Buzan mental maps are an associative method of activating thinking. Mind maps are a useful tool for structuring information

The development of modern connection diagrams belongs to the British writer and psychologist Tony Buzan and dates back to the late 80s of the last century. However, this is only an official statement of the method. It is known that even in ancient times there were attempts to schematically depict information.

A mind map is an example of an easy and effective technique in the educational process, which requires a minimum of effort and time, but gives the most positive results.

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Do you remember how we were asked to study information at school? Books with sheets of solid text, logical lists and step-by-step action algorithms were supposed to help us acquire new knowledge, but did not arouse much enthusiasm. Complex subjects had to be memorized. The long sheets of text did not want to fit in my head. All the letters, words and paragraphs merged together, and there was nothing for the eye to catch on to.

Although linear recording of information in the form of continuous text with logical markings is great for writing literature and making all kinds of lists, it is not the best tool for visually structuring information and developing creative thinking. And this is where mental maps will help us and our children.

Mind mapsis a wonderful tool for visualizing almost any information. The principle of constructing a map is similar to the form of our thinking and is based on associative connections between objects and the principle of natural hierarchy.

Here are 5 interesting ways to use mind maps that are suitable for children:

1. Make studying easier

Show your child how, with the help of mental maps, you can turn a chapter from a textbook into an interesting and, most importantly, understandable and logical drawing or diagram. Together with your child, highlight the main points from the textbook section and transfer the information into a logically connected mental map. Thus, all information will not only become visual and understandable, but it will also be easy to remember.

2. Set goals and plan your week

Mind maps can be a powerful tool for instilling in your child the habit of setting goals and managing their time. Instead of a list of daily tasks and responsibilities, your child can put his plans into a fun mind map.

As a rule, children learn to work with mental maps very easily, and the creation of mind maps itself becomes an exciting game for them.

3. Plan and manage projects

The ability to break a complex project into simple and understandable components is a very valuable skill for every person. Invite your child to plan some event in his life, for example, a walk or a birthday, using a mental map. Let him, with your help, outline the event into its component parts - who will participate, what games there will be, what will be included in the menu, and so on. Over time, he will learn to independently plan more complex and responsible projects.

4. Working with memories

After a trip to the sea, a fun holiday, a birthday or a visit to your beloved grandmother, sit down with your child and record your memories on paper using a mind map. This could be a collage of photographs, drawings, newspaper clippings, travel tickets and natural materials. It could just be a map of associations and memories. Creative recording of memories helps children understand their emotions and values.

This activity is perfect for children as a simple introduction to mental maps.

5. For the little ones

It is absolutely not necessary for a preschooler to know the whole essence and philosophy of creating mental maps. Introducing your four-year-old child to mind mapping, starting with complex phenomena, is not a good idea.

Kids like to participate in the process, and they want the process to be dynamic and fun.

Michael Tipper advises starting to introduce your child to mind maps by first choosing the simplest concepts familiar to the child and organizing the elements into main categories.

For example, choose a farm and help your child imagine what is on the farm - barns, animals, people, cars. This is a good way to study the seasons, describe different characteristics of objects, and so on. This will help the child begin to see connections between objects and phenomena, and also turn it all into a logical intellectual system.

Olga Pavlova

The Mind Mapping Method was created by American scientist and businessman Tony Buzan. In English it is called "mind maps". Literally, the word "mind" means "mind", and the word "maps" means "maps". The result is “mind maps”. But most often in translations the term “mind maps” is used.

Mind maps came to the world of preschool technologies thanks to the candidate of pedagogical sciences V. M. Akimenko, who proposed using this method for the development of coherent speech in children.

Smart card is a unique and simple method of memorization

information, with the help of which both creative and

children's speech abilities and thinking is activated.

The mind map method helps awaken a child's ability to

images of the surrounding world, help to structure the information that the child has to learn, breaking it down into specific figurative units.

Useful properties of mind maps

K. D. Ushinsky wrote: “Teach a child some five words unknown to him - he will suffer for a long time and in vain, but connect twenty such words with pictures, and he will learn on the fly.”

Visibility. The whole problem with its many sides and facets

appears right in front of you, you can take it in at one glance.

Attractiveness. A good mind map has its own aesthetics,

looking at it is not only interesting, but also pleasant. Tony Buzan

Memorability. Thanks to the work of both hemispheres of the brain, the use

The images and colors of the mind map are easy to remember.

