Popplet is a concept mapping tool that is more attractively presented than every other available online concept mapping tool, is easy to use, has collaborative functions, and allows users to insert pictures and web pages into their concept maps. See the picture below (or, if it isn't displaying, click here)
Concept mapping can be an effective way for students to explore and represent their understanding of ideas and how they link. However, often concept mapping is done poorly in the classroom. Here's a procedure to follow:
1. Students start by listing 10-15 words, phrases or ideas that they most associate with the topic being studied
2. On their concept map, students first place on the map the topic in the centre
3. To the left of the map students write the word from their list that has the strongest link to the topic being studied. They explain the link by drawing a link to the topic in the centre and annotating this link with an explanation.
3. Students next place the word from their list on the concept map that is most logically linked to the first word they wrote. They explain the link to the first word and also draw a link to the topic in the centre and explain this link if appropriate.
4. Students then place a word on the map that can most logically be linked to the previous word, performing the same steps as above.
5. Students keep going in the same fashion until they have linked all their words.
The beauty of this procedure is that it gets students to focus on meaningful links between aspects of the topic being studied. Popplet makes an ideal companion because it gives students an infinite canvas on which to create their concept - it also means they can continue to revise and edit as they go along.
To use Popplet, students will need to create an account. It's free and quick. If every student in a group creates a Popplet account, one student can create a new Popplet and then share it with the other members of the group who can all collaborate on the Popplet at the same time. This is perfect for the classroom in which every student has access to a laptop.
Further to the above concept mapping procedure, Popplet is also a great tool for creating plot recounts of a text being studied. Give students 15-20 digital pictures that can be associated with events from a text somehow (you'll need to save these pictures as separate files on the network where students can access them), and ask your students to arrange them in order from left to right in a Popplet page to represent the order of events from the text. They can then annotate each picture.
Find Popplet here.
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