Welcome to the Thinking Maps ® Training Welcome to Back to School Night with the Thinking Maps! Your School Name Date

Back to School Night with the Thinking Maps Our school family is hosting a Back to School Night with the Thinking Maps. Give you, our wonderful parents, an opportunity to learn the Maps (and maybe even improve YOUR thinking skills!). Empower you to support your children’s use of the Maps throughout the school year. Bring our school family together! Align all of us: parents, students, and teachers, around a common goal: Effectively implementing the Thinking Maps.

The Power of Visual Symbols It’s time for a group quiz!

Your Objective: Shout out the answer to this question: “What do these symbols make you THINK?”

80% of all information that comes into our brain is VISUAL. 40% of all nerve fibers connected to the brain are linked to the retina. 36,000 visual messages per hour may be registered by the eyes. - Eric Jensen, Brain Based Learning

The Age-Old Teacher Dilemma

“Understanding a subject results from perceiving relationships. The brain is designed as a pattern detector.” Caine & Caine. (1994). Making Connections: Teaching and the Human Brain. Why doesn’t “THINK, THINK, THINK!” work? It’s not brain compatible teaching! “Our function as educators is to provide our students with the sorts of experiences that enable them to perceive patterns that connect.”

So Why Thinking Maps? Thinking Maps… “are a common visual language for learning within and across disciplines” in grades preK-12 th and beyond! (Did you know there are over 750 graphic organizers floating around!?! 750 vs. 8 are a scientifically proven method to help boost student academic achievement, test scores, and writing skills provide students a tool to give information that they otherwise would never share

Thinking Maps… allow teachers and students to share a common frame of reference (perspective), which leads to less confusion and better communication allow students to SHOW their THINKING teach students how to learn smarter, not harder, and teachers how to work smarter, not harder So Why Thinking Maps?

“Thinking Maps store information the way the brain does.” Pat Wolfe

Dendrites Gathers chemicals in brain fluid. It is continually looking to make connections with other neurons. Cell Body Converts chemicals into an electrical charge. Axon Transports electrical charge. It decides whether the neuron is going to use it or lose it. Synapse Sends chemicals back to the brain fluid. The Synapse takes the information from the axon and for a dendrite.

The Jobs of Each Neuron Part Dendrite: Gathers chemicals in brain fluid. It is continually looking to make connections with other neurons. The dendrite REACHES to other neurons to make connections as it SLURPS up information! BUMP! Cell Body: Converts chemicals into an electrical charge. They SIZZLE! BUMP! Axon: Transports electrical charge. It decides whether the neuron is going to “USE IT OR LOSE IT.” BUMP! Synapse: Sends chemicals back to the brain fluid. The Synapse takes the information from the axon (WOOHOO!) and REACHES for a dendrite. BUMP!

Now it’s time to become a brain cell! Line upAssign partsExplain jobs 4 people per group shoulder to shoulder Dendrite Cell Body Axon Synapse See next slide!

Dendrites #1 Reaches and slurps! Cell Body #2 Sizzles! Axon #3 “Use it or lose it!” Synapse #4 Woohoo and reaches! Now it’s time to become a brain cell!

Neurons that fire together get wired together! These wired together neurons form patterns in the brain!

Thinking Maps are the necessary SCAFFOLDING for meaningful learning to take place.

To sum it all up: Thinking Maps help students become better learners, writers, and THINKERS!

And now an overview of the fabulous eight!

THOUGHT PROCESS Defining in Context or Brainstorming KEY WORDS Context, List, Define, Tell everything you know, Brainstorm, Identify, Relate prior knowledge, Explore the meaning, Associate, Generate KEY WORDS Context, List, Define, Tell everything you know, Brainstorm, Identify, Relate prior knowledge, Explore the meaning, Associate, Generate THE CIRCLE MAP

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THOUGHT PROCESS Describing KEY WORDS Describe, use vivid language, observe using the 5 senses, describe feelings, attributes, characteristics, properties, adjectives, qualities KEY WORDS Describe, use vivid language, observe using the 5 senses, describe feelings, attributes, characteristics, properties, adjectives, qualities THE BUBBLE MAP REMEMBER: Only use adjectives or adjective phrases.

Page 11 4 TH Grade Special Education Class

THOUGHT PROCESS Comparing and Contrasting KEY WORDS Compare and contrast, discuss similarities and differences, distinguish between, differentiate KEY WORDS Compare and contrast, discuss similarities and differences, distinguish between, differentiate THE DOUBLE BUBBLE MAP