In teaching practice, mind maps can be used as follows:

Consolidation and generalization of material. Creation of generalized intelligence

maps can be the final work on the topics studied. This work is carried out both individually and frontally.

Development of coherent speech. Compiling stories using a mind map.

While completing this task, children independently and consistently

express their thoughts, become more active in conversation,

develops the ability to answer questions in a common way, vocabulary

becomes precise and varied. This work is carried out in groups

classes on the development of coherent speech.

General requirements for drawing up any intelligence map.

Only colored pencils, markers, etc. are used to create maps.

The sheet is positioned horizontally.

The main idea is outlined in the center of the page. To depict it, you can use drawings and pictures.

For each key point, diverging from the center are carried out

branches (in any direction). Each main branch has its own color.

Only one keyword is written above each line-branch.

It must be written legibly in capital letters.

Each thought is circled; you can use drawings, pictures, associations about each word.

Symbols and illustrations are added during the modeling process.

Visualization is presented in the form of objects, objects, drawings, etc.

The sequence of work when drawing up a mind map to consolidate and generalize the material of the studied topic:

Option 1:

1. The topic of the lesson is indicated (fruits, pets, flowers, etc.)

2. Children name noun words and depict what relates to

3. Attribute words are selected for each noun.

Option 2:

For each noun, words-attributes and words-

actions.

According to the compiled intelligence map, children in any option make up

offers.

We started making mind maps in the older group. At first, these were maps that were small in content, reflecting one topic, and had in their structure only a classification in some areas.

We found all the necessary pictures in used workbooks, cut them out, classified them, pasted them, and made “branches”.

At the end of the senior group, the guys built quite complex intelligence maps, such as: “Continents”, “Planet Earth”, “Green Kingdom”.

Thanks to this work, children's associations develop, vocabulary is replenished and activated, the meaning of a word is formed, and fantasy develops. A child, working with mind maps, progresses in his development from simple logical operations: comparison, juxtaposition of objects, location in space, quantitative determination of common and integral parts to the ability to analyze, differentiate, and classify objects. Of course, I plan to continue working with children in this direction. Thank you for your attention!

Due to the specifics of my activity, I constantly monitor the emergence and development of tools like construction techniques. Naturally, I also keep an eye on the software that implements the techniques. It seemed to me that I knew all these programs. But iMind Map really surprised me. Firstly, because I didn’t even notice the elephant. Secondly, because the program is much better than its analogues precisely from the point of view of stimulating thinking.

However, it is not surprising - the program was made and is under the patronage of the founder of this technique, Tony Buzan. Until now, I have used the most advanced and popular solution - Mind Manager from Mindjet. I continue to use it when I need to create structure. But if I need to find a solution or think, iMind Map is what I need. What's so special about this program?

The method of constructing mind maps is based on visualization and structuring of thinking. This means how the map looks is critical. Any mind map is a tree. A tree has a trunk and branches extending from it. The further from the trunk, the thinner the branches become - this simple visualization principle allows you to display the train of thoughts in the correct order.

Each branch is a separate direction or thought that you develop. The thinner the branch section, the more new, fresh, or detailed it is in relation to the main idea.

By default, all main branches of the tree have different colors. This is also important and allows you to separate one thought and the course of its development from another, while maintaining the overall structure. The color and shape of the branches can be changed at your discretion.

In principle, branches are very convenient to work with. They can be dragged, stretched, and their shape can be changed. Two drawing modes determine how the branch will be drawn: automatically or freehand. By drawing by hand, you can give the branch any shape. In addition, you can even change the design of the branch itself. For example, make it in the form of a road or an arrow. Visualization of a branch - visualization of thought.

Branches can also be of two types: simple (linear) and rectangular. In the first option, the text is located on the branch itself. In the second case, the text is inside a rectangle. Representing a branch as a rectangle is very useful for displaying key thoughts and comments.

The branches can be connected to each other; there are separate arrows for this.

Images can be used to enhance visualization. They can be placed on the branch itself, designated as the branch's base point, or simply placed anywhere. In addition to pictures, branches can be marked with icons, the choice of which is quite large in iMind Map. By the way, in addition to adding files with pictures, you can sketch an image and immediately add it to the map. Simply an invaluable function for brainstorming.

