Reflection – using Mind Mapping to write essays

Challenge

My son absolutely hates homework.  He especially dislikes writing assignments that require

multiple paragraphs, including an introduction, a stated claim, an attention grabbing sentence  and finally a conclusion.  These are daunting assignments that can sometimes be so  overwhelming that he simply can’t get started.  I cringed when he came to me as I was working  from home in the middle of the afternoon.  I was deep into my most productive hour, but he was  in tears because he had five paragraphs to write by the end of the night. He was clearly freaking  out. He had to write an essay on a book he had read.  My son is a great reader and can devour  hundreds of pages in a single sitting, especially if they are interesting to him.  However, at the  end of the day, he has no idea what to write about and needed some help getting started on the  first sentence.

Selection

The tool I used to solve this problem was mind mapping to identify patterns and insights. As I

reflect on this technique, I shared with my son that this is something I was lucky enough to learn  in high school by a very good teacher.  I had also hated essays too when I was his age and felt  overwhelmed throughout my early teenage years whenever I had to write one.  This very good  high school English teacher of mine, perhaps unknowingly, taught me the mind mapping  technique and probably changed my life as far as writing is concerned.

Application

This is how I used the tool:  With every book there are basic details that are usually common,

so I asked my son about the book he had read.  I asked about the setting, the time period, the  main characters et cetera.  I asked lots of questions and he answered. For each answer he  gave, I helped him summarize it into one sentence, and I wrote what he said verbatim on an  index card.  After each note was written I put the card in a discard pile and started fresh with a  new card for the next sentence.  I gathered details about each character, situations in the book,  key aspects of the plot, et cetera.  After just a few minutes, I could tell my son had really enjoyed  this book!  The details and plot twists and turns were all recorded on the note cards; all notes  were his words, not mine. Before long we had a pretty good size deck of note cards, and not  once did we focus on what the first sentence was going to be.

Insight

Finally, after about 45 minutes of good conversation, my son noticed the pile of cards.  He

looked at me with curiosity as to what I was going to do with them.  I told him that he actually had  just wrote his essay and he looked at me in disbelief.  I then shuffled the cards and began  reading a few of them out loud.  We both read together and then began to sort them to try and  find a common theme.  We eventually realized that he clearly had a favorite part to the book that  he really enjoyed, so we focused on that part.  We then arranged the card to an introduction,  setting, theme, main characters, plot, and analysis.  I split the cards into 5 sections representing  the five paragraphs his essay had to be in length.  We added more cards to expand the details in  each paragraph. When we finally felt like we were done, we arranged the cards in order  according to an introduction, 3 main ideas, and a conclusion.  The last step was to copy the

sentences on the cards into a word document, spell check and turn in, we were done in less than  2 hours – he is getting really good at typing!

Approach

I think this technique worked very well for me in high school on through college and even

today.  One thing I tend to do differently is to skip the step of using physical note cards.  This can  easily be done directly on the word document since moving sentences around are as easy as cut  and paste.  However, for some people skipping the notecards might not be as helpful as having  the physical cards spread out on a table, but the fact is one just may not have that many  notecards available.  It is good to have a backup plan and be versatile in your technique. I’m  glad I could pass this skill on to my son, I have noticed his anxiety in English class is reduced  and I am able to get more done at work by investing in teaching my son to use this valuable  technique.


Reflection – using Mind Mapping to write essays Challenge My son absolutely hates homework . He especially dislikes writing assignments that require multiple paragraphs , including an introduction , a stated claim , an attention grabbing sentence and finally a conclusion . These are daunting assignments that can sometimes be so overwhelming that he simply ca n’t get started . I cringed when he came to me as I was working from home in the middle of the afternoon . I was deep into my most productive hour , but he was in tears because he had five paragraphs to write by the end of the night . He was clearly freaking out . He had to write an essay on a book he had read . My son is a great reader and can devour hundreds of pages in a single sitting , especially if they are interesting to him . However , at the end of the day , he has no idea what to write about and needed some help getting started on the first sentence . Selection The tool I used to solve this problem was mind mapping to identify patterns and insights . As I reflect on this technique , I shared with my son that this is something I was lucky enough to learn in high school by a very good teacher . I had also hated essays too when I was his age and felt overwhelmed throughout my early teenage years whenever I had to write one . This very good high school English teacher of mine , perhaps unknowingly , taught me the mind mapping technique and probably changed my life as far as writing is concerned . Application This is how I used the tool : With every book there are basic details that are usually common , so I asked my son about the book he had read . I asked about the setting , the time period , the main characters et cetera . I asked lots of questions and he answered . For each answer he gave , I helped him summarize it into one sentence , and I wrote what he said verbatim on an index card . After each note was written I put the card in a discard pile and started fresh with a new card for the next sentence . I gathered details about each character , situations in the book , key aspects of the plot , et cetera . After just a few minutes , I could tell my son had really enjoyed this book ! The details and plot twists and turns were all recorded on the note cards ; all notes were his words , not mine . Before long we had a pretty good size deck of note cards , and not once did we focus on what the first sentence was going to be . Insight Finally , after about 45 minutes of good conversation , my son noticed the pile of cards . He looked at me with curiosity as to what I was going to do with them . I told him that he actually had just wrote his essay and he looked at me in disbelief . I then shuffled the cards and began reading a few of them out loud . We both read together and then began to sort them to try and find a common theme . We eventually realized that he clearly had a favorite part to the book that he really enjoyed , so we focused on that part . We then arranged the card to an introduction , setting , theme , main characters , plot , and analysis . I split the cards into 5 sections representing the five paragraphs his essay had to be in length . We added more cards to expand the details in each paragraph . When we finally felt like we were done , we arranged the cards in order according to an introduction , 3 main ideas , and a conclusion . The last step was to copy the sentences on the cards into a word document , spell check and turn in , we were done in less than 2 hours – he is getting really good at typing ! Approach I think this technique worked very well for me in high school on through college and even today . One thing I tend to do differently is to skip the step of using physical note cards . This can easily be done directly on the word document since moving sentences around are as easy as cut and paste . However , for some people skipping the notecards might not be as helpful as having the physical cards spread out on a table , but the fact is one just may not have that many notecards available . It is good to have a backup plan and be versatile in your technique . I ’m glad I could pass this skill on to my son , I have noticed his anxiety in English class is reduced and I am able to get more done at work by investing in teaching my son to use this valuable technique .