This unit is centers on two equally important notions. First is that visual literacy has an important place in the secondary English classroom. Second is that students need meaningful opportunities to respond to text through the creation of their own texts. Set in the context of an ‘Afrofuturist Aesthetic,’ this unit supports teachers by introducing some of the theory beneath the concepts of visual literacy, writing about contemporary art, critical response, and the Afrofuturist perspective. Students are asked to create a framework for visual analysis and then to put that framework to use examining three works by Clotilde Jimenez. Finally, students respond to Jimenez’s work by creating their own mixed-media collage.
(Developed for English, grade 9; recommended for English, grades 9-12)
