Guiding Question: Can you improve memory and increase the rate of information retrieval with images?

Model the use of the strategies for nonlinguistic representation through demonstrations and think-aloud.

Provide students with opportunities to practice each of the strategies with familiar information before using the strategy with new material. This makes it possible for students to focus on the process and not worry about learning new content at the same time.

Provide students with a variety of opportunities to use nonlinguistic representations as they learn new content.

Students can use graphic organizers.

Students can make physical models or manipulatives.

Students can generate mental pictures.

Students can create pictures, illustrations, and pictograms.

Students can engage in kinesthetic activities.

Model how students can use more than one nonlinguistic representation to learn a new concept or vocabulary term. For example, students can create a mental picture of an action word and then demonstrate the appropriate action.

Provide students with information about and opportunities to use graphic organizers when developing summaries, taking notes, identifying similarities and differences, generating and testing a hypothesis, and organizing information that may be difficult or poorly organized.