In the age of digital photos, selfies, Instagram and the like, students today are used to getting their picture taken – a lot. Surprisingly, though, many students – especially those from low-income homes– are less familiar with seeing printed copies of photographs since their pictures often live exclusively on electronic devices.
When you take and post pictures of students engaged in various activities in your classes – reading, writing, presenting, working in groups – they really love it! It builds community and shows you care enough to capture what they’re doing.
When I taught at a Title 1 school, even my high school juniors would gather around the class bulletin board when I posted new pictures. They always had a smile on their faces when they found themselves in a shot. At the end of the year, I offered the photos from the bulletin board to students since I had digital files on my computer. They enjoyed poring over the images, laughing and remembering events during the year while also noting how everyone had changed. I think they were excited to have a printed photograph of themselves and their friends.
Now I make bulletin boards of class photos from my 7th and 8th grade classes. I try to photograph students while they are engaged in activities, rather than posed shots. Some of my favorites have been taken during reading time. Students are camped out on my beanbags chairs in the reading corner or sitting under desks, creating their own private reading nooks. If I do posed shots, it’s usually of a student holding up a favorite book.
I once captured all the steps in a memoir genre unit and created a bulletin board about the writing process. Students were photographed brainstorming by themselves, sharing ideas with a partner, writing rough drafts, typing final drafts on computers, and editing with peers. I try to take a mix of close shots featuring one or two students and wide-angle class shots, so more students are included in the photos. The goal is to eventually include every student on a bulletin board, so no one is left out each semester.
If you want to build a little excitement and record some memories, take out your phone and snap away during class activities. A photo bulletin board is a quick and easy way to show parents what your class is doing when they visit during Back to School Night or during parent conferences. Photo displays are also impressive when administrators stop in for walk-throughs or full-class observations. The old cliché – “a picture is worth a thousand words” – holds true in the classroom as well.
I want to leave you with one cautionary note. While photographs are great for sharing at school, be careful about posting any identifiable images of students publicly, such as your website (if it’s viewable to people outside your school), Facebook, or Instagram. Most districts have strict policies about how student photos may be used in order to protect student privacy and safety.
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