English Language Arts (Reading, Literature, Language/English) French I and II (High School) Catholic Theology/Religion (K-12)

Sacred Heart School is in our first full academic year of implementing Thinking Maps, which are visual tools for learning. Periodically, during the school year we have highlighted how Thinking Maps are used throughout the curriculum. This month's featured content areas are English Language Arts, French I and II, and Catholic Theology/Religion (K-12). The Maps enable students by providing them with a learning strategy that they can use independently and take with them into all academic settings. Students organize and process information, develop cognitive skills, understand relationships, and integrate knowledge.

A few such examples in which Thinking Maps have been used are described below by teachers of kindergarten through twelfth grade:

Sacred Heart School is in our first full academic year of implementing Thinking Maps, which are visual tools for learning. Periodically, during the school year we will highlight how Thinking Maps are used throughout the curriculum.  This month’s featured content area is Social Studies.  They enable students to organize and process information, develop cognitive skills, and integrate knowledge. Thinking Maps address different thinking processes which figure prominently in Social Studies subjects: comparing and contrasting important figures, places, or events; classifying information; sequencing chronological moments; and examining the causes and effects of historical events, political actions, and geographical content.

A few such examples in which Thinking Maps have been used are described below by teachers of kindergarten through twelfth grade:

• Sue Monier, Michelle Soileau, Jackie Vidrine, Kindergarten – Social Studies:  Thinking maps help kindergarteners think at a deeper level. We have defined vehicles with a circle map and sorted vehicles by travel mode with a tree map.  We will further develop vehicle study with a flow map to display vehicle speed from slowest to fastest.
  Last Updated on Tuesday, 23 March 2010 10:21
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What are Thinking Maps? 
Thinking Maps are a common visual language for learning.  They have a consistent design, yet are highly flexible.  Each map is based on a thought (thinking) process.  With consistent use, the brain develops a pattern (a habit of thought)that connects the thought process to a specific Thinking Map.

Why use Thinking Maps?
Educational and Brain Research shows that consistent use of Thinking Maps increases I.Q. scores, S.A.T., all standardized test scores, and reading & writing scores. Thinking Maps help students become independent, reflective, life-long problem solvers and learners.

What are the names of the eight maps?

The eight maps are identified as:

1. Circle Map
2. Bubble Map
3. Double Bubble Map
4. Tree Map
5. Brace Map
6. Flow Map
7. Multi-Flow Map
8. Bridge Map

 What is the thinking process and what does the map look like?

     Sacred Heart School is in our first full academic year of implementing Thinking Maps, which are visual tools for learning. Periodically, during the school year we will highlight how Thinking Maps are used throughout the curriculum.  This month’s featured content area is Science. They enable students to organize and process information, develop cognitive skills, and integrate knowledge. Thinking Maps address different thinking processes which figure prominently in the Sciences:  classifying information, breaking down physical objects from the whole into its parts, describing the properties of objects, and examining the effects of a process on an object (as in an experiment).

     A few such examples in which Thinking Maps have been used are described below by teachers of kindergarten through twelfth grade:

• Sue Monier, Michelle Soileau, Jackie Vidrine, Kindergarten – Science:  Thinking maps help kindergarteners think at a more rigorous level. They discuss the ‘seasons of the year’ by constructing a tree map identifying the season and putting details about each as they acquired the knowledge. The children have sorted the kinds of clothes that are worn in the difference seasons within their tree map; created a brace map of each season and the months that belong to that season; after reading about a year in the life of a bear the children constructed a tree map telling about a bear’s life in each of the months. They then created a flow map which was a condensed sequence of Bear’s life. Using the words in that map as a pre-write, the children then wrote sentences using transitional words such as ‘First, Next, and Last.’ These complex sentences were displayed.
  Last Updated on Thursday, 25 March 2010 20:39
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