Graphic Organizers

Graphic Organizers.


They didn't exist when I went to school.  Or at least, none of my teachers used them way back them.  When I was in "teacher" college, they were becoming all rage.  I took notes, but still didn't get the benefits.  Even after I started teaching in the classroom, I didn't use them much initially.  Thankfully, I've started to grow a little in the area and now, I've been using them with my daughter fairly regularly.

Basically, a graphic organizer is just a way of organizing information.  The can be a big benefit to visual learners, but also a kinesthetic learner can benefit if you allow them to fill in the diagrams themselves.  It provides a different way of seeing the information you are learning.


Generally, when I use them, I use them for science and history, but I did one for English yesterday.  What's interesting is the one website that I usually get my organizers from gives them a 5th -8th grade level!  I'm using them with my 6 year old, second grader.  One thing, however, is that I don't let her know that she's doing anything different.  To her, all second graders use a y-graph to review adverbs.  Again, don't let "the man" tell you what you can or can't use with your student. 

Here's a few examples of how I've used them.

This is a Y graph.  Since an adverb can modify 3 things, I listed one in each section and had her write a sentence using  that form of an adverb.

This is a star graph.  I had her write facts about mammals in each section.

Here is a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting amphibians and reptiles.

This is a tree diagram.  We used words and pictures to explain feudalism.








Where to find graphic organizers?  Well, to be honest, you can draw them up yourself, but I do save myself some time and effort and get mine from Enchanted Learning.  If you're not a member, however, you can only access the thumbnail of all the organizers they have.  I did find some for free here, here, and here.

Reviewing Spelling

I'm always looking for ways to review spelling words other than the traditional copying on paper or oral "bee".  There is nothing wrong with this time proven methods that can address both visual and auditory learners, but neither really addresses a kinesthetic/tactile learner.  [Side note: Being able spell words orally and being able to write words down are actually two different skills.  Just because your student can do one well, doesn't mean automatically he/she can do the other.  Use both.  You'll see more reason to do this in the study below.]

A kinesthetic or tactile learner is one who learns through touching and movement.  In all my years of teaching, I find this learning style usual the most difficult to incorporate while teaching.  However, I know that the more, learning methods you use, the more you actually remember, so even if your child isn't a kinesthetic/tactile learner, he or she can still benefit from adding this aspect.

A study done at the University of Texas found that people remember:

10 percent of what they read;
20 percent of what they hear;
30 percent of what they see;
50 percent of what they see and hear;
70 percent of what they say; and
90 percent of what they do and say

In fact, if you've seen the movie Akeelah and the Bee (and if you haven't, you should), Professor Larabee adds kinesthetic learning to Akeelah's memorization when he has her jump rope as she memorizes her words.

All this to share just a few different ways I've had my daughter study her spelling words the past few weeks.

 She thinks it's fun to "be" the letters.  She makes her body into the letter shape as she orally spells out each word.  OK, so sometimes the letter shapes get a little abstract, but it does make her focus more on each letter as she spells the words.

Another thing I did (of which I didn't take pictures) is to write in shaving cream.  I sprayed some plain white shaving cream and had her write her words in it.  I attempted to keep most of the shaving cream on a plastic place mat to aid in clean up.  This is actually a fun activity on many levels.  I've used this for PKs to write the letters, numbers or shapes.  You can also use it for math facts, for instance.  Pretty much anything you can write on paper, you can write in shaving cream.

I also had her type her spelling words into her "blog."   You could also just do this on a word document.  Since she's not "fluent" in keyboarding, the hunt and peck method makes her focus more on each letter of the word as she types it in.  Obviously, it also starts to get her working on computer skills.

Today, we went outside for spelling.  I had her write her spelling words with sidewalk chalk on the sidewalk.  Again, plenty of movement and fun.  I made sure she did them in a column, so we didn't have chalk all over our clothes when we came back inside.

 



So, those are just a few of the things I've been doing.  I'd love to hear additional ideas, so if you're reading this, please share your ideas in the comment, so others can benefit in addition to me.

Not Just Your Average Genius

I've been so busy listening to the Schoolhouseexpo.com online that I haven't had much time to blog what I'm learning.  It might be awhile before I get everything done, but I'm definitely going to try to journal my notes hear.

Not Just Your Average Genius was taught by Diana Waring.  Her website is http://www.dianawaring.com/. 

Her session was very convicting and challenging.

She started by pointing out that a child that does things "too much" or "too often" are wired that way by God.  It may be immature & unripened fruit of what God's made them to be, but it's the wiring of God.  She used the example of Mikhail Baryshnikov.  He probably got in trouble all the time as a child for not being able to sit still, but that's because God wired him for movement.  Or Barbara Walters probably got in trouble for talking all the time, but that's how she was wired.  Now, both use their wiring in a mature way.

It was convicting to be reminded that the things I find often find frustrating and hard to control in my dd are things that God wired into her.  How dare I think that those things need to be changed!  Helped to mature and grow, yes.  Changed, no.

