Main idea/Detail Graphic Organizer
Definition:
One way to help make a curriculum more supportive of students and teachers is to incorporate graphic organizers. Graphic organizers come in many varieties and have been widely researched for their effectiveness in improving learning outcomes for various students. A graphic organizer is a visual and graphic display that depicts the relationships between facts, terms, and or ideas within a learning task.(http://aim.cast.org/learn/historyarchive/backgroundpapers/graphic_organizers#.VaEbqJjbLcc).
The purpose for using a graphic organizer is to provide a structure for students to record the main ideas and details found within a text (Miller & Veatch, 2012). How it works (Miller & Veatch, 2012):
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How I will use a Main idea/Detail Graphic Organizer:
I will use the idea of Main idea/detail graphic organizers as modeled above in the first image when going through a detailed text with my science students. Science text is extremely descriptive in nature and to have a main idea/detail graphic organizer will be used often. The first (top) image shows a main idea/detail graphic organizer I will use for many subjects in science. Some examples include (but not limited too): In Biology: Studying kingdoms, body systems, Cells and components, etc. In chemistry: states of matter, types of bonding, properties of chemical families, parts of an atom, etc.
I also like the 2nd (bottom) Main idea and details graphic organizer for a broader study of the main idea. The first (top) graphic organizer is great when studying multiple ideas or paragraphs. The 2nd (bottom) example would be excellent when choosing one main focus and wanting the students to pull out many details and come up with a summary from the one focus.
For example: I may use the top graphic organizer when we initially study viruses and bacteria as a way to help my students navigate the text and pull out the main ideas about viruses and bacteria from each section/paragraph the students are reading. As we begin to learn more about viruses and bacteria, I will give the bottom graphic organizer to the students when reading an article on viruses and bacteria. They will write the details and come up with a summary of what the article is saying.
I also like the 2nd (bottom) Main idea and details graphic organizer for a broader study of the main idea. The first (top) graphic organizer is great when studying multiple ideas or paragraphs. The 2nd (bottom) example would be excellent when choosing one main focus and wanting the students to pull out many details and come up with a summary from the one focus.
For example: I may use the top graphic organizer when we initially study viruses and bacteria as a way to help my students navigate the text and pull out the main ideas about viruses and bacteria from each section/paragraph the students are reading. As we begin to learn more about viruses and bacteria, I will give the bottom graphic organizer to the students when reading an article on viruses and bacteria. They will write the details and come up with a summary of what the article is saying.
Examples:
I chose the above video to show Main idea/detail graphic organizer because even though I felt the instructor really modeled how to pull a main idea out of the reading section using the details given. She went through with the students and showed them how to do it using texts, pictures, headings, etc to pull clues out as to what the main idea was for the section. As an instructor, I would then scaffold my students to working in pairs to use details and finding the main idea and eventually working individually.
The above video I chose as an example because I felt the instructor did an excellent job of showing how to use a graphic organizer to pull out the main idea and details. Also, she modeled how she would use the graphic organizer with a non-fiction, descriptive piece on bats. She went through the reading, pulling out the details and then coming to a main idea on bats. Overall, a great example of how to use this graphic organizer in the classroom.
Writing Component: Common Core English Language Arts Standards » Science & Technical Subjects » Grade 9-10 (http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RST/9-10/)
Using the a main idea/detail graphic organizer would enable me to meet several of the 9th and 10th grade common core standards in science writing. In order to fill out the detail aspect of the chart, students would be required to cite specific textual evidence. They would also be using that textual evidence and determining the main idea (or central idea/conclusion) of a given text. By writing down details and determining the main idea of a text, they will determine the meanings of key terms and other science words and phrases. Also, it will help them analyze the relationships between key words as we write down multiple details and connect those details to a common key word or idea. By coming up with a main idea for the details in a paragraph students will be analyzing the authors purpose in providing an explanation or discussing an experiment in text because we will be connecting the explanation/experiment to a main idea. And it will help the students to comprehend the science texts as I scaffold them from working on the graphic organizers together, to working on them in groups, to finally working on them independently.
- Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions.
- Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; trace the text's explanation or depiction of a complex process, phenomenon, or concept; provide an accurate summary of the text.
- Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 9-10 texts and topics.
- Analyze the structure of the relationships among concepts in a text, including relationships among key terms (e.g., force, friction, reaction force, energy).
- Analyze the author's purpose in providing an explanation, describing a procedure, or discussing an experiment in a text, defining the question the author seeks to address.
- By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend science/technical texts in the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and proficiently.