Circle Maps

As a part of my Foundations of Reading Class (RED 3012) we have been introduced to several strategies that will help our students with reading comprehension. So my eyes are always open to strategies for my collection.

Well, today I happened upon the FDLRS (Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System) site. FDLRS offers information, training, and resources to educators of all kinds. One particular area of the site caught my attention. Thinking Maps are simply graphic organizers used to help students make visual and spatial connections between pieces of information. But, what I like about this site is that it gives photographic examples of actual student work. This is uncommon because there are laws restricting the use of actual student work without direct consent of a legal guardian. So, most teachers simply don't bother uploading students' work.

One particular photograph showed how the teacher had designed an assignment using a Circle Map. In the innermost circle, the student wrote a vocabulary term. The outer section of the circle was divided into quarters. In the quarter, the students placed the definition of the word. In the seond, they wrote some synonyms and antonyms. In the bottom quarter, they used the term correcly in a sentence. And in the last quarter, they drew a picture representing the definition of the term. On the outer skirts of the page, outside of the circle, the students placed the title of the lesson, the word list from which the term was taken, the name of the of book they used to find their synonyms and antonyms, and finally, the source of their visual connection.

Circle maps could be a super way to explore vocabulary with English Language Learners. It will give them visual reminders of terms and their meaning. But it could also be used for students with exceptionalities by helping them make the same visual connection. Another way the Circle Map was used was in providing a structure in which gifted children placed number sentences that would equal the centered number. What a super idea.

The possibilities of Thinking Maps extened beyond the boundaries of time. Accordingly, I plan to keep this idea in mind for later. It's very cool, very simple, and I think it could be very effective.