Denise,
These are the examples your students are going to remember for a long time. Drawings like this help them to seal the content in their working memories so they can recall this information when they are out in the workplace and need to be accurate in all that they do.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have hand drawn and copied cartoons to demonstrate the progression of Insulin in the body to attract the students attention and increase recall!
I agree that graphic organizers can help isolate important information.
Don,
This is a good point because they help students to see how parts become the whole with shown in a flow chart.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Graphic organizers can be used for showing workflow in industry which is quickly becoming the norm in industry. Flow-Charting steps for a process is very helpful.
Frequently when my students take notes they diligently copy the problem I work on the board but do not include the audio component that goes with it. Everything is clear in the now but later when they go back to use their notes, they have lost there meaning. A graphic organizer could provide scaffolding for learning to include the all important audio portion of the explanation until they have learned to do it themselves.
Lori,
This is a good way to show students how the various parts of a project fit together and become a final success. The more graphics like you are using the better as students start to see how they will be contributing on the job site.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Jeffery,
This is a valuable service to and for students. By showing them how to use graphic organizers you are helping them to keep on the success trail in the class and move closer to their career goals.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I use something similar to the network tree when I teach Project Management. The network tree is very similar to the work breakdown structure where your project is divided into different parts called project and work packages. You take the main idea or project and break it down into subparts or components until you have completed each task.
Laura,
This is a very good idea as you are helping your students to see how they can organize the content that is being shared in the slides.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Using graphic organizers are especially helpful to students who do not, or can not, organize curricula themselves. Every student to some degree "organizes" subject matter in their own way, but some are not as adept in doing so. Using graphic organizers is most helpful for them.
I try to add a graphic organizer of some kind every 3 slides in my lectures.
Mike,
These are fun teaching tools to use. We just got one and all of us faculty are having fun learning how to use it effectively. It is amazing how it can help the instructional process.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
In my training classroom we have a "SmartBoard" that allows me to write directly on applications like MS Excel. I can circle key components, draw illustrations and other graphical bells & whistles that helps students retain information by giving them images to remember instead of simply words. This graphical tool has dramatically improved the depth of my classes and the range of tools I have to convey information.
Graphic Organizers can be helpful to help students to keep lots of information organized. In mathematics, using a graphic organizer to learn operations of rational numbers is a good way for them to remember all the rules.
I always show diagrams of how the content interlates and shows the students the big picture. The disgrams make the information easier to grasp and how the content interrealtes which creates a general awareness in one glance.
Brian,
Great way to provide your students with physical as well as mental images from which they can internalize the content and organize it in their minds. You are giving them connecting points from which they can build their knowledge base and this will increase their long term memory retention.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
In my class, I use organizational charts to breakdown the branches of government so student can take note by listing the powers and responsibilities given to each by the constitution. I also provide sketches and diagram for example on how to process crime scenes. I also provide graphics of the fire triangle with blank line where the student can take notes by identifying the elements needed to create fire. This is an effect way to have them get involve during lectures and video presentation
Brandi,
Thank you for these wonderful words about the benefits of using graphic organizers. They really make a difference in helping students to retain course content. I find them very useful with my older students that have been out of school for a while and are not sure how to take notes. Graphic organizers help them to see the key elements and get them written down in a way that makes sense to them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Graphic organizers are awesome! I believe any time I can incorporate a graphic organizer, it is a great day. Graphic organizers, visuals, illustrations, tables, maps, etc. are wonderful in class. I am a PowerPoint fanatic, so adding such visuals are imperative to student focus. My millennial students tend to focus more on the visuals than they do the actual content. So it is really important for me to find the most appropriate ones to match the content. Either way if they are a visual, verbal or kinesthetic learner the graphics will grab their attention at some point, and then give clarity on the subject! I also use them myself. When I learn something new, I find it helpful to incorporate some type of graphic organizer for full understanding through contemplation and application. Therefore, since I use it and it works for me, I like to allow my students the same opportunity for applicable practices!
