How+to+use+Text2MindMap

What is Text2MindMap? Text2MindMap is a free online tool that allows us to create clear and organized mind maps in an easy way. It provides us with the opportunity to share the resulting mind maps, save them and even send them via e-mail to our accounts.

How can we apply it in the classroom? Mind maps can be used in a great variety of ways. We can use them to analyse texts, organize new vocabulary, revise lists of words, connect ideas and concepