Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Think Critically with Data | Newsletter Publication
Graphic Organizers
Key Concept
What have you learned about your topic? You
researched the topic on the Web. You collected,
entered, and analyzed polling data on the topic. You
used critical thinking skills to help you draw
conclusions from your data. You represented your
data visually with charts.
Are you ready to tell an engaging and meaningful story about
your topic? First, you need to organize all of your information
and data. You can use your critical thinking skills to organize
the information you found online and the results of your data
analysis.
Graphic organizers are ideal tools to support critical thinking.
A graphic organizer is a visual representation of knowledge.
It helps you arrange many different pieces of information into
a few logical ideas or concepts. An effective graphic organizer
shows how these ideas or concepts are supported by reliable
information and objective data.
Look Ahead
Task: Organize the
information and data
you have collected on
your topic.
Goal: Show that you
can use a graphic
organizer to represent
knowledge.
You may want to
review an example of
a graphic
organizer before you
begin.
See the examples:
Graphic Organizer
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Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Vocabulary
Words to Remember
This page gives basic definitions for some important terms that can help you learn about
graphic organizers. You can get a more complete definition of each term from Fact
Monster*.
New Words
Graphics: Using pictures and other visual elements to communicate information.
Organize: Combine separate pieces of information into a logical whole.
Review Words
Accurate: Careful to provide true information.
Critical: Careful to evaluate information and draw correct conclusions.
Data: Information collected by observation or measurement.
Evaluate: Determine the usefulness of a source.
Information: Anything that can be used to create knowledge. For example, words,
numbers, images, audio, and video can all contain information.
Logical: Capable of thinking in a clear and consistent way to draw correct conclusions.
Objective: Able to put aside personal feelings and opinions.
Precise: Careful to provide only accurate and relevant information.
Relevant: Provide important information about a particular topic.
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Exploration
Learning from the Web
Different types of graphic organizers have been created for different purposes. Which
graphic organizer should you use? The answer depends on what kind of information you
have and what you want to show. Explore some Web sites about graphic organizers. Learn
what types of graphic organizers to use for different purposes.
While you explore the following Web sites, think about the guiding questions. You may want
to take notes to help you answer the questions. If you think of other questions about
graphic organizers, keep those in mind too.
Guiding Questions



What are some different kinds of information you could organize?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of different types of graphic organizers?
Which graphic organizer is most appropriate for the information you have collected on
your topic?
Web Sites

o
o
o
o
o
o

Graphic Organizers* from SCORE*
Clustering*
Fishbone*
Interaction Outline*
Problem/Solution*
Spider Map*
Venn Diagram*
Webbing Tool* from ReadWriteThink*
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Information
What to Know
This page summarizes some of the information from the Web sites you explored. This
information helps you learn what you need to know for this activity about graphic
organizers. You may want to take notes to help you remember the most important points.
You can return to the Web sites for more exploration if you want to learn more.
Uses of Graphic Organizers
Graphic organizers are ideal tools to support critical thinking. They help you organize many
different pieces of information into a few logical concepts or ideas. A graphic organizer is a
visual representation of knowledge.
Different types of graphic organizers have been invented for different purposes. However,
all graphic organizers show relationships among information, ideas, and concepts. You must
choose the type of graphic organizer that will best help you accomplish your goals. Here are
some common reasons for using a graphic organizer.

Cause and Effect. The fishbone is a popular graphic organizer for showing causeand-effect relationships. The fishbone shows how different causes contribute to a
particular effect. It can also show details about each cause.

Compare and Contrast. A Venn diagram is a popular graphic organizer for comparing
and contrasting two or more concepts or ideas. A Venn diagram shows what the
concepts or ideas have in common. It also shows what they do not have in common.

Sorting and Grouping. A clustering diagram, also called a concept map, is an
effective way to sort many pieces of information and group them into categories.

Special Processes. Some graphic organizers represent special processes. For
example, an interaction outline shows relationships between two people or groups. A
problem-solution organizer shows possible solutions to a problem. It can also show the
results of alternative solutions. A spider map describes a central idea or concept and is
best used to organize or brainstorm ideas.
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Task
What to Do
Complete the following task to show what you have learned about using a graphic
organizer. While you work through the task, think about whether you are achieving the
goal. You may want to review an example of a graphic organizer before you begin.
Task: Organize the information and data you have collected
on your topic.
Goal: Show that you can use a graphic organizer to
represent knowledge.
See the example: Graphic Organizer
1. Start a new word processing document. Always remember
to type your name, the date, and a title at the top of the
document. You may use a drawing or diagramming
application if you have access to one.
Help Guide
Use the Intel® Education
Help Guide to learn
technology skills.
Word Processing
Start word processing
Create diagrams
Add table
Use Drawing toolbar
Search the Help Guide
2. Save the document with a filename that indicates it
contains your graphic organizer.
3. Decide what kind of graphic organizer is best for the information and data you have
collected. Check with your teacher to make sure you select an appropriate organizer.
4. Create a graphic organizer to represent what you learned on your topic. You may want to
use a table or the drawing features of your word processing application.
5. Check with your teacher to make sure your graphic organizer is effective. Make sure the
graphic organizer answers the following questions:





What
What
What
What
What
was the purpose of your research?
were the main questions you asked about your topic?
kind of information did your online research and data analysis provide?
ideas or concepts did you develop from the information?
conclusions did you draw about your topic?
6. Remember to save your document often while you work.
7. Review the checklist and revise your graphic organizer to make sure it is complete.
8. Share your graphic organizer.
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
Task Example
Student Name
Date
Using a Graphic Organizer
My research was to find out information about the best class pet for my classroom. My
questions asked the other students about their interest in having a class pet and the pet
traits that were important. I also wanted to see how time the students were willing to
commit to a class pet.
When I looked for information on the Internet, I found out that there are many things to
think about in choosing a pet. These include the money needed to feed and keep a pet and
the time needed to take care of a pet. I analyzed the data that I collected from my poll of
my classmates and found out that there was interest in having a class pet.
Most students were willing to spend the time needed to take of and play with a pet. Most
students chose a hamster as our classroom pet and that was a good choice. A hamster is
warm and furry to hold and likes to play with girls and boys. There were the two most
important traits for a classroom pet in the poll.
My conclusion is that there is a lot of work involved in having a classroom pet, but the
students in my room are willing to do the work. They agree on a pet that has the traits that
most of the students want. If we get a classroom pet, I know more about what will be
involved.
My graphic organizer shows the process that I used to gather information on my project. In
order find out what animal would be the best class pet, I had to do several things. First, I
had to find information on classroom pets. Then I had to think about questions to ask my
classmates. I made a poll to ask the questions. I asked my classmates about a classroom
pet. After I asked the questions, I put all the answers together and looked for interesting
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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Intel® Education K-12 Resources | www.intel.com/teachers
Technology Literacy
patterns and showed my data in charts. Finally, I reported to the class about what I
learned.
Thinking about
what is involved
in having a pet
Charting the data
to see the data
patterns and
results of the poll
Researching the
topic to find the
important issues
My Quest
for a Pet
Analyzing the
data to discover
how my
classmates felt
about the issue
Creating a poll
to discover
classmate’s views
about a class pet
Copyright © Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission. Intel, the Intel logo and the Intel
Education Initiative are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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