5 ways to effectively use images with lower level students

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It’s an old saying that an image is worth a thousand words. In English language teaching we can take that saying and adapt it: ‘Every image can help students speak a thousand words.’ Images can be our greatest allies; instead of worrying about trying to form grammatically correct sentences in a course book activity, students always react positively when asked to discuss an image instead. Images are great language learning tools for so many reasons. Firstly, images are open to varying interpretations. This inherent ambiguity enables your students to be creative and invent all manner of sentences based on what they see. Secondly, an image provides a natural talking point. Shy and introvert students often feel less anxiety about discussing an image than they do when doing a course book speaking activity. Furthermore, images help to practice sub-skills like prediction, telling stories and recognizing main ideas. Finally, images can be just a bit more fun to work with! The following simple activities can be quick to set up in class, require minimal preparation, and will help you take advantage of all that images have to offer.