Andy Losik’s Islands of Geektopia

Pic Lits is a wonderful site for building literacy in a very artistic form.

If you are like me, it seems that I constantly struggle to find new and engaging ways to teach voice, ideas, and word choice as necessary writing traits.

Today though, while reading through some of Kevin Jarrett’s archives at NCS-Tech, I found the absolutely stunning PicLits.com.

Users select a picture from a series of thumbnails that scroll across the top of the page. Once one is selected, a box of words pops up that can be dragged and dropped onto the picture. The user may arrange them into sentences or simply place words in a collage around parts of the image. Think those word magnets people have on their refrigerator meet some of the prettiest and most interesting photographs you have ever seen.

I used this with first grade students today in hopes they might be able to simply read words they felt matched their pictures of choice. Like most open ended activities, they blew me away with some of the ideas and concepts they dragged and dropped onto their photos. There were so many different approaches. There were deep thoughts and some fun randomness. Some grew frustrated that some of the words they had in their heads weren’t listed but ultimately learned more expressive ways to make their points with what was in the word bank.

I cannot wait to use Pic Lits with all of my different grade levels. If you ask kids to write, then give them a chance to get started with this site.