Preschoolers and Kindergarteners

Educators can teach young students how to think as well as teaching basic knowledge. Intentional visualization supports that process and enables students to become conscious of their own thinking, empowering them to use their images to manage their learning behavior.

Teacher Testimonies

Once a child has visualization in place, the world is opened to endless opportunities. (T. Custer, personal communication, May, 2017)

Visualization is the key to learning. It is like a foreign place, once you have been there you always want to go back and it is much easier to get there. Visualization has brought my enthusiasm and excitement back into the classroom. (J. McDonald, personal communication, April, 2017)

Visualization Stages and Goals

Visualization Stages and Goals, presented in the book Imagine Cognition using Intentional Visualization, provide a framework for teachers to intentionally integrate visualization into instruction for Early Learners. The stages move children from Realizing what visualization does for thinking, to Understanding “how” to use this strategy for learning, and finally to Applying it to their life.

Each stage has specific goals to be communicated directly to students. Teachers begin by focusing on one of the goals in the Realizing Stage. Students should be exposed to all the goals in this stage to build a foundation of knowledge about imagery before moving to the goals in the Understanding Stage. Each goal explains a different aspect of cognition using imagery while addressing Early Learning Standards.