047_054_6_90743:BEST
24/2/09
18:08
Página 47
Graphic organisers Eliminating words, focusing on connections For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned. Benjamin FRANKLIN
Why all the fuss about graphic organisers? Graphic organisers are a highly recommended teaching tool in Science classes, yet many teachers don’t exploit them to the maximum. Unlike many rigid teaching tools that have only one application, graphic organisers are very flexible. Their applications are innumerable! Simple graphic organisers can be used even with very young learners. Here are some of the benefits graphic organisers can bring to your CLIL classes. ➜ Help learners think clearly,
especially visual learners A picture is worth a thousand words. When you can clearly visualise something it’s almost like being able to touch it physically. This transforms learning into a personal experience.
➜ Allow lots of information
to be stored in a reduced space Graphic organisers compress information and allow us to represent huge amounts of data in a limited space. Moreover, it’s like having a view from the top. If you are looking down from a mountain onto a vast landscape, you will see all its features much better than if you were standing on the ground. ➜ Connect the four language skills
If you are wondering how to integrate listening, speaking and reading skills in your CLIL classes, graphic organisers are the answer. They expose your students to vocabulary and structures in both written and oral form.
➜ Encourage students to think
about information When speaking, students often reproduce what they have learned by heart. When writing, they sometimes just copy and paste. Graphic organisers help avoid these traps as they force students to organise their thoughts and go beyond the obvious.
47
047_054_6_90743:BEST
24/2/09
18:08
Página 48
Effective application in the classroom When it comes to finding ways to include graphic organisers into our teaching, the only limit is our own creativity. Graphic organisers can be: • drawn on a board, on cardboard or on a sheet of paper. • displayed as a transparency on an overhead projector. • given movement via power point presentations and digital boards. When introducing graphic organisers for the first time, do it gradually:
1
Remember! Graphic organisers are an excellent revision tool. Not only do they help organise key concepts, they also contribute to higher retention of new vocabulary.
Types of graphic organisers Graphic organizers can take a variety of forms, some of which have a specific name, depending on what they are representing and how they will be used. Some examples are: ➜ Network trees
MODEL THEIR USE WITH THE WHOLE CLASS. ➜
2 GO STEP BY STEP THROUGH THE PROCESS.
Network trees can be used to link information to the student’s prior knowledge, gather and share new concepts and relationships, show a hierarchy, or show branching procedures.
➜
VERTEBRATES
3 EXPLAIN WHAT YOU ARE DOING AT EACH STEP AND WHY.
MAMMALS
BIRDS
➜
4 USE THE SAME GRAPHIC ORGANISER SEVERAL
AMPHIBIANS
TIMES, INCREASING STUDENT INPUT EVERY TIME.
Once your learners understand how to use a specific graphic organiser, encourage its use in individual or group tasks. After that, display different forms of graphic organisers around the classroom to serve as reminders.
REPTILES
FISH • are viviparous • drink their mother’s milk
• have a beak and wings • lay eggs
• live on land and in water • have moist skin
• have scales • usually lay eggs
• breathe in water • have scales
48
047_054_6_90743:BEST
24/2/09
18:08
Página 49
Graphic organisers
➜ Star diagrams
This type of graphic organiser has many advantages. It can be used to activate your learners’ prior knowledge, but it is also very useful for brainstorming a topic. Students can use it to list the main attributes related to the given concept or topic. If you are dealing with a story, event or a descriptive text this is the best diagram to use. The 5 Ws (who, when, where, what, and why) are used to summarize the entire text and show logical connections.
Around the world Netherlands. People ride bicycles in the ng stro you ps kee ling Cyc and it doesn’t pollute!
WHO? • People in the Netherlands. • A Canadian family.
WHY? • Exercise keeps you strong and it does not pollute. • It gives you energy.
WHEN? • Everyday (cycling). • In the morning AROUND (have breakfast).
THE WORLD
WHAT? • They ride bicycles. • They have a healthy breakfast.
most In Canada, breakfast is the . day the of al me ant ort imp rgy! ene you s give A healthy breakfast
WHERE? • In the Netherlands. • In Canada.
➜ Venn diagrams
Venn diagrams are particularly useful in activities that require critical thinking skills, such as comparing and contrasting. This type of graphic organiser helps our learners arrange similarities and differences visually. Similarities are recorded in the area where the circles overlap, differences are recorded in the outer parts of the same circles.
Amphibians • Hatch from eggs. • Undergo metamorphosis into adults. • Have moist and thin skin. • Have to live part of life in water.
Both • Living beings. • Animals. • Vertebrates. • Cold-blooded.
Reptiles • Can be born or hatched. • Come to world as small replicas of their parents. • Have skin covered with scales. • Do not have to live part of life in water.
49
047_054_6_90743:BEST
24/2/09
18:08
Página 50
The water cycle
➜ Cycles
We use cycles to represent the stages of a process, or a sequence of events which produce a set of results with no beginning and no end.
Condensation
Evaporation
➜ Timelines
These graphic organisers teach our students how to place events in chronological or sequential order. Ordering events on a timeline gives learners a sense of how much time passes between each event. It also helps them remember when the events happened.
Precipitation
Collection
Have a look at how you can summarise the key points of a written text on a timeline. After that, ask your students to insert some new inventions and corresponding years.
ions invent t n a t Impor The printing press Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1440. Before the printing press was invented, not many people knew how to read and write. Books were very expensive. With the printing press, books were cheaper.
1440 Printing press
1875 Telephone
1923 Television
1928 Penicillin
Penicillin
1979
In 1928 the Scottish scientist, Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin. Before the discovery of penicillin, people got sick and died easily. Today we use penicillin to cure infections.
Mobile phone
1994 Digital Camera
The telephone In 1875 Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. Before it was invented, people had to write letters or send telegrams to communicate with people. With the telephone we can communicate instantly with people all around the world.
Classroom management tips ◗ Keep your students engaged in the lesson by
using different pictures, shapes and colours to add more meaning to their graphic organisers. For example, use different coloured string to show links between words or new concepts. ◗ Explore the Net! At this link:
http://freeology.com/graphicorgs/index.php you can find ready-made, free templates to make many of the most common graphic organisers. 50