Welcome From The Creators

Elementary Organizers

Elementary School

Key things to consider for 
Elementary Organizers:

•                                             Directions!

o   Make them clear and again KISS.  The more specific and concise the better!

•                                            Be conscious of reading level and    
                       word choice.

o   Remember KISS, keep it simple silly! 

•                                            Working with fine motor skills

o   Make sure you are aware of simple things, like line distance and space, a 1^st grader needs larger spaces to write where as a 4^th graders has the fine motor skills to write in smaller spaces.

•                                              It’s VISUAL

o   Make sure your layout is understandable and clear.  Make sure the visual isn’t a distraction, remember the key here is the organizer will help focus and organize thought.

o   With that said, avoid creating a meatball sundae. This is design speak for- please limit yourself to only use 1 or 2 fonts!  Adjust size to create emphasis.

•                                           Use your resources

o   Cross check your organizers with reading and literacy teachers, they are there to help you and have specialized training in those areas.

Examples of Elementary Graphic Organizers:

"Your Life as an Olympic Obstacle Course" packet for 3rd grade art unit

Wearable Memories Project brainstorming

 Final Product:

Middle School Organizers

Key things to consider for Middle School Organizers:

•                                             Recognize Cognitive Development

o   This age group is just beginning to understand abstract thoughts and thinking, use graphic organizers to push these cognitive stages, this will allow students to begin to grow in their development in a more user friendly way.

•                                             Don’t understate your students!

o   Middle school is a difficult time for any child.  There is a ton of social and emotion stuff going on, but that doesn’t mean students can’t experience higher-level thinking.  Graphic organizers can help push this thinking and bring about remarkable results.

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                       Compartmentalize thinking.

o   Because of all this “stuff” going on, try to give students compartmentalized space to work their thinking out.  Use boxes and spaces for brainstorming, instead of lines and grids.

•                                           Don’t be afraid to have fun.

o   Middle Schooler may not hug you and draw you pictures like elementary students, but as much as they hate to admit it, they love having fun with you.  Use interesting pictures, shapes or designs on your organizers to capture their attention and draw them into the learning.

o   Just member, avoid that nasty meatball sundae, and make sure the organizer does just that, organizes!

Examples of Middle School Graphic Organizers:


Interdisciplinary Organizer

Painting Brainstorming Organizer

Shape Brainstorming

High School Organizers

High School

Key things to consider for 

High School organizers:

•                                              Extra thinking Space

o   Graphic Organizers are the place to allow students to think freely and creatively, this is a nonthreatening way to explore ideas. Provide extra boxes so that students and hash out several solutions to the same problem. This accounts for student developmentally so they can begin to grasp the concept that there is more than one correct answer.

•                                             PUSH!

o   Make student do, what they can do, and push them to take their ideas and concepts further. 

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                       Mixing Multiple Intelligence’s

o   Students think and learn in different ways.  Incorporate these different learning styles into your organizers, by have a space to list, a space to draw, a space to write and a space to narrative.  Think outside the box. Pun intended!

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                        Don’t be afraid to have fun.

o   Just like, Middle Schooler, high schoolers also hate to admit that they love having fun with you. You can be fun and creative while also promoting higher-level thinking and idea building.

o   Just member, avoid that nasty meatball sundae, and make sure the organizer does just that, organizes!

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                                                The best projects are conceptual!

o   Students learn the most and internalize their learning when they are able to conceptualize and explore their ideas fully.  Graphic organizers are a great tool to allow students to organize conceptual thought. 

Examples of High School Graphic Organizers:

Example of using a Graphic Organizer as an Assignment Sheet:

Sketches Organizer:

Artist Study Graphic Organizer:

Example of a project packet that includes Graphic Organizers:

* Please note more pages and boxes were provided for this packet as well.