I remember when "Charting the Learning" was introduced at my previous school. Ugh, I thought… this will just clutter up the walls. But, since we were mandated to make at least one chart a week for each subject I started to do just that.
Lo and behold, I loved charting! When charts are made with student input and referenced to during instruction, guided, and independence practice they are an incredibly effective instructional tool.
As a child I remember being so distraught when I knew I had learned something, but I couldn't remember a key detail for an essay or completing a math problem. Charts support visual learners as they can reference the chart for support during guided and independent practice.
I find that chart work best when I already have an outline and plan of what is going to go on the chart. Sometimes I provide students a copy of the chart so that they can fill in the information I place on the chart. When I get organized I want to have students keep these in a notebook of some type.
In order to prevent the charts from getting overwhelming I take pictures of them and print them (several to a page) for students to keep in a folder.
I hope some of these chart spur ideas for your own classroom!
