BENEFITS

Going Visual 

Using visual tools gets to the source of these poor thinking habits. How? By addressing the problem further upstream than conventional approaches. And by making that process tangible and visible, your pupils can work directly on improving their thinking. Using visual tools embeds the essentials of successful thinking:

• Focus: visual tools capture attention for sustained thinking
• Method: using visual tools teaches practical and reliable methods to organise thoughts, the litmus test of successful thinking 

For this reason, visual tools can be used to enhance all your other thinking strategies. And transfer across the curriculum.

Why Going Visual Works 

When you use visual tools as part and parcel of your strategies to improve the quality of your pupils’ thinking, you can expect to see your pupils:

• Generating ideas freely and systematically
• Organising their ideas into meaningful connections
• Breaking down topics into their smaller parts
• Creating connections both within and across topics
• Making links between current and past learning
• Controlling impulsive habits by following familiar methods
• Reflecting on their thinking as it happens, not just in the plenary
• Asking questions about others’ thinking in order to develop their own understanding
• Probing beyond surface descriptions for deeper patterns of meaning

Providing reasons for their views and conclusions

Links 

Click on the following to read about the benefits of using visual tools in... Learn to Learn, Emotional Intelligence.