Thinking Visually

Learning to think visually Use your whole brain Read in pictures Write in pictures Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Using your whole brain… … Improves your understanding: Right-brain thinking can come to the aid of the left brain … Makes your memory stronger: Double the storage helps to make memories last Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How to read pictures Use the OPTIC system Learn the language of graphs Watch out for distorted data Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

The OPTIC system for analyzing graphics O – Overview the graphic P – Examine all of its parts T – Take note of the title I – Analyze the interrelationships between the graphic’s elements C – Draw a one or two sentence conclusion about the meaning of the graphic Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Learning the language of graphs Circle graphs – Illustrate the relationship of parts to a whole Bar graphs and line graphs – Show the relationship of dependent variables to independent variables. Bar graphs are like snapshots. They usually focus on specific changes Line graphs are like movies. They normally place the emphasis on trends Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Graphical data can be susceptible to distortion Formats. The aspects of the data that are highlighted – such as averages – can be very misleading Scale. Changing the scale can make identical information look flat or steep Context: The area around the graphic can affect your perception of the graphic itself Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How to write in pictures Add illustrations to your notes Turn abstract ideas into concept maps Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Creating a map Determine the topic. Write it on a sheet of paper and circle it. Find the important concepts in your text and circle them Transfer the most important concepts to your map and connect them to the topic. Cluster the remaining concepts under the principal concepts. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Using concept maps for mastery Recite your map Add new concepts to an existing map Redraw your map in a different configuration Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Other uses for concept maps As summaries: Turn a chapter’s key ideas into nodes for a map For planning: Maps can be used to organize or outline a paper or report. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.