The Impact of Thinking Maps® on Reading Comprehension, with a Focus on Read-Alouds
Posted on Thu, Apr 05, 2012 @ 04:33 AM
Register for our Free Webinar Series
Part One Wednesday, April 25th at 4 p.m.
Join us on Tuesday, April 17, as Marygrove College Adjunct Professor of Education and Literacy Specialist Patricia Edwards presents her own research around Thinking Maps® and their impact on comprehension. Developed by researcher Dr. David Hyerle, Thinking Maps are visual teaching tools that foster and encourage lifelong learning. They are based on the simple premise that teachers and students of all grade levels benefit from teaching the same thought processes.
We’ll also hear from Dr. Diane S. Brown, Academic Director for the Marygrove Master in the Art of Teaching program, who will share her insights on the relevance of Thinking Maps for the classroom, drawing on her 20-plus years in K-12 education.
If you are not familiar with Thinking Maps, essentially, they are eight visual spatial teaching tools, each linked to a fundamental thinking process. More flexible than the traditional, task-specific graphic organizers that have been used for years, Thinking Maps allow for multi-faceted, dimensional problem-solving combinations across disciplines. With repeated use in the classroom, Thinking Maps become a common visual language for all types of learners at all grade levels, and in all subjects!
In fact, we have so much to share with you about Thinking Maps that it just couldn’t fit into one 30-minute session! Part I of The Impact of Thinking Maps on Reading Comprehension Webinar with Dr. Pat Edwards reflects on her observations of students using, the Circle Map, Bubble Map, and Double Bubble Map. Part II of the series focuses on the student use of the Tree Map, Brace Map, Flow Map, Multi-Flow Map and Bridge Map.
Bring your imaginations and your questions with you as we lead you through a provocative world all its own!
We’ll explain how, based on Dr. Edwards' research, Thinking Maps influenced reading comprehension in two Midwestern urban elementary schools.
You'll see how this method:
- Boosts comprehension
- Promotes interdisciplinary learning and integrated thinking
In honor of "Celebrate Diversity Month," Marygrove MAT applauds the inclusive nature of Thinking Maps, as classrooms across the country become increasingly more diverse in every way. Giving teachers the appropriate tools for classroom success is what our program is all about! Won't you join us? Register now!
Thinking Maps® is a registered trademark of Thinking Maps, Inc.
Dr. Patricia (Pat) Edwards is an Adjunct Instructor for the School of Education at Marygrove College in Detroit. She also works with the University of Michigan's interim teacher certification program, Teach for America, as an elementary school Field Instructor in English Language Arts. Pat is a state trainer for Michigan's Behavior and Learning Support Initiative (MiBLSi), a project designed to help schools develop school-wide support systems in reading and behavior. She was a former Instructional Specialist and Literacy Coach in the Detroit Public Schools, and a nationally endorsed consultant for Project Read Language Circle, a curriculum that provides a direct, systematic, and multisensory approach to language arts instruction. She is a board member of the International Dyslexia Association Michigan Branch.
Pat earned her doctorate degree in Reading Education from Oakland University in Rochester, MI with a minor in literature. She is married and the mother of two adult sons Justin and Ryan.