What's super cool is that iMind Map allows you to add flowcharts directly to your mind map. I really miss this in MindManager. Each element of the diagram can be connected to any element of the entire map.

The automatic tidying function works very well. One click, and the map takes on the optimal appearance in terms of display and placement of elements. So you don't have to worry about making a mess when working with the card.

We should also talk about the ways of presenting the map.

Project type

Like many other mind mapping software, iMind Map allows you to turn branches into tasks. And the entire map represents a single project. To make it more convenient to work with the map from a project management point of view, a separate view is provided. In this case, the branches of the map are presented in the form of a list indicating deadlines, duration and percentage of completion.

By the way, iMind Map works with the task management service Drop Task. I wouldn’t say that the type of project itself will bring much benefit, but running small projects in this mode is quite possible. But in conjunction with Drop Task it’s a completely different matter. I highly recommend paying attention to the service itself and trying it in conjunction with iMind Map. Everything looks unusual, very, very cool. But this probably deserves a separate article.

3D map

A very unusual presentation mode. The program converts your map into a three-dimensional image that you can rotate as you wish. It would seem that it is just a visual feature. But no. The presentation is extremely convenient for conducting and focusing attention on a particular branch, thought, or task. Unusual, interesting, adds zest - in a word, I liked it.

Text mode

In this mode, the mind map is presented in the form of structured text. Sub-items can be collapsed and expanded. This view, for example, is very convenient for working with text alignment. The number of nested sub-items is infinite. You can first sketch out the structure of the text in the form of a map with notes on the main theses and ideas, and then switch to text mode and already. Pictures and icons are also displayed in this view. This type is also very convenient for preparing for a presentation and working with abstracts.

Presentation mode

Such a spectacular and effective presentation mode is not available in any analogue program. The mind map is a whole story. iMind Map in presentation mode allows you to tell this story in the way and order you choose. Before starting the presentation, you can configure the order in which branches are displayed, comments on them, types of transitions from one branch to another, and much more. You can customize key click transitions or set the display time for each branch. You can even loop the presentation so that it is shown constantly - kiosk mode.

The program offers a set of presentation templates, which makes its creation even easier. Scaling, transitions, accents on branches - all this is done in just a couple of clicks. The result is a very high quality product. My rating is five out of five.

Branch order mode

Similar to text mode and represents structured text. But the purpose of this mode is precisely to determine the order of branches. In this mode, you determine the order in which your ideas will be presented on the map and in. That is, you can do this both in map mode, simply dragging branches, and in this mode, changing the levels of branches in the form of text. It's actually very convenient.

Summary and some tips

• The only software that fully complies with the principles of constructing mind maps and visualizing the thinking process.
• Developed with the support of the founder of the technique, Tony Buzan.
• Very convenient work on building and changing a mind map.
• Integration with Drop Task allows you to manage large projects.
• Flexible display and presentation settings.
• Building mind maps turns into a fun process.
• ThinkBuzan offers free online training on mind mapping.
• The program works on different platforms: Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, Android.
• The built-in map display optimization works like magic.
• The best software for preparing presentations based on mind maps.
• Possibility of adding block diagrams to the map.
• Completely in Russian.

Finally

In my opinion, iMind Map is the best mind mapping program. The only program of its kind that stimulates... I highly recommend trying it, fortunately there is a trial version. Recently the program was supplemented with new features and updated to version 8. But more on that next time. That's all I wanted to say. ;)

Mind maps. What do mind maps look like? What it is. Areas of application of mind maps. How to make a mind map. Rules for compiling mind maps.

What are mind maps?

This amazing and fascinating instrument came into fashion and into mass use not so long ago. The author and inventor of mind maps is Tony Buzan, a well-known figure in the field of learning psychology and intelligence development.

What are they?

A mind map is a special type of recording materials in the form radiant structure, that is, a structure emanating from the center to the edges, gradually branching into smaller parts. Mind maps can replace traditional text, tables, graphs and diagrams.

Why is writing in the form of a mind map more convenient and useful?

It's all about the peculiarities of our thinking. Our thinking is NOT organized like text, linearly. It has exactly this structure: branching, each concept in our head is connected to other concepts, these other concepts are connected to third ones, and so on ad infinitum.

