Mind mapping is a great visual tool to help students understand and process new ideas and information. While typically mind mapping is thought of for older students the same visual note-taking technique can be used with young learners. In fact, it is a great way to introduce your young learner on how to organize information and make connections.
What is a mind map?
Mind mapping is a visual form of note taking that allows children (or adults) to comprehend information, build connections and form new ideas.
Why is mind mapping beneficial for Preschoolers?
Mind mapping helps young children better understand the relationships and connections while exploring ideas and concepts.
How do you use a mind map with a Preschooler?
There are many ways you can use a mind map to help further understanding of a new concept. Below are two different tutorials showing how to use a mind map for story telling with your child.
The first tutorial demonstrates the concept of making a mind map to help re-tell a story.
The second tutorial uses a mind map to stretch creative thinking by encouraging your child to create their own story. Read below for the full tutorials.
Re-Tell the Story Mind Map
My three year old really enjoyed this activity. By using pre-made pictures, M-Woww was able to focus on re-telling the story rather than concerned about her drawing skills. We chose the Eric Carle book, Brown Bear, Brown Bear for our mind map.
Materials:
Brown Bear, Brown Bear Book
Brown Bear Story Printables (I originally printed the Brown Bear Printables from 1+1+1=1. She has since updated her printables so they look a bit different but it would still work for the activity…and they are free!) 🙂
Yarn or String
Tutorial
Step 1: Read the book with your child. After reading the book, ask your child to identify who is the character that starts the book? Have your child place the brown bear cut out in the middle of your work space.
Step 2: Ask your child, “who does the brown bear see” Your child may refer to the book if necessary. Identify the red bird and connect the brown bear to the red bird with a piece of yarn or string. Continue to repeat this process with each animal.
Step 3: When all the animals are connected (or mapped together) have your child re-tell the story using the mind map as a visual cue.
Creative Story Mind Map
Use a mind map to grow your child’s creative thinking to make their own story. Lil B, M-Woww and I worked together to create our story. We used stickers and I did the writing but my two young learners had the most fun with this activity. They loved picking a sticker and then making it connect to our story which was pretty silly! I loved it because it really stretched their creative thinking skills.
Materials
Stickers
White Paper
Marker
Tutorial
Step 1: First person choses a sticker and places on the white paper. Write one sentence about the sticker.
Step 2: Second person choses a sticker and has to make a sentence that relates the sticker to the sentence or sticker before it.
Step 3: Repeat the above steps as many times as desired. When you get to the end of your story try to make it connect to the first sticker that started the story. Pictured below is our silly story but Lil B and M-Woww did it on their own. I only wrote what they said.
After we finished creating a story together, Lil B and M-Woww went on to make their own individual story map. They each placed their own stickers on a piece of paper and used markers to map it out. While they could not write their sentences they were able to verbally tell me their sentence as they made up the story.
Mind mapping a beneficial skill for children to learn. By being able to process information and make connections between ideas it will help your child be successful later in school.
To see more mind map art inspiration check out, http://www.mindmapart.com/
For more learning with different kinds of Maps check out our Creative Preschool Friends.
| Artsy Momma
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Both of these activities are great!!! I love how you use the stickers with the second map activity 🙂
Stickers work great because than the emphasis is on the story not on how the drawing looks! They loved having a chance to be silly and work with stickers!
Hi, my name is Lisaa and I work for Korea Arts & Culture Education Service. We publish nonprofit weekly web magazine about worldwide projects, ideas and cases that are related to arts & culture education. Under the idea category, we introduce diverse art ideas that gives insight in some way, fun to play and useful for art lessons.
We thought this ‘Visual Mind Mapping for Kids’ is a wonderful idea to introduce to our Korean readers, so we want to ask for your permission if we can use some of your great photos and the concept of the idea. We will of course include the web address to inform where this idea originally came from. which can cause Korean readers to also go into your blog and see other wonderful works you have done. Please send me e-mail to beyondlisaa@gmail.com if you don’t want your contents to be used. Thank you.
I emailed you our company policy. Thank you for your interest!