Number 2. Mind Mapping Bubbles & Boggles

Digital Tools 4

Bubble Mind for brainstorming from

Mind Map from

As I went through the tutorials on-line I found that I really loved working on the activities.  Anywhere there was a link to "try this yourself", I was all for it.  After watching Tony Buzan discuss how the brain pathways hold information, I went through the below activities.  As I was doing them I realised that brainstorming and mind maps are a great way to think about topics and come up with simple ideas that are all interconnected.  They allow you to get a better visual of how and where things interlace.  I think both of these would be great tools to use in a classroom. I agree with Prensky's (2001) ideas; that children need to be engaged on a digital level in our classrooms.  I think that learning is best achieved when it is interactive, interesting and when we value what we are being shown. Mind maps and computerized applications such as these allow the learner  to engage, activate and build on knowledge that they already know and understand.  By moving from a main frame concept and allowing learners the freedom to explore, they get a much better feeling for their own knowledge structure and in turn a real sense of empowerment about their learning. Nice to find great resources as you go.  Although I suspect by the time, I start teaching there will be much fancier, faster and smarter applications to use.