Standard 7: Multimodal Literacy

Students will acquire, refine, and share knowledge through a variety of written, oral, visual, digital, non-verbal, and interactive texts. 

Student Actions 

Teacher Actions 

• Students will locate multimodal elements (words, visuals, audio, and gestural) to ask and answer literal and critical questions.
• Students will organize multimodal elements (words, visuals, audio, and gestural) to ask and answer literal and critical questions. 
• Students will use multimodal elements (words, visuals, audio, and gestural) to ask and answer literal and critical questions.
• Students will create new understandings by generating and answering questions. 
• Students will use graphic organizers to organize the information found in the variety of sources. 

• Teachers define multimodal elements (words, visuals, audio, and gestural).

• Teachers model locating, organizing and using multimodal elements to ask and answer literal questions.

• Teachers provide opportunities for students to locate, organize, and use multimodal elements to ask and answer literal questions.

• Teachers provide feedback to students on their location, organization, and use of multimodal elements to ask and answer critical questions.

• Teachers model questioning strategies about a text and then provide feedback to student-generated questions.

• Teachers monitor students responses to the text and provide feedback as needed. 

Supporting Resources 

Teacher Insights 

Defining Multimodal Literacy by Dr. Craig Hill (video)

NOW literacies – everyday classrooms reading, viewing and creating multimodal texts (website)

• A multimodal text combines two or more variations of communication through either linguistic, visual, audio, gestural, or spatial means.

• Examples of multimodal texts include picture books, web pages with audio or video, or a live performance of a play.

• Multimodal does not mean multimedia. Multimodal engage multiple modes of communication.

• Digital resources and media include computer programs, digital videos, video games, web pages and websites, social media, databases, audio and e-books.

• Digital media are contrasted with print media such as books, newspapers, magazines, pictures, film, and audiotape.

• Different types of print should be accessible to the students to use as needed to find information.

• A literal question is one that can be easily answered by locating information within the text.

• Example: Where did the text originate?

• Who or what is depicted in the text?

• An interpretive question involves close reading and drawing conclusions based on the reader’s interpretation of the information in the text.

• These are not answered with opinions; rather, they require the understanding of clues within the text.

• Example: What is the author’s purpose?

Due to recursive nature of the standards, it is essential that teachers are aware of how all objectives within and between strands work together for optimal instruction.