Thinking with Hands, Eyes, and Signs: MultiModal Science Talk in a Grade 6/7 Unit on Simple Machines

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Abstract
This study focused on the role of chalkboards in classroom science talk. Using a representative whole‐class conversation, similarities of its overall structure with scientific laboratory talk are illustrated. I show how meaning emerges from the interaction of multiple modes of communication. To understand “conceptual” talk and thinking in science classrooms organized as linguistic communities one must account for the fundamental interdependence of “hands, eyes, and signs.” This study has important implications for the design of technologies that allow larger numbers of students to participate in whole‐class sense‐making conversations.

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