas Ralph also shares fifteen craft lessons that draw on the photographic world. Each lesson highlights a different technique like creating tension, using arresting details, or setting a mood. Then he shows how to achieve each one-in both photography and writing. "A series of savvy decisions are required to produce a memorable photograph," says Ralph. "That's true with writing, as well." <!-- Begin blueconic lightbox variables --> <!-- End blueconic lightbox variables -->

Genres: Teaching

128 pages, Paperback

Published September 30, 2019

About the author

Ralph Fletcher is a friend of young writers and readers as well as writing teachers. He has written or co-authored many books for writing teachers includng Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide, Teaching the Qualities of Writing, Lessons for the Writer's Notebook, Boy Writers: Reclaiming Their Voices, and Pyrotechnics on the Page: Playful Craft That Sparks Writing. Ralph has worked with teachers around the U.S. and abroad, helping them find wiser ways of teaching writing.

Ralph's many books for students include picture books (Twilight Comes Twice, Hello Harvest Moon, and The Sandman), novels (Fig Pudding, Flying Solo, and Spider Boy), poetry (A Writing Kind of Day and Moving Day), and a memoir, Marshfield Dreams: When I Was a Kid. His novel Uncle Daddy was awarded the Christopher medal in 2002. He has also written a popular series of books for young writers including Poetry Matters, Live Writing, and A Writer's Notebook. Ralph lives with his family in New Hampshire. He is a strong environmentalist who believes we all must work together to live in a more sustainable way. His other passions include travel, good food, dark chocolate, growing orchids, and sports.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up in part because my wife is an amazing photographer (and teacher). I am more of the writer. It seemed like this book would speak to us both. :) Part photography lessons, part writing ideas, Fletcher ultimately shows how writing (much like photography) best conveys ideas through the images the words evoke in the mind of the reader. The 15 “craft lessons” marry the worlds of photography and writing nicely and gives teaches a refreshing way to make writing relevant to students who already live in a visual world.