Graphic Organizer Resources from TeachersFirst

Whether you call them concept maps, mind maps, KWLs, or graphic organizers, these visual diagrams show relationships between concepts and provide a powerful tool for learning and connecting new ideas. Creating graphic organizers also helps today's visual learners build reading comprehension. This collection of reviewed resources includes tools for creating graphic organizers and many suggestions for ways to use them in teaching almost any subject or grade. Be sure to read the "In the Classroom" suggestions for examples of ways to use graphic organizers as part of a lesson or unit.
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Chaucer Metapage - University of North Carollina
Grades
10 to 12tag(s): chaucer (5)
In the Classroom
Use the audio portions of this site as a learning center or station during a lesson or unit on Chaucer. Have students listen to the audio portions and respond or decipher their meaning on a graphic organizer. For help making easy graphic organizers, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, reviewed here. Be sure to include headphones at the station to avoid students disrupting others!You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Powerful Days in Black and White - Kodak
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): africa (149), african american (99), civil rights (142), photography (140)
In the Classroom
Take some of the more powerful images in this site and use it to create a visual discovery activity. Open the site on the interactive whiteboard or projector, and go through the images one at a time - giving enough time for students to analyze and interpret the images individually. Have students focus on observations, inferences and predictions they can make from the images. This activity works best if used with a graphic organizer.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Zoom into Maps - Library of Congress
Grades
5 to 12tag(s): maps (248)
In the Classroom
Use this site for a geography course, or in a world history course when discussing the importance of cartography and its many varieties. Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector. Work through the examples as a class, highlighting the images and what can be observed in each. This is a great way to show students concrete examples of how maps are and can be used.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Odyssey Online - Emory University
Grades
4 to 8tag(s): egypt (52), greece (27), greek (37), greeks (30), romans (33), rome (19)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free lesson plans offered on this site! This site could also be used as a learning center or station during a unit on Ancient Civilizations. Because there is a lot of content, we recommend creating a guide or follow along for students to accompany the site. For help creating graphic organizers, try Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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A Tale to be Told - Martha Sullivan/Missouri Schoolweb
Grades
4 to 7In the Classroom
Use this web-quest as a hands-on practice activity for students following a lesson on folk tales. Have students complete the activity in cooperative learning groups on classroom computers. Be sure to help your weaker readers and ESL students by sharing the vocabulary words prior to reading, either on a handout or by projecting on an interactive whiteboard and highlighting them in the text as you come to them. English teachers will like the interactive part of this site, and students always enjoy a chance to work on computers!To make it more interactive, have students create and illustrate their stories on an online book-maker, such as Bookemon, reviewed here. Teachers can post the stories on the class webpage, allowing parents to get to see the finished products!
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Printable Tools, Forms, and Templates - Education World
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): calendars (40)
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Kids Web Japan - Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Grades
3 to 6In the Classroom
Use this site as a learning center or station during a unit on Japanese culture. Because there is a lot of content on the site, we recommend creating a guide to help highlight what is most important for students. For help creating easy graphic organizers, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Mount St. Helen's Teacher's Corner - National Park Service
Grades
6 to 12In the Classroom
Science teachers will love all the summary tables and resources offered on this site. In teaching about Mt St. Helens, many of the summary tables can actually be cleared and printed to allow students to use them as a graphic organizer to follow along a lecture. This site is also great for refreshing the events of that day as well as the volcanic history of the mountain. Save this site as a favorite on your classroom computer for easy reference.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Ancient China - British Musem
Grades
7 to 12In the Classroom
Use this site as a learning center or station during a unit on Ancient China. There is a lot of content on the site, so it would be beneficial to create a graphic organizer for students to help organize their notes. (If looking for an easy find, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).) Teachers can also use the challenges to assess student participation, not to mention that kids will enjoy the brief respite from note-taking! A very useful resource for the world history classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Alexander Hamilton: The Man Who Made Modern America - NY Historical Society
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): constitution (90)
In the Classroom
Use this site as a introductory activity for a lesson on the founding fathers. Introduce this site on the interactive whiteboard or projector before allowing students to explore it on their own. We recommend creating a graphic organizer or follow-along for the website to insure students are getting the most out of it. What is great about it is that it provides students with a lot of historical and biographical information about Hamilton. This would be a great resource for a US history or Civics class.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Universe Adventure - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): solar system (115), stars (68)
