Organization Skills
Organization is very difficult for some students to
master. The term ‘organization’ refers
to so much more than just keeping papers in order or even keeping your room
clean. It also refers to the
organization of thoughts to create a sentence, a paragraph, an essay or even a
math problem. There are many tools that
can be used to organize thoughts. From
the low-tech versions of a handwritten graphic organizer to the higher tech computer
or web based graphic organizers.
For low technology users, a list of words categorized and
organized into columns can provide a way to develop sentences. Students can choose a word from each column
to create a sentence. For higher
technology uses, a simple spread sheet from Excel from Microsoft to free
on-line resources, such as OpenOffice. Org and Google Docs, can be used to list
and categorize words to be used into sentences.
For more sophisticated and creative technology users, a web or
computer-based graphic organizer can be used at school or home to move the
words into sentences. My favorites are
bubbl.us (free) and Inspiration 9 or Kidspiration. These applications can be used at school on a
SmartBoard. If you’re into even more
tech savvy applications, there are text-to-speech applications that will
actually read what you have created.
So how can I use a graphic organizer to develop math skills? For Pre-Algebra and Algebra problems, think
in terms of the order of operations (PEMDAS).
Each operation can be placed in a new bubble. The student/teacher can place and link the
bubbles in order then refer to the bubbles while completing the problem.
Text-to-speech applications and other uses for a graphic
organizer will be topics in other blog postings. Just keep thinking and expanding ways to use
graphic organizers to keep students involved and becoming independent. After all, isn’t that the purpose of
assistive technology?
