See and hear : the journal on audio-visual learning (1945)

WE READ OUR FILMSTRIPS MV SECOND GRADE chil- dren had completed the reading unit. At The Farm, in Three Friends.* They had particularly enjoyed the delightful stories about farm animals—"Mothers Are Like That." "A Ride On Tim." and "In the Barn." W'e were then ready. I thought, to use the two filmstrips Mother Hen and Horses On The Farm.** I had pre\iewed these two fine filmstrips, and checked the vocabu- lary for words I needed to present for advance stutly with the children. 1 noted several not in our pre\ ions reading vocabidary, but then it occurred to me that I might test the value of the filmstrij) as a means of enlarging vocabulary. I decided then to present the two filmstrips simply in this manner: "Children, did we enjo) the stories about farm animals in oiu" book 'Three Friends'? Children: "Yes." "Today I have a story about a farm animal and a farm bird. Thev are not in a book: thev are on a filmstrip." Then I showed Mot Iter Hen. The children read the entire story without help. .\s i iiatl guessed, the pictures presented the content clue for the new words. The same was true of Horses On The Far??!. In the dim light I watched the children's faces as 1 tinned the pic- • Three Friends, He.Tllh and Pt-isona! Develop- ment Series: Scott, Foit-Mnan and C;ompanv, 62:1 S. Wahash Avenue. Chicago '>. Hlinois. •'Motlier Hen. 15 frames, S:!.00, Trindl-KinK. 123 S. Bowling Green Way, Los .\ngeles 21. C:alifornia. HorjM On TIte Farm, 23 frames. $3.00, Trindl King. Because the filmstrips give such en- j<)\?ne?it to children, they are stimu- laled to e?igagc in rna?iy follow-up activities—drawing, telling stories, reading in lihiary hooks, and drama- tized plaw By Marie Preclrkkson —and— By Lyell J. Moore Director, Audio-Visual Education, Mason City, Iowa uircs. As tlie pictures focused on the screen, their eyes focused on the pic- tures and the clear, bold letters umlerneath. They seemed to "fig- ure": "It's going to move now. I want to see w-hat comes next." In a classroom of thirty-one children with a three reading-group arrangement it is not so easy to focus a \oung child's attention in a book. The pages in a book won't mo\c until the child himself "moves" it. And so it is natural that he sometimes figures, "I better have a look around." We viewed the pictures leisurely, discussing the topics that correlated with our science lessons in the read- er .-ill Around Us. AVe tof)k turns reading from the filmstrip. 1 called on John and Carol, who will both ha\e new glasses soon. They seemed to have no trouble, however, seeing the clear, bold j>rint of the filmstrip. We could turn back to a picture when the next pictine suggested something we wished to compare as we did to see the tired wet chick again after we saw the fluffv drv chick who had worked its wav out of the shell. It was a pleasant reading experi- ence, the outstanding comments of the children being. "It was fun to read a filmstrip." 1 feel strongly that its pleasure was due to the fact that the film- strip has the following advantages: 1. Its pictures give the co??tent clue that presents new words at the stra- tegic time that they are to be used. The words presented on the black- board to be found later in the book recjuire a particular abilit\ to recall. 2. Its unique presentation of new it'ords in this manner see?ns to leave an indelible i?np?-ession that so?ne- hoie facilitates its recall later. The following day I wrote shell on the bhukboard without reference to the filmstrip. Nearly all recalled the word. Four days later I presented it again to my low group and they still knew the word. That baby chick working to get out of the shell had made an indelible impression with the word shell. I feel that the film- strip needs further exploration as a teaching aid for the retarded child who often seems encumbered with the mere manipulation of a book and is triih' startled b\ the "foreign- looking" words that he fails to recall. (CO .\ I I .\ I K D ON p .\ G E 3 3) 28 SEE AND HEAR