This organization of material is called multidimensional, radiant. It is this structure that most organically reflects our real thinking.

Neurons in our brain are connected at the physical level in exactly the same way: each neuron entangles a network of dendrites of other neurons, and from one neuron we can move through chains of connections to another neuron.
On the contrary, one has to wonder how a person can work and think linearly? After all, our brain is not designed for this at all.

Mind maps- most adequately reflects our real multidimensional radiant thinking. That is why it is more convenient to use compared to plain text. Mind maps allow you to better display the structure of the material, semantic and hierarchical connections, and show what relationships exist between the component parts.

Thanks to their structure, mind maps allow you to reveal your intellectual potential. And this is achieved through proper organization and through the work of both hemispheres of the brain. Indeed, in such a branching structure, both the right and left hemispheres of the brain work.

A short video about how the mind map is connected to our thinking

Mind maps have one more wonderful effect. Due to its extensibility and adaptability to radiant thinking, the creation of mind maps contributes to the development flow of associations, thoughts, ideas.

As a rule, those who switch to using mind maps begin to notice how many ideas are formed in the course of their depiction; often there is not even enough space initially allocated for all the ideas.

That is why in our information age the use of mind maps in various areas of life becomes so relevant.

Brief video: benefits of mind maps

How can you use mind maps?

They can be used almost everywhere, in different areas of life. Namely:

• Mind maps at work

  • create a common vision for the project
  • create work plans
  • plan events, budget
  • prepare a plan for a speech or presentation
  • decisions
  • brainstorm
  • generate ideas
  • create motivation
  • write goals
  • prepare a negotiation plan
  • organize thoughts and ideas

• Mind maps in educational activities

  • write down from books and by ear
  • create plans for writing articles, books, abstracts, diplomas
  • pass exams
  • structure any material, which allows you to understand the essence, the author’s thought, and sort difficult material into shelves
  • remember the meaning of the material. Mind maps are remembered many times easier than any text material
  • write a series of interrelated hypotheses

• Mind maps in everyday life

  • use in structuring everyday tasks, household chores
  • describe the advantages and disadvantages of planned purchases and acquisitions
  • create your personal family tree
  • describe the structure of a holiday or other event
  • plan a vacation

Mind map from T. Buzan’s book “Super Thinking”

Creation: how to create a mind map?

Unfortunately, not everyone understands how to make a mind map correctly. After all, it is often precisely because of errors in its preparation and lack of understanding of the principles of its construction that we make only a rough sketch. But it turns out that the admitted inaccuracies affect the perception of this mind map so much that it seems ineffective and meaningless to us.

Therefore, let's look at the basic rules. Algorithm for creating a mind map:

1. Take an unlined sheet of paper and place it landscape, that is, horizontally. It is this arrangement that is most convenient for depicting the radiant structure when compiling mind maps.
2. Take several colored pencils, markers, at least three or four colors. Using colors allows you to divide information into blocks or rank it by importance. All this facilitates the perception of information, improves the quality of memorization by preserving the visual image and actively connecting the right hemisphere.
3. Write large and voluminous in the very center of the main topic. It is advisable to use large letters, and also to depict the main idea of ​​the map schematically or with a drawing. Drawings and graphics further connect the resources of the right hemisphere, which promotes quick memorization of the compiled mind map
4. From the center make several branches, designate each of them with a keyword. The branches located around the central theme will be the largest, then as they branch, the branches will become smaller. This division will visually indicate the hierarchy and relationships in the mind map.
5. Continue branching large ideas into smaller ones as long as you need to. Each concept has associative connections with other concepts. Include the process of associative thinking. Then your card will begin to grow quickly.

Schooling requires children to retain a huge amount of information in their memory. This is dictated by the variety of educational subjects and the annual accumulation of knowledge. A mind map will help you “place” and keep everything in your head. We will look at an example of its composition, purpose and features in this article.

Description

Mind maps are often called mind maps or they are schematic representations of information. In the center of such a map is the main idea (core), and from it there are branches (tree diagram). Each branch can be a reference to a word-concept, event, task, date, etc. Drawing up mind maps in teaching is usually used to consolidate the learned material, less often as a brainstorming technique. As a rule, this concerns capacious topics that have a system of classifications, terms and additions.

