Our interpretation of Patricia’s “A girl on a boat and her sister.” is that this drawing might represent a memory that the illustrator wanted to express. We can also assume that Patricia has better verbal skills rather than drawing skills because it’s hard to interpret what we see in the drawing without any context. There isn’t much to interpret from this picture because it doesn’t specify certain things like time, setting, or importance.
Most people think Franyelis’s drawing is about random letters written on the page, what they don’t know is it’s actually about Franyelis’s parents calling her grandmother due to a happy occasion such as good news. This news could have been Franyelis starting school for the first time September 7th. The happy occasion or memorable moment comes from the mother’;s smile and three letters represent Franyelis’s new learning of the alphabet in her transition to school.
Most people think Franyelis’s drawing is about random letters written on the page, what they don’t know is it’s actually about Franyelis’s parents calling her grandmother due to a happy occasion. This news could have been good news, such as, Franyelis starting school for the first time. The date written is September 7, 2018, usually, children start school on September. Perhaps, Franyelis started school and wants to give the news to her grandmother. The happy occasion or memorable moment comes from the mother’s smile and three letters represent Franyelis’s new learning of the alphabet in her transition to school. Both figures appear to be smiling, perhaps, symbolizing happiness. Usually, a parent, especially a mother, impacts a child’s feelings. If the parent appears to be worried, the child sees the worried parent and become worried too. In this case, the mother appears to be happy, therefore, it reflects on the smiling small figure. Overall, this child drew this picture to show a moment when she was feeling euphoric and proud.
Thanks Rebeca and Nieve! I love that you commit yourself to the happiness of this drawing. Your interpretation is well supported by your emphasis on your own observations and connections you make. For example, what a worried parent would do to a child as a way to understand this parent as happy because of the euphoria of the description and image.
Even that I haven’t seen this drawing, your description helped me visualize it in my head. You are right, the child observes what his family does. If the mother is happy and joyful, the child will be as well.
Jalysa’s and Katarina’s analysis
In this picture, the child is sitting in a normal seat belt, not a car seat. She is neither happy nor scared to ride with a seat belt, which may be important because it’s her first time outside of her car seat. She makes it clear that this is about her. Her expression is carefully blank; she isn’t smiling, nor is she crying. Her mouth is a straight line, and she clearly went over it to exaggerate it. She is the only person in the picture. There are no siblings, etc. This could further highlight how safe and confident she feels sitting like a grown-up.
Thanks Jalysa and Katarina. My favorite points of analysis here have to do with the emphasis of her expression. I wonder if your point about how excited she is and how empowered she feels might be linked to her first time riding in the car without a car seat? If so, another way to start this analysis might’ve been, “The image shows the child’s pride in riding a car without a seatbelt…”
Stephanie’s drawing shows that she is having fun with her friend at the park. She has long curly hair and the reflection of the bright blue sky can be seen in her blue eye. She is sitting on a swing as her friend Mia is pushing her. Two lines that are surrounding the swings represents the motion in which Mia is pushing. While Mia is pushing Stephanie, Mia seems to be getting hit in her face by the swing due to a part of the circle that is drawn on Mia. Stephanie drew most of her picture in the color green and that itself can represent safety and warmth that she feels when she is with her friend Mia.
Thanks Fathima and Anabel. Your emphasizing this picture as one in motion which is SO important. Remember Newkirk’s categories of pictures? He talks about the different ways children indicate motion in an action. Maybe a line about the category of this illustration could’ve added more instances of interpretation here.
Our interpretation of Patricia’s “A girl on a boat and her sister.” is that this drawing might represent a memory that the illustrator wanted to express. We can assume that Patricia has better verbal skills rather than drawing skills because it’s hard to interpret what we see in the drawing without the context of the title. There isn’t much to interpret from this picture because it doesn’t specify certain things like time, setting, or importance. The drawing most likely takes place on an ocean on a summer day because of the orange color used. We also assume that her sister is an important part of her life since it’s the only other person in the drawing. In the drawing, we see the sister outside of the boat while the other is on it, meaning that she might be going away or arriving from somewhere. It could be the sister leaving on a vacation or returning from one. There’s no sense of direction in this picture.
What if you were to combine your comment at the end with your first sentence? What if this is an image meant to show the child’s feelings of being lost? I understand the resistance to proposing an interpretation when an image seems unclear, but that’s the fun/luxury of analysis! As long as you have support, you can say it! So why not take the way she draws the sun to further an interpretation that she’s feeling lost?
