An exploration of shopping bags as visual texts

In this unit by Sally Gill, students learn how to critically analyse shopping bags. As well as learning about the linguistic structures and features of this type of visual text, they learn about the relationship between the design of the bag and its intended audience. The students demonstrate their understanding by creating their own bags for particular types of shops.

Background

This activity was used with a grade 6 class of 30 students over a three week period. It included many technology outcomes not outlined in this article.

Students were working at a level 3 or 4.

From the English Profiles

Outcomes

Level 3.5 - Interprets and discuss some relationships between ideas, information and events in visual texts designed for general viewing - the everyday shopping bag.

Level 3.6 -Identifies simple symbolic meanings and stereotypes in visual texts and discusses their purpose and meaning.

These can be evidenced by the ability to:

• discuss the possible reasons for choices of visual images in their shopping bag;

• identify the symbolic significance of colour, expression and gesture in text, recognising that these are socially reconstructed representations;

• recognise the symbolic link between a product name and trade logo;

• integrate symbols to discuss meaning.

What we did

Our exploration of the shopping bag as a visual text began with the class looking at a shopping bag from a store they didn’t know.

By brainstorming, the class of grade 6 students came up with a possible profile of the shopper, the style of shop and its likely stock. They supplied their responses based on evidence from the visual information on the bag.

Next students were paired and given a bag from a range of known and unknown stores. They analysed their bags in the same way they had analysed the first bag, and thought critically about the information their new bag conveyed.

They were challenged to think about what changes they would make to the bag to attract a different type of shopper. For example if a clothing store aimed at families was beginning to change its image to attract younger people, how could that be achieved visually?

Would they change….

• the logo?
• the colour used?
• the font style?
• the addition of a WWW address? Why?
• the material the bag is made out of - giving the shopper different messages of quality and image?

Further discussion took place around the purpose of the bag, which can dictate the materials used, message given, image and so on.

They sketched possible changes.

Next each student randomly selected a shop and created a bag in keeping with it. They selected from the list below.

Your shopping bag belongs to a surf shop for teenagers.

Your shopping bag belongs to a trendy baby clothing shop

Your shopping bag belongs to a kitchenware shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a shop that sells recycled ladies fashion.

Your shopping bag belong to a stationery shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a hardware shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a family department stor

Your shopping bag belongs to a bargain basement store.

Your shopping bag belongs to an expensive jeweller.

Your shopping bag belongs to a family shoe shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a sports shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a coffee/tea shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a Tasmanian souvenir shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a bookshop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a build-your-own furniture shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a men’s suit shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a newsagency.

Your shopping bag belongs to a trendy baby-clothing shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a surf shop for teenagers.

Your shopping bag belongs to a kitchenware shop.

Your shopping bag belongs to a shop that sells recycled ladies’ fashion.

It was envisaged that two people would be given the same brief. This would act as a further source of sharing and discussion as they designed their bags differently and would need to justify their decisions.

Students had to create a relevant name for their shop, establish their client type, plan an appealing logo and select a relevant colour and font, which would appeal to this type of shopper. Pencil designs were made and shared.

Some students did a contrasting design using Paint on the computer, and then the technology phase of this unit began with the construction of our shopping bags.

Other teaching and learning benefits

Students wrote descriptive imaginative texts describing their shops with a focus on appropriate adjectives to use.

Others students took the activity further and constructed their shops matching the brief they had defined for the business.

Sally Gill

Kingston Primary School
rspmgill@netspace.net.au