When using visuals in texts, which practice helps students use them effectively?

• A. Ignore visuals
• B. Copy visuals without understanding
• C. Use visuals as evidence to support meaning and explain ideas
• D. Delete visuals from text

Answer: (C)

Using visuals to deepen understanding and communicate meaning. When students engage with graphics, photos, diagrams, or charts, they should treat the visual as evidence that supports and expands what the text is saying. This means looking closely at what the image shows, linking those details to specific ideas or claims in the writing, and explaining how the visual helps reveal meaning that words alone might not fully convey. By describing how the visual and the text work together, students justify their interpretation and demonstrate reasoning about the message.

For example, in a nonfiction piece with a diagram of the water cycle, a student would explain how evaporation, condensation, and precipitation are represented in the diagram and how the accompanying text describes the process, showing how the visuals reinforce the sequence and the science concept.

Choosing to ignore visuals removes a valuable source of information and context. Copying visuals without understanding fails to show how the image relates to the text. Deleting visuals from a text deprives students of evidence and clues that can deepen comprehension.