Mind Mapping Literature
Note-taking can be a challenge for 9th grade students. They need help with organization, as well as figuring out how to take effective notes i.e. not mindlessly copying down information without really understanding what it is about. For the first two books we read as a class this year, Breaking Through and The Alchemist, students used Cornell Notes to keep track of such aspects as a book’s themes, symbols, characters, conflicts, etc. However, for our latest book, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, I was looking for a new approach, something that might be more appealing to my students.
Enter mind mapping.
Mind Mapping is a visual, associative approach to note-taking. It involves beginning in the middle of an unlined page turned horizontally and drawing a central image. From that main image spring different branches and sub-branches. Mind mapping uses drawing, imagery, color, key words, and associative connections. In our first week of mind mapping, I discovered that many of my students were more engaged in this approach. In a survey after our first week of using this method, 79% of my students preferred mind mapping over Cornell Notes. Hopefully as we continue, it will enable students to make more connections in the book and develop a deeper understanding of literature.
I have found that mind mapping provides a quicker way to visually absorb information…
