'I Spy' Collaboration: East Photo Project Helps Early Readers

The final products of a photography class project at Lakota East now have a permanent place in one kindergarten classroom at Liberty Early Childhood School. The high school students’ “I Spy” books double as a showcase of first-year photography concepts and new reading material for some of Lakota’s youngest readers. 

Once Lakota East teacher Danielle Garner had covered the basics of her Photo I curriculum - concepts like composition, lines, shapes and different perspectives - she wanted to give her students a creative avenue for applying what they’d learned. The idea of an “I Spy” book also tied in with their study of commercial photography. 

“It’s hard to get creative when you’re photographing a stapler,” Garner laughed. “I wanted to do something different.” 

So, she approached Liberty ECS teacher Erin Miller, asking if her kindergartners might be her students’ target customer base for the books they'd create. After all, an “authentic audience” is a critical ingredient for any successful project-based learning lesson. The idea was a winning one for Miller too. 

“I was so excited! Not only do kindergarteners idolize older students, but tying it into our curriculum makes it so much more meaningful,” said Miller, explaining how the final books reinforce aspects of this year’s English language arts curriculum. 

Besides the obvious reinforcement of numbers, letters and sight words through the words on each page, many of Garner’s students chose nature-centric themes for their books. Miller explained that their current units focus a lot on plants, trees and living things. 

The East students were challenged to arrange their items in a chaotic manner on a simple background, similar to any traditional “I Spy” book. Then they photographed the full landscape. They also had to individually photograph the items they were asking their readers to “spy” in order to include them on the opposite page with the corresponding words.

For Garner, student buy-in is critical to engaging her students and making concepts relatable. In this case, a published book for a genuine audience really appealed to her students. She and Miller are even planning a time when both their students can meet and read the books together.

“It was also just fun,” Garner said. “There’s a lot of pressure on high school students to do really big things. It’s amazing how just doing a project that takes them back to their childhoods takes the pressure off and makes learning fun.”