Visuals: All in the Mind's Eye

While traveling abroad some years ago, I developed a series of horrific eye infections, which kept me awake at night with fears of eventually going blind. Yes, it's said that other senses are enhanced when one is lost;  but, is there really an adequate substitute for sight? Not in my mind. Visuals are our way of framing the world, framing ideas, conceptualizing. Caves, with the delightful scribbles of people we refer to as "cavemen," reveal that we have an instinctive need to express ourselves in pictures, through pictures. What is most captivating to me about tech tools is the ability to frame words and ideas differently; it's like unlocking a new toolbox for creative expression. I realized this when I did my first Wordle. I dread self introductions because I edit out or in the essence of who I see myself as within a certain context. However, a Wordle takes words that I associate with myself and puts them in a frame bursting with energy, potential, expression. So many students struggle with creating a solid paragraph. Why not liberate their minds with other tools of expression, like Wordle and Digital Storytelling? If the process is creative, then somehow the "pain" associated with some types of learning naturally disappears.