• This session demonstrates how graphic organizers are creative and engaging tools for introducing, practicing and reviewing vocabulary.

• Participants will select a graphic organizer suitable for their educational contexts, and design a short activity to teach to their peers.

Graphic Organizers

‘A graphic organizer is a visual and graphic display that depicts the relationships between facts, terms, and/or ideas’ (Strangman, Vue, Hal and Meyer 2014, p. 2).

Organizers: Graphic organizers, cognitive organizers

Maps: Concept maps, cognitive maps, semantic maps, knowledge maps

Other terms: Content webs, ideational frameworks, concept diagrams

Benefits of Graphic Organizers

• Maximize learning opportunities by utilizing multiple modes of presentation and expression - make complex information more accessible to EAL learners

• Allows learners to organize thoughts and ideas

• Scaffolds vocabulary in speaking and writing tasks

• Helps to organize and support pair and team work

• Can make reading and learning vocabulary more enjoyable and interesting

• Can increase confidence, comfort level and fluency

• Useful for multi-level classes and differentiated learning

• Promotes critical thinking and higher order thinking skills

Classroom Use

• Keep the organizer clear and simple

• Use strategically and give clear task outcomes (E.g. list 10 types of food)

• Can be used for organizing existing information or new ideas

• Use pre/during/post task

• Use to assess knowledge/comprehension/ability to understand relationships between information

• The type of organizer is less important than the task set-up and instructions

• Use one type of organizer in different contexts and with different topics to develop familiarity with format

• Use different organizers with the same content to maximize learning and revise material

• Encourage your learners to be creative, and provide time for them to share their ideas with their peers!

Video of my Graphic Organizers PowerPoint: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3FVVtjLAo8

Info and examples

http://www.thinkport.org/graphic-organizers.html

http://www.writedesignonline.com/organizers/brainstorm.html#cerebralchart

Printable templates

http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/

https://worksheets.edhelper.com/teachers/General_graphic_organizers.htm

http://freeology.com/graphicorgs/

http://www.teach-nology.com/web_tools/graphic_org/

Create your own

https://creately.com/

https://www.worksheetworks.com/miscellanea/graphic-organizers.html

Digital dictionary graphic organizers (Use with Google Chrome)

http://www.lexipedia.com/English http://www.snappywords.com/

Fun online vocab games https://englishteaching101.com/online-vocabulary-games-generator/?fbclid=IwAR3xd5MTU9ovElX6VCsSw8gV8rH0vGE_WZrzeATsjuVNEX5RTxnHye0GGLc