1. Created By: Patti Burke, Dolly Hathaway, and Amanda Amante
Using Thinking Maps to Improve Writing Proficiency for English Language Learners
Created By: Patti Burke, Dolly Hathaway, and Amanda Amante 1

2. Amanda Amante Family Education I am from Michigan.
This is my 6th year teaching.
Amanda Amante
Married 4 ½ years
Gerber daisies are my favorite!
After we present our circle maps, have participants make their own circle maps to share with a partner.
No children, but we have a dog named Bell.
Runner!
Friends
Travel 2

3. r sevenothrMoter Family Education Mother of seven Dancer Dancer
Dolly Hathaway
Grandmother
Faith
Teacher
North Carolina
Church
Friends

4. Family
Friends
wife and mother
Pennsylvania
Patti Burke
traveler
singer in church choir
Church
teacher
Education

5. What are Thinking Maps? Thinking Maps are a “language for learning.”
Thinking Maps fall into the category of graphic organizers, but their uses go beyond the typical uses of graphic organizers. With practice, students learn which map to use for which specific purpose. Thinking Maps help students organize their what they know and think. Today we will look at ways we have used Thinking Maps in our classrooms.

6. A Quest for Connectivity
The “Hook”
A Quest for Connectivity

7. Why the “hook?” Establishes a baseline for learning by tapping schema
Lowers affective filters
Prompts motivation
Sets the student up for success

8. Why Thinking Maps?
“Thinking Maps provide a ‘conceptual net’ for capturing the essential information for any type of learning” (Buckner, 2009, p.16).
Thinking Maps provide a guided path to organizing information.
Thinking Maps allow levels of scaffolding to meet the needs of the writer.

9. Plan The Hook (motivation) The Circle Map (writing ideas/info)
The Tool (design for the writing assignment) describing, comparing/contrasting, classifying, whole to part relationships, sequencing, cause and effect, seeing analogies)
Differentiation (First, next, last, etc.)

10. Circle Maps Key words: To define a concept, a word or an idea
To brainstorm before writing
To diagnose prior knowledge
To close a lesson
Key words:
Context
Context clues
List
Define
Tell everything you know
Identify
Tell about
Discuss

11. Circle Map to an acrostic poem
This circle map and acrostic poem was a group effort with 1st graders.

12. Student sample
This is an example of a 1st grader who created a circle map with things about her sister. She then used this information to write an acrostic poem about her and her sister and the things they like to do together. 12

13. Circle Map to an acrostic poem
This was completed by a 1st grade student on his own.

14. Circle Map to Haiku Poem

15. Students typed their poems with Kidspiration and were able to add pictures that went along with their poems.
2nd grader created this poem about a city. Students were able to use the information learned throughout the City unit and things from our circle map. We had to work on syllabification and examples of Haiku poems. Students looked at an example, then we created one together, and then they were able to write their own. 15

16. Your turn!
At your table, discuss ideas for using circle maps. You will share these with the whole group.

17. Bubble Map Uses only adjectives and adjective phrases for describing
Used for vocabulary development and inferential thinking
Key words:
Describe
Use vivid language
Attributes
Characteristics
Properties
Adjectives
Qualities

18. Circle Map to Bubble Map

19. Double Bubble Map Used for comparing and contrasting Key Words:
Compare/Contrast
Discuss similarities/difference
Distinguish between
Differentiate

20. Circle Map to Double Bubble Map
In this example, second grade students brainstormed what they knew about Chinese New Year (in the circle map on the right). After viewing a story about Chinese New Year on Bookflix, students added to their circle map using a different color. They also crossed out any information that was incorrect. The second circle map (on the left) shows how they celebrate New Year’s. The circle maps were the first step in writing compare and contrast paragraphs.

21. The next step was moving the information from the circle maps to the double bubble map. The students followed the guidelines and wrote the similarities in the center and the differences in the outer circles. Then, the students referred to paragraph frames that guided them in composing a paragraph that compares and a paragraph that contrasts. I provided different levels of scaffolding via the paragraph frames to differentiate. At the bottom of the photo, you can see the topic of the rubric that students used to evaluate their writing.

22. Your Turn Form a group of three to four people.
In your group, think of ways you can use double bubble maps to support writing.
You will have five minutes before you share your ideas.

