Creators Julio Anta (Speak Up, Santiago!; Sol Goes for the Goal), Stephen Shaskan (author/illustrator, Pizza and Taco), Trisha Speed Shaskan (author, Itty Bitty Witch), and Dora Wang (author/illustrator, Pocket Peaches) and creator-educators Chris Pearce (cartoonist, Big Fat Notebook study guides) and Jana Tropper (Animal Rescue Friends; speech-language pathologist) discuss how they scaffold early visual literacy skills. From overall story construction to artistic choices within a single panel, understanding visual images—including identifying literal and nonliteral meanings, making predictions, and connecting images with background knowledge and other media—is a critical skill for young readers. Creators share examples from their work, educators discuss classroom use, and time is reserved for Q&A.