Most people think that Kayla’s drawing is about being happy, what they don’t know that the drawing is actually about being outrage. The color red can mean anger and that is what Kayla was going for in the drawing. When you look up what does the color red means says “It’s the color of passionate love, seduction, violence, danger, anger, and adventure. Our prehistoric ancestors saw red as the color of fire and blood – energy and primal life forces ” most people when they think about the color red they only think love but, but there is another side of the same coin and it is known as rage, anger, and blood. Through this example, we can see that even though the title does say that this is supposed to be a “Happy Head”, it can equally be an untamed anger represented through the child’s drawing.
Jaleigh identitifies herself as a rainbow fish. Possibly because of how many feeling she has. Jaleigh likes to wear red lipstick which is festive. She likes to have fun. There are many blue dots so this shows that Jaleigh is very colorful. She likes to have fun because she has only one shoe which is blue. Also, Jaleigh likes to explore different places because of her outfit. She is independent. Jaleigh swims all day long.
Thanks Aktia and Guevara. You definitely have several moments of interpretation here: you interpret her as festive because of red lipstick, you see her as colorful because of the blue dots. What’s missing though is ONE interpretation under which you develop all of your other interpretations. In other words, how are all these thoughts connected? You might’ve started with, “This image shows J’s independence.” and then worked to support that.
The child’s picture shows a body of water, sand and him laying down. I feel like the little child is thinking about the beach. The child is laying on the sand, in his own world not worrying about anything going on around him. He is very calm and relaxed, listening to the waves hitting the sand as he lays on the wet sand. The picture is showing the child’s emotions, more like a happy image of himself during summer. The beach is always portrayed as a hot, fun and happy place to be at.
Thanks Mentor. You clearly see this image as a happy memory of the beach. You support this through your interpretations of what the figures are doing. Great!
You might consider a topic sentence next time that indicates your overall interpretation of the image. This way, all of the observations that follow are in support of this interpretation.
DW
The child drawing depicts a mother, a bed, and what looks like the child’s little sister. The child states that the mother in the picture is happy while the little sister is sad next to a bed. We believe that the picture is saying that the little sister is sad because the mother is telling the sister to go to bed.The figures in the picture were drawn with different colors, probably to establish a mood in each of them. We can relate this drawing on how our parent had certain rules and made us go to bed on time. Memories we all share as a kid and wanting to stay up late and play with our siblings.
Thanks Kemar and Saul. I appreciate the connection you bring to this image– bedtimes stink! I also appreciate the way you support your interpretation (The sister is sad that her other sister has to go to bed) by reflecting on the different colors. You might’ve went further and indicated what color meant what mood.
In Zion’s drawing of “The bad guy”, he illustrates his negative image of a male. We can observe that the guy is crying because he has been bad. We can assume that the tongue out is a representation of a bad figure and this particular image has been drawn with a lot of hair which makes us think that the kid was drawing a specific person. In the bottom part of the picture there’s red clouds which seems to be what “the bad guy” is saying. The overall meaning of the drawing is that bad people is represented by crazy looking features, poor talking and sadness. Tears were drawn in blue, the talking bubbles are red and the head is green, this is telling us that the kid associates colors with feelings and what is good and bad.
– Estefania Carrera
– Porshe Maysonet
-Yarielid Torres
Excellent work here! I wonder if some of your interpretations also indicate where the child is in terms of his learning process. Maybe he’s currently learning about “good” versus “bad” and working through these ideas through colors.
The child’s drawing is a representation of rainbow. This is because it has different colors like a rainbow which normally consist of seven different colors . However in the drawing, the colors were not well arranged as they would have appeared in a rainbow. In a rainbow, the colors are arranged in a beautiful looking arc like shape. In conclusion we may say the title of the drawing gives more description than the actual drawing.
Thanks Prince and Erick. You definitely focus on proving this picture is a rainbow and you do a good job of it. I wonder if you might’ve complicated your interpretation a bit more by suggesting what kind of representation the child is drawing. For instance, “The child draws a deconstructed rainbow because he has not yet discovered shapes…”
PENDE AND MENTOR
The picture “Heaven… a happy face and feet” express a though that heaven is a very enjoyable place to be. I can see on the picture a person with arms upward expressing stress free attitude. However without a written title “Heaven… a happy face and feet” i will interpret differently. For example i can think that the person is doing exercise. Therefore, it is true that picture express though, or meaning but writing word is more precise, more explicit and leads to unique understanding that drawing image. Picture can lead to many different interpretations, and understandings.
Thanks Pende. It’s interesting that your focus here is on the way the written text offers more meaning than the picture. It shows your interest in Newkirk’s article.