23. Tree Map Used for classifying Key words: Classify Sort Group
Categorize
Types/Kinds of
List and elaborate
Taxonomy
Give details

24. Student sample. Students created tree maps with words and illustrations.
Students were able to take new vocabulary and classify them as being good or bad weather. We then took these classifications and made complete weather sentences with “Sometimes it is_________” and “I like it when it is_____________.” 24

25. Students took this information and then made complete sentences for a weather book.25

26. Your Turn Form a group of three to four people.
In your group, think of ways you can use a tree map to support writing.
You will have five minutes before you share your ideas.

27. Flow Map Use to sequence and order Key Words: Sequence, put in order
Recount/retell
What happens next
Cycles
Patterns
Processes
Change
Solve multi-step problems

28. Flow Map to Summary
My fourth grade students created this flow map about a story. Prior to making the flow map, students wrote everything they remembered about the story in a circle map. Then we worked together to decide which events were significant to the plot. After that, we ordered the events in the flow map.

29. Summary
Before we transformed the flow map into a summary, I gave the students a paragraph frame for the introductory paragraph. They filled in the correct information about the main characters and problem. Then the students added sequencing words to the flow map to write the summary.

30. First Grade Flow Map
This is an example of how you can use a flow map with Kindergarten or first grade students. You can also allow older students with lower L2 proficiency to use labeled drawings in a flow map. By providing a model or a paragraph frame, students will be able to write a summary.

31. Your Turn Form a group of three to four people.
In your group, think of ways you can use flow maps to support writing.
You will have five minutes before you share your ideas.

32. Multi-flow Map Shows cause and effect
Supports the reasons that “cause” the writer to have this opinion
Depicts a position or opinion
Serves as a plan for writing
Key Words:
Causes and effects
Predict what would happen if
Change
Identify motives
Results, outcomes, benefits
Why

33. Circle Map to Multi-flow Map

34. Your Turn Form a group of three to four people.
In your group, think of ways you can use multi-flow maps to support writing.
You will have five minutes before you share your ideas.

35. Brace Map Use to show part to whole relationships
Can act as a checklist
Key words:
Parts of
Take apart
Show structure
Physical components
The brace map is for breaking a whole unit into smaller parts. (Whole to parts)
When dealing with writing, the brace map is a little bit more difficult to include. May work well with math and writing out solutions with including the whole and its parts.
To help make writing more interesting allow your students to make it about themselves.
The example you will see next dealt with a food unit. This was with newcomers and dealt with foods such as sandwiches, pizza, salad, (the wholes) and then what is in each of those (the parts). The students were able to build on this and share how they like each of these things with writing and drawing about it.

36. Brace Map El pan La hamburguesa/ la carne El queso La hamburguesa
El tomate
This example allows you to break apart the components of a whole. For this we talked about different foods like hamburgers, pizza, salad, etc. and how each student likes those things. Students were able to create a brace map and then draw a picture of their food and write about how they like it.
La lechuga
La cebolla 36

37. Brace Map for an Invitation
Jan. 23, 2001
Heading
Jan. 23, 2011
Dear Sally,
I am having a birthday party and would really like you to come! It will be Friday, January 28th at my house. I live at 113 Holland Ave. Please let me know if you can come!
Your friend,
Emily
Dear Sally,
Greeting
I am having a birthday party and would really like you to come! It will be Friday, January 28th at my house. I live at 113 Holland Ave. Please let me know if you can come!
Body
A brace map can be used to provide a checklist for what the students need to include in their writing.
Your Friend
Closing
Invitation
Signature
Emily 37

38. Bridge Map Seeing analogies Key words:
Identify the common relationship
Guess the rule
Interpret symbols
Ratio
Simile
Metaphor
Allegory

39. Is the word as as La pizza La hamburguesa El perro caliente
This is an example of a bridge map using pictures and Spanish. You could use another bridge map below and have the words written in English also. Or show English to Spanish instead of a picture. 39

40. Circle map to bridge map
1ST grade students drew pictures and wrote words that had to do with each season first. Then we created a bridge map that stated what the weather was like during their favorite season. Students wrote a complete sentence then describing the weather and telling us something they liked to do in that season. She stated “The weather is cold in the winter we can play in the snow and we can make a snowball and snowman. 40

41. Final product was a seasons quilt41

42. 42

43. Your Turn Form a group of three to four people.
In your group, think of ways you can use brace and bridge maps to support writing.
You will have five minutes before you share your ideas.

44. Questions?

45. Reference Buckner, J. (2009). Path to proficiency for
English language learners. Cary, NC:
Thinking Maps.