She mentioned the different learning modality which is how do I best take in new stuff.  They are visual (see it), auditory (hear it) and tactile/kinestetic (touch or move).

She then went into personality/learning styles.  She used the Myers-Briggs terms. 

• Thinker--organized, schedule, black & white
• Feeler--drawn to and need people, needs to be with people
• Sensor--so it, concrete, hands on, need sense of accomplishment
• Intuition--idea person

I've known my dd is a "feeler" or sanguine for quite awhile!  It didn't click with me, however, that means that even as I try to encourage her to work independently, I'm still going to need to be around.  I may not have to do each activity with her, but at least be a "person" to be around. That's good to know as I plan her further learning.

She then talked about the 8 intelligences or "How God made you smart!"

We all have the 8 intelligences but some are stronger and some are weaker.  My comments below are in now way the extent of what she shared, but only the key points that struck me.

• Intra-personal--self-smart, often need space or to be alone
• Naturalize--nature-smart
• Musical
• Math-logical
• Bodily-kenestetic--body-smart, not just athletes or dancers but also jewelers and brain-surgeons
• Interpersonal--people-smart, do with another
• Linguistic-- word-smart
• Spatial-- picture-smart, artists, architect, packing

One of the last things she mentioned is that we need to give lots of grace.  We need to keep in mind that these styles of learning are immature and being developed, and we need to remember they are still kiddos!

I think her book Beyond Survival would be an excellent source.  She also wrote the history curriculum being sold by Answers in Genesis.

Is My Child a Visual-Spatial Learner?
From Currclick.com

As a homeschooling parent, you want to provide the best learning experience for your child. You’ve doubtless heard a lot about the needs of visual learners. If your child is struggling to learn basic skills, taking a closer look at how visual-spatial children learn might be critical. Visual-spatial learners tend have a difficult time because traditional curricula are designed for a different type of learner. Here are some questions to help you determine whether or not your child is a visual-spatial learner.*

1. Does your child seem to intuit and care about the feelings of others?
   
2. Does your child tend to forget what you tell him?
   
3. Does he seem to recall well what he sees?
   
4. Does she frequently lose track of time?
   
5. Does he seem talented in art, music, dance, or drama?
   
6. Does she seem disorganized?
   
7. Does he have trouble with spelling?
   
8. Does she have trouble remembering phonics and math rules?
   
9. Does he seem to remember how to get places he’s only been to one time?
   
10. Does your child like to construct things?
    
11. Does she like to figure out how things work (taking them apart?)
    
12. Does your child frequently visualize things? Example: does he frequently see one thing and say “Oh, that looks like a _____________” ?
    
13. Does he start laughing during a conversation because a combination of words reminded him of a funny picture in his head?
    
14. Can she solve a problem without being able to tell the steps she took to get to the solution?
    
15. Is your child good at puzzles or mazes?
    
16. Does your child solve problems in unusual ways? In other words, once you tell him what the goal is, does he arrive at that goal in unexpected ways?
    
17. Does she have a vivid imagination?
    
18. Does your child prefer to draw you a picture or diagram of what he’s thinking than try and tell you using words?
    
19. Does your child have at least one parent that would answer “yes” to most of the questions above?

If this sounds like your child, it is likely he or she is a visual-spatial learner.
*Questions based on a quiz from Golon, A. S. (2004). Raising Topsy-Turvy Kids: Successfully Parenting Your Visual-Spatial Child. Denver: DeLeon Publishing.

Research About Visual-Spatial Learners
Dr. Silverman, licensed psychologist and noted author, has researched in depth what it means to be a visual learner. In her own words:
“When we developed the Visual-Spatial Identifier... we still thought that a small percentage of the population would be visual-spatial learners. The results of the second validation study of our Identifier, in 2001, astounded us. Approximately one-third of the 750 students we had assessed in two schools were strongly visual-spatial and another 30% were moderately visual-spatial. That represented the majority of the school population!”

The Dissonance Between Traditional Materials and Visual Learners
I’ve experienced first-hand the difficulties visual learners have using traditional curricula. I am strongly visual-spatial myself, and have worked in depth with visual-spatial and kinesthetic learners. A lot of emotional pain results from these learners being taught using traditional material. Dr. Silverman shows us graphically why this dissonance occurs – and, I might add, why so many visual-spatial children are believed to be disabled and in need of special education.
Success in school depends largely on a student’s ability to:

• Hear and follow directions
  
• Complete work on time
  
• Memorize facts
  
• Remember quickly
  
• Follow steps or rules as in phonics or math
  
• Write neatly
  
• Spell correctly
  
• Be on time and prepared
  
• Be organized
  

Dr. Silverman goes on to state that in our world, adults are most successful when they can:

• See the big picture
  
• Predict or intuit what might happen
  
• Create new products or new solutions
  
• Take risks
  
• Problem-solve
  
• Team build, identifying the strengths of others on the team
  
• Be computer literate
  
• Deal with complex issues, seeing the parts to the whole all at one time
  
• Read people well