A mind map is an example of effective graphical memorization. It can be compiled individually or collectively. To implement it, you only need a sheet of paper, imagination and pencils.

Story

The development of modern connection diagrams belongs to the British writer and psychologist Tony Buzan and dates back to the late 80s of the last century. However, this is only an official statement of the method. It is known that even in ancient times there were attempts to schematically depict information. Thus, the first mind map, an example of which dates back to the 3rd century, belongs to the philosopher Porphyry of Tyros. Carefully studying the views of Aristotle, he graphically depicted their main categories and the concept of development. His experience was repeated in the 13th century by another philosopher, Raymond Lull.

The mind map method, developed by Buzan, is based on the ideas of general semantics of the Polish researcher Alfred Korzybski and focuses on the work of both hemispheres of the brain.

Purpose

As the long-term practice of teachers shows, connection diagrams are the best way to take notes of new information. This is an excellent tool in the experienced hands of specialists and schoolchildren, which will allow:

• Work quickly and efficiently with any amount of information.
• Develop logical, associative, creative thinking, imagination.
• Use graphic presentations to explain your personal position to interlocutors.
• Make decisions, plan, develop projects.

A mind map is an example of an easy and effective technique in the educational process, which requires a minimum of effort and time, but gives the most positive results.

Peculiarities

Mind maps are often identified with concept maps. However, this is a mistake. The latter were developed by American psychologists in the 70s of the last century and depict the relationship between concepts, ideas, and events. Concept maps have a logical structure (one element flows from another), while mind maps have a radial structure (that is, all elements are concentrated around one idea).

It should be noted that such graphic note-taking has its advantages and disadvantages over other methods. Its advantages include the ease of reading and remembering it. Ideas become clearer and more understandable, they can be captured with a single glance. Disadvantages include limited scope and use of only one central concept.

The method has virtually no restrictions on age and discipline. The use of mind maps in elementary schools requires special attention. During such playful learning of new knowledge, children must learn to highlight the main idea, develop coherent speech, and enrich their vocabulary. Therefore, the scale of their diagrams is minimal and expands as the child develops intellectually.

Application

Previously, the use of mind maps was found only in school education. Today, this technique helps not only students and teachers, but also people of different specialties. Mind diagrams are effective in business, sociology, humanities, engineering, and even in everyday planning. Thus, they can be used not only when taking notes on lectures and books, but also to create presentations, develop projects of various levels of complexity, and compile organograms.

Let's compare two works:

1. The first example is a mind map on the history of Russia in the 17th and 18th centuries. The key concept-word is “Peter I”. Four large branches branch off from it: “Family”, “Reforms”, “Peasant uprisings”, “Economy”. Each category has more branches, which are filled with more specific information: names, dates, events. This map is a condensed but quite succinct summary of the topic, which can be used to review material or as a brainstorming session before starting to study a new topic.
2. The second work is a human life analysis chart. A personal photo is placed in the center, and branches extend from it corresponding to the main areas of life: personal, professional, creative, intellectual, physical health, etc. Such a map helps to adequately assess the current state of affairs and, based on the results, design future steps and decisions that will help fill gaps and cope with certain shortcomings.

As you can see, the purposes of using the smart map method are different, but the effectiveness can be equally high.

In the theory of circuit diagrams, everything looks almost flawless. What to do with practice? How to draw up a mind map correctly so that it gives the maximum effect? There are a number of points to consider here:

• As a rule, the key concept is placed in the center of the map. If it is necessary to display a time scale, then the past time is placed on the left side, and the future time is placed on the right side.
• It is better to take a maximum of 5-7 branches from the core - the central idea. Otherwise, the map will be difficult to understand. If the topic requires a larger scale, then the elements should be grouped according to some criterion.
• The third point is the logic or sequence of the map. It concerns the relationship of elements. Let's return to the example indicated above - a mind map for history. When branching, the elements are arranged in a specific, non-random order: “Family”, “Reforms”, “Peasant uprisings”, “Economy”. They identify a chain of events that are associated with the life and reign of Peter I.
• A symmetrical mind map is an example of fast and durable memorization of information. Don't forget about this either.
• And one more tip regarding the design of the diagram. It is better to place the sheet of paper horizontally. This way there is more space for graphic manipulations, and there is the possibility of further modeling of the map. For associative perception, you can use symbols, drawings, different colors of pens or pencils.