In the Classroom
Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. One way to insure students are following along with the content of the site is to create a graphic organizer or follow along to be turned in post-exploration. This site does a really good job of breaking down complex concepts into more manageable and understandable definitions. Use this site to review, to reinforce the major ideas or concepts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Famous Moments in Early American History
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): colonial america (102), declaration of independence (12), franklin (9)
In the Classroom
Use these quick videos as a way to either review or introduce the American Revolution in your classroom. There is a lot of material in here, so we recommend creating some kind of graphic organizer or follow-along to help students digest and remember what's important.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga - Smithsonian Natural History Museum
Grades
5 to 12In the Classroom
Use the exhibit portion of this site as a learning center or station during a unit on the Vikings. For help creating a graphic organizer to accompany the center, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).In the learning center there are also guides for both parents and teachers on how to use the site, so be sure to look for free lesson plans or classroom activities. This would be a helpful site for a world history classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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World Conflict Map - Nobel Foundation
Grades
7 to 12In the Classroom
Share this site over the interactive whiteboard to introduce a unit on the Modern century and the warfare that has plagued it. Introduce the site, answering any questions before allowing students to explore it in cooperative learning groups. Because there is a lot of information here, this site works best if students have a graphic organizer to guide them through and highlight what is most important. For help creating graphic organizers, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Powers of Persuasion - National Archives
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): posters (43), propaganda (10)
In the Classroom
Use these images on this site to create a visual discovery activity. Select 3-5 of the more powerful images and put them on a PowerPoint, with each image showing for 1-2 minutes over the interactive whiteboard. Have students fill out a graphic organizer concerning each image, focusing on what students observe, infer and can predict. (To create the graphic organizer, try using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).)After the class has reviewed all of the images, have a class discussion based on their findings. Teachers will be surprised how much content is discussed. This activity works best as a review.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Holocaust: A Learning Site for Students - Holocaust Memorial Museum
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): holocaust (39), jews (27), nazis (10), world war 2 (137)
In the Classroom
Use the images on this site to design a picture walk in your classroom about the holocaust. Select 10-15 of the more powerful images, choosing a variety of subjects. Assign students to begin at specific numbers, before allowing the class to rotate around the classroom every 30-45 seconds. At each image, students should quickly write down what they observe, infer and predict about each image. At the end of the picture walk, have a class discussion based on the notes students took during the walk. This would be a very interesting way to introduce the topic in a non-lecture format. For help creating the graphic organizers, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Japan: Memories of a Secret Empire - PBS
Grades
7 to 12In the Classroom
Now here is a great site to accompany a World History classroom studying early modern Japan. This site would make a great learning center or station - if so we recommend creating a follow-along for students using a program such as Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here). There are also lesson plans connected to National Standards that Social Studies teachers should take advantage of!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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U.S. Capitol Virtual Tour - U.S. Senate
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): house of representatives (9), senate (10)
In the Classroom
Use this site as a learning center or station during a unit on the branches and houses of government. Students will be able to connect the visual images with the content, and also gain more insight from the text. To highlight whats more important from the site, have students complete a follow-along guide of questions. For help creating one, we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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What's That Stuff? - Chemical and Engineering News
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): chemicals (47)
In the Classroom
Use these articles as a way to show how chemistry affects students' everyday life. Once a week, select a product and show it to students via printed article or via interactive whiteboard. Have students create concept maps or Graphic Organizers, reviewed here, showing how chemistry led to the creation of the product.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Mysterious Mummmies of China - PBS Nova
Grades
6 to 12In the Classroom
Use this site as a learning center or station during a unit on Ancient China in a World History classroom. Because there's a lot of content on this site, try creating a guide to help students understand what's the most significant. For help creating graphic organizers easily, try Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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