Tips for Using Graphic Organizers

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Graphic organizers can be useful to learners during instruction and processing by giving a visual organizational structure to:

  • note taking
  • brainstorming
  • summarizing information or details
  • relationships between ideas

Key for successful use:

  • Offer a variety of graphic organizers to allow learners choice as to the one that has the most meaningful organizational structure
  • Insure proficiency in using the organizer selected through modeling, instruction and practice.
  • Introduce and model each specific graphic organizer’s use with whole class instruction.  Offer multiple opportunities to practice its use as a whole group, small group, and individually.   It is encouraged for learners to build a library of graphic organizers to select from for any given project or study.

Some learners have an innate style of organization that has developed through experience and training.  Other learners, however, struggle with organization and can benefit from consistent use of specific graphic organizers that offer support through a procedural approach to assimilating concepts and details.

Some graphic organizer suggestions -