Graphic Organizers help students comprehend information through a visual representation of concepts, ideas, and relationships. They are effective tools because they turn abstract concepts into concrete visual concepts. They organize ideas and concepts and help students store and recall information. Graphic organizers are typically used to teach vocabulary, specific content, and story structure. Students are able to store and retrieve information better with graphic organizers because the organizers make difficult concepts appear less complicated. Over time, teachers provide consistent organizers that students learn so that the teacher can stop providing the graphic organizer for students, allowing students to design their own organization forms.
Graphic organizers:
- Visually show the key points or ideas of the lesson
- Turn abstract concepts into concrete visual representations
- Guide student thinking about the content of the lesson
- Produce learning effects that are substantial and long lasting when used effectively
When students are going to be using a new, unfamiliar graphic organizer in a lesson, it is important to preview its use prior to the lesson. As part of the preview, describe the purpose of the specific graphic organizer and explain how to use it. Use familiar or simple content to complete the graphic organizer so students can focus on the type of thinking required versus the content. These “preview” graphic organizers can then be placed in students’ notebooks to reference during the lesson.
