The Simple Power of Visual Organizers

Written by: Mike Murawski

As both an educator and an illustrator, I am constantly exploring creative ways to use design to support the learning process. One of my go-to design features is the visual organizer. You’ll find these in almost everything we design for Super Nature Adventures, from nature-themed booklets to field trip guides and maps. In fact, I’ve been creating and using visual organizers for many years as a museum educator too.

So what is a visual organizer?

More commonly referred to as a graphic organizer, a visual organizer is essentially a way to visually represent and organize information. Many of the visual organizers that I design help provide a simple, clear structure to record observations and take notes. They can help make it easier to do some brainstorming, map out ideas, and think through a rather complicated set of questions. Sharing her own love for the power of graphic organizers, teacher and author Jennifer Gonzalez writes:

“It’s so simple—just a few shapes and lines, nothing fabulous, no bells or whistles—and yet beneath its simplicity lies an absolute dynamo, a vehicle that can cement learning more firmly than a lot of the other stuff we try, in a lot less time.”

For me, it is always important that visual organizers are simple, include minimal text, and leave a lot of blank space for drawing and note-taking. In many cases, they can take rather complex ideas and represent them visually so we can better understand them, such as through a sequence or cycle.

I began to learn the power of a visual organizer when I began teaching in art museums many years ago. I would be teaching a group of elementary school students in front of a work of art, and I needed some easy and effective ways to help them look closely and record their observations, ideas, and questions. So I started to draw my own worksheets with a clear structure for taking notes and making sense of what we were seeing in the museum. And many times I would have students draw their own visual organizers in their sketchbooks.

In-process illustration work on visual organizers for the Monument Lab Field Trip guide.

Through our work at Super Nature Adventures, we’re bringing visual organizers into many projects that promote close observation and critical thinking.  For example, in our design for the Monument Lab Field Trip guide, there are several visual organizers that help break down the process of investigating a monument, asking questions about the monument, and brainstorming ideas to propose your own monument. In our Explore Your Own World series that we designed earlier this year, we included visual organizers to help support a process of close looking in your own backyard, mapping your own neighborhood, or starting a nature collection. 

Visual Organizer Superpowers

As a learning tool, this design feature has some real pedagogical superpowers. Visual organizers help learners of all ages slow down, take things step by step, and get into the habit of writing down notes or ideas. They also bring together verbal and visual forms of information, which research shows improves student learning and also meets the needs of students with learning disabilities. Most importantly, the use of visual organizers can build students’ capacities for thinking on their own, and organizing their own process of critical thinking and independent learning. As curriculum specialists Mark Wise and Carl Cooper write, “Graphic organizers should ultimately build a student’s capacity to draw upon what they learned in order to become independent readers, active citizens, and solvers of complex problems.” 

Creating a good, effective visual organizer requires me to slow down my design process and reflect on how each visual element supports the overall learning goals. How does it build connection and facilitate a process of deeper understanding? How does it provide a sense of calm and fun to an otherwise overwhelming multi-step process? A great visual organizer is also made better through collaboration with clients, community partners, and students who bring their own perspectives, and we are excited to be working through this shared process on so many projects.

Are you interested in working with us on a project involving a visual organizer and creative ways to support learning and engagement? The “Work with Us” form is the best way to reach us to get started.