This week in Technically Speaking we will be highlighting online sketchnotes.
What are Sketchnotes?
I vividly remember my 12th grade ELA teacher. She would take points off on my notebook grade for each doodle in my notebook. My work around that was to keep a separate piece of paper on my desk for my doodling. Doodling was my one way that helped me focus pay attention in class (I had no idea that I had ADD until I went to college and learned about it). Sketching and doodling can be used by students to help them retain information. "Doodling is actually a form of mnemonics, connecting images with information and significantly increasing our ability to remember what we have learned" (Gammil, 2019). Sketchnotes are deliberate drawings, text, and other graphics that are created instead of taking traditional notes. Sketchnotes are particularly powerful for visual learners who use pictures to make sense of information (sketchnotearmy, 2020).
Where do I Begin?
- Give students time to practice and show plenty of examples.
- Enlist help from the art teacher and show tutorial videos (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNJyuJl5LKk)
- Validate student concerns. This is not about the art; it is how you process the information.
- Let students use the sketchnotes in class. (Gammil, 2019)
- Practice makes perfect!
Digital Sketchnotes
Sketchnotes are traditionally done on paper, but there are two websites that students can use to make their own sketchnotes. Digital sketchnotes are another way for students to process and present information visually. The first website is sketch.io. This site is easier to use for students and teachers who are just starting out making online sketchnotes This site uses preloaded clip art and stamps, but there are options to add your own clip art. The interface on this page works more like a traditional graphic design program. Students who are familiar with texting and emojis will like find this program easy to use.
A second website for students and teachers who are more comfortable with sketchnotes can be found at https://sketchboard.io/ . This website creates connections between the concepts. Students can add flow carts and more advanced images. This site is more geared to students who have mastered simple graphic design and are ready for a more advanced interface.
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| This is a sketchnote I made using sketch.io based on the readings for this week. |
Happy Sketching
Works Cited
Gammill, D. (2019, February 19). The Benefits of Using Doodling and Sketchnotes in the Classroom. Retrieved September 16, 2020, from https://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2016/01/04/the-benefits-of-using-doodling-and-sketchnotes.html
Johnston, M. P. (2012) Connecting teacher librarians for technology integration leadership. School Libraries Worldwide, 18(1). 18-33
Overbay, A., Mollette, M., & Vasu, E. S. (2011). A Technology Plan that Works. Educational Leadership, 56-59.
What are sketchnotes? (n.d.). Retrieved September 16, 2020, from https://sketchnotearmy.com/sketchnotes
I love sketchnotes and plan to use it right away. I am just like you and need to doodle. I did it throughout high school and college. I listened in the lectures, but I doodled in my notes. This is a brain-based experience that I just cannot explain. It helped me as I sat through lectures. Isn't it wonderful how we have evolved in education? Your 12th grade ELA teacher just did not know any better. She probably thought that the doodling was a distraction. I can see how doodling can help to eliminate distractions. Many of my students are hyperactive and need to constantly do something—using sketchnotes can aid in their self-management development.
ReplyDeleteI attended a session on one of our professional learning (PL) days last school year where the presenter discussed that students need practice--this was the focal point of the PL session. This makes so much sense. Let us take Michael Jordan for example. He is one of the best basketball players of all time. I have read about how much he practiced when his other teammates did not. We look at his fame and how much skill he had when he was on the basketball floor, but he harnessed what he already had by practicing.
This is something that is so hard for many of my students. I model how I practice my writing and how I go back and reread and make revisions over and over and over. They do not want to do it. It is one and done with some of them. I think sketchnotes would be an awesome addition during the prewriting stage and throughout the entire writing process. There have been times that I had a thought and just cannot get it back. Sketchnotes would help jog memories or provoke additional thoughts on the topic at hand. All in all, I think sketchotes is an awesome tool that I cannot wait to use.
Thanks for your thoughtful response! I know that everyone's brain works in different ways. I am glad to see teacher's embrace different ways of learning. My son hates to color anything, but I would have loved doing an assignment like this.
DeleteI read an article on this last year and thought the idea was so interesting! I was also that kid who sketched and doodled during note-taking time. And I still do...
ReplyDeleteThis would definitely be a way to differentiate for those more visual thinkers. I think at least teaching the idea and making it an option for students is a great idea.
The digital version is a great option for virtual teaching too! Especially if you've already loaded down the students with a mass of readings and writing assignments. It'd be a great way to break up the workload.
Lucy
Lucy Gardner*
DeleteI know this isn't for everybody. My son hates these types of projects. My daughter and I love it!
DeleteI love this idea! I like to doodle when I take notes too and would have loved something like this in school. I think this would be great for students who may not have the best handwriting, those who are visual learners, or a student who may have a disability. I had a lot of students draw while taking notes, and those notes usually didn’t go with the material I was teaching. I think this would be a great way to make sure those students are engaged with learning but also appealing to their creative side and allowing them to doodle. These websites could be used for so many different lessons and grade levels. (Post by Lindsey Arant)
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of using SketchNotes! When I taught ELA, any time students were given the chance to be creative (e.g, use Google Slides to present information, etc.), they were really engaged. Even students who rarely participated or showed any interest would work on their slides. SketchNotes sounds like a similar and fun way to get students engaged and participating, especially students who are visual learners. I would definitely provide guidelines/structure for using SketchNotes. Of course, if teachers in different subject areas are using the same technologies, students get frustrated, so collaborating with other subject area teachers is important. My other question would be whether or not you can print SketchNotes out -- I enjoy giving students something concrete to have/produce. Thank you for sharing this resource! - Janna Palliser
ReplyDeleteI love this technology - I had never heard of it! I am very relieved that educators are starting to understand that doodling while listening can be conducive for learning. I had also never considered that kids with ADHD might doodle to stay focused. Thanks for the insightful and informative post!
ReplyDeleteAs I doodler myself I will be checking these sites out. I always found that drawing on my notes and making flow charts helped me to retain the information better. I think that the use of writing and drawing images helped me as a visual learner. I could close my eyes and see my words on paper. While they may have looked like a messy map to others, it all made sense to me. Just a few years ago I found my old college papers (we are talking 20 years old from when I got my B.S.) and they had doodles on them. My daughter especially love the ones with hearts and her daddy’s name. LOL!
ReplyDeleteOne thing I like about your selection is that this tool can meet a unique need to visual learners, particularly as learning has moved to a virtual environment. While the computer is visual tool, unique ways of creating individual notes to help students retain information is refreshing. If it can keep students engaged in a lesson and participating in note taking when I am instructing, I am in to try it.
I saw a connection in your concluding comments to our readings this week. You made it clear you are willing to collaborate with teachers, as well as offering professional development, instructional assistance, practice time, and you even offered to help co-teach. You tackled many of the barriers that keep teachers from integrating new tech options for their students to choose from. I recall from our readings that often teachers feel almost inept to teach new tech and you have offered ways to help teachers build their knowledge and confidence in the program prior to implementation. You are taking an initiative as a leader to enrich student learning with technology. Findings as noted by Johnston “include a connection between leadership and collaboration, in that classroom teachers were more willing to collaborate with the teacher librarian if she or he had taken the initiative to become an assertive, involved leader in the school” (2012, p. 21) You are on your way to becoming a great librarian.
References
Johnston, M. P. (2012). Connecting teacher librarians for technology integration leadership. School Libraries Worldwide, 18(1), 18-33.