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Our interpretation of Patricia’s “A girl on a boat and her sister.” is that this drawing might represent a memory that the illustrator wanted to express. We can also assume that Patricia has better verbal skills rather than drawing skills because it’s hard to interpret what we see in the drawing without any context. There isn’t much to interpret from this picture because it doesn’t specify certain things like time, setting, or importance.
Most people think Franyelis’s drawing is about random letters written on the page, what they don’t know is it’s actually about Franyelis’s parents calling her grandmother due to a happy occasion such as good news. This news could have been Franyelis starting school for the first time September 7th. The happy occasion or memorable moment comes from the mother’;s smile and three letters represent Franyelis’s new learning of the alphabet in her transition to school.
Most people think Franyelis’s drawing is about random letters written on the page, what they don’t know is it’s actually about Franyelis’s parents calling her grandmother due to a happy occasion. This news could have been good news, such as, Franyelis starting school for the first time. The date written is September 7, 2018, usually, children start school on September. Perhaps, Franyelis started school and wants to give the news to her grandmother. The happy occasion or memorable moment comes from the mother’s smile and three letters represent Franyelis’s new learning of the alphabet in her transition to school. Both figures appear to be smiling, perhaps, symbolizing happiness. Usually, a parent, especially a mother, impacts a child’s feelings. If the parent appears to be worried, the child sees the worried parent and become worried too. In this case, the mother appears to be happy, therefore, it reflects on the smiling small figure. Overall, this child drew this picture to show a moment when she was feeling euphoric and proud.
Thanks Rebeca and Nieve! I love that you commit yourself to the happiness of this drawing. Your interpretation is well supported by your emphasis on your own observations and connections you make. For example, what a worried parent would do to a child as a way to understand this parent as happy because of the euphoria of the description and image.
Good work!
Rebeca,
Even that I haven’t seen this drawing, your description helped me visualize it in my head. You are right, the child observes what his family does. If the mother is happy and joyful, the child will be as well.
Jalysa’s and Katarina’s analysis
In this picture, the child is sitting in a normal seat belt, not a car seat. She is neither happy nor scared to ride with a seat belt, which may be important because it’s her first time outside of her car seat. She makes it clear that this is about her. Her expression is carefully blank; she isn’t smiling, nor is she crying. Her mouth is a straight line, and she clearly went over it to exaggerate it. She is the only person in the picture. There are no siblings, etc. This could further highlight how safe and confident she feels sitting like a grown-up.
Thanks Jalysa and Katarina. My favorite points of analysis here have to do with the emphasis of her expression. I wonder if your point about how excited she is and how empowered she feels might be linked to her first time riding in the car without a car seat? If so, another way to start this analysis might’ve been, “The image shows the child’s pride in riding a car without a seatbelt…”
Stephanie’s drawing shows that she is having fun with her friend at the park. She has long curly hair and the reflection of the bright blue sky can be seen in her blue eye. She is sitting on a swing as her friend Mia is pushing her. Two lines that are surrounding the swings represents the motion in which Mia is pushing. While Mia is pushing Stephanie, Mia seems to be getting hit in her face by the swing due to a part of the circle that is drawn on Mia. Stephanie drew most of her picture in the color green and that itself can represent safety and warmth that she feels when she is with her friend Mia.
-Fathima & Anabel
Thanks Fathima and Anabel. Your emphasizing this picture as one in motion which is SO important. Remember Newkirk’s categories of pictures? He talks about the different ways children indicate motion in an action. Maybe a line about the category of this illustration could’ve added more instances of interpretation here.
Our interpretation of Patricia’s “A girl on a boat and her sister.” is that this drawing might represent a memory that the illustrator wanted to express. We can assume that Patricia has better verbal skills rather than drawing skills because it’s hard to interpret what we see in the drawing without the context of the title. There isn’t much to interpret from this picture because it doesn’t specify certain things like time, setting, or importance. The drawing most likely takes place on an ocean on a summer day because of the orange color used. We also assume that her sister is an important part of her life since it’s the only other person in the drawing. In the drawing, we see the sister outside of the boat while the other is on it, meaning that she might be going away or arriving from somewhere. It could be the sister leaving on a vacation or returning from one. There’s no sense of direction in this picture.
What if you were to combine your comment at the end with your first sentence? What if this is an image meant to show the child’s feelings of being lost? I understand the resistance to proposing an interpretation when an image seems unclear, but that’s the fun/luxury of analysis! As long as you have support, you can say it! So why not take the way she draws the sun to further an interpretation that she’s feeling lost?
Something to consider for future pieces…
DW
Most people think that Kayla’s drawing is about being happy, what they don’t know that the drawing is actually about being outrage. The color red can mean anger and that is what Kayla was going for in the drawing. When you look up what does the color red means says “It’s the color of passionate love, seduction, violence, danger, anger, and adventure. Our prehistoric ancestors saw red as the color of fire and blood – energy and primal life forces ” most people when they think about the color red they only think love but, but there is another side of the same coin and it is known as rage, anger, and blood. Through this example, we can see that even though the title does say that this is supposed to be a “Happy Head”, it can equally be an untamed anger represented through the child’s drawing.
Jaleigh identitifies herself as a rainbow fish. Possibly because of how many feeling she has. Jaleigh likes to wear red lipstick which is festive. She likes to have fun. There are many blue dots so this shows that Jaleigh is very colorful. She likes to have fun because she has only one shoe which is blue. Also, Jaleigh likes to explore different places because of her outfit. She is independent. Jaleigh swims all day long.
Aktia Ridhima
Guevara Torres
Thanks Aktia and Guevara. You definitely have several moments of interpretation here: you interpret her as festive because of red lipstick, you see her as colorful because of the blue dots. What’s missing though is ONE interpretation under which you develop all of your other interpretations. In other words, how are all these thoughts connected? You might’ve started with, “This image shows J’s independence.” and then worked to support that.
Something to think about
DW
Valerie…. a ocean and sand.” -Mentor & Pende
The child’s picture shows a body of water, sand and him laying down. I feel like the little child is thinking about the beach. The child is laying on the sand, in his own world not worrying about anything going on around him. He is very calm and relaxed, listening to the waves hitting the sand as he lays on the wet sand. The picture is showing the child’s emotions, more like a happy image of himself during summer. The beach is always portrayed as a hot, fun and happy place to be at.
Thanks Mentor. You clearly see this image as a happy memory of the beach. You support this through your interpretations of what the figures are doing. Great!
You might consider a topic sentence next time that indicates your overall interpretation of the image. This way, all of the observations that follow are in support of this interpretation.
DW
The child drawing depicts a mother, a bed, and what looks like the child’s little sister. The child states that the mother in the picture is happy while the little sister is sad next to a bed. We believe that the picture is saying that the little sister is sad because the mother is telling the sister to go to bed.The figures in the picture were drawn with different colors, probably to establish a mood in each of them. We can relate this drawing on how our parent had certain rules and made us go to bed on time. Memories we all share as a kid and wanting to stay up late and play with our siblings.
Thanks Kemar and Saul. I appreciate the connection you bring to this image– bedtimes stink! I also appreciate the way you support your interpretation (The sister is sad that her other sister has to go to bed) by reflecting on the different colors. You might’ve went further and indicated what color meant what mood.
DW
In Zion’s drawing of “The bad guy”, he illustrates his negative image of a male. We can observe that the guy is crying because he has been bad. We can assume that the tongue out is a representation of a bad figure and this particular image has been drawn with a lot of hair which makes us think that the kid was drawing a specific person. In the bottom part of the picture there’s red clouds which seems to be what “the bad guy” is saying. The overall meaning of the drawing is that bad people is represented by crazy looking features, poor talking and sadness. Tears were drawn in blue, the talking bubbles are red and the head is green, this is telling us that the kid associates colors with feelings and what is good and bad.
– Estefania Carrera
– Porshe Maysonet
-Yarielid Torres
Excellent work here! I wonder if some of your interpretations also indicate where the child is in terms of his learning process. Maybe he’s currently learning about “good” versus “bad” and working through these ideas through colors.
Thanks for the share,
DW
Prince and Erick
Rainbow
The child’s drawing is a representation of rainbow. This is because it has different colors like a rainbow which normally consist of seven different colors . However in the drawing, the colors were not well arranged as they would have appeared in a rainbow. In a rainbow, the colors are arranged in a beautiful looking arc like shape. In conclusion we may say the title of the drawing gives more description than the actual drawing.
Thanks Prince and Erick. You definitely focus on proving this picture is a rainbow and you do a good job of it. I wonder if you might’ve complicated your interpretation a bit more by suggesting what kind of representation the child is drawing. For instance, “The child draws a deconstructed rainbow because he has not yet discovered shapes…”
DW
PENDE AND MENTOR
The picture “Heaven… a happy face and feet” express a though that heaven is a very enjoyable place to be. I can see on the picture a person with arms upward expressing stress free attitude. However without a written title “Heaven… a happy face and feet” i will interpret differently. For example i can think that the person is doing exercise. Therefore, it is true that picture express though, or meaning but writing word is more precise, more explicit and leads to unique understanding that drawing image. Picture can lead to many different interpretations, and understandings.
Thanks Pende. It’s interesting that your focus here is on the way the written text offers more meaning than the picture. It shows your interest in Newkirk’s article.
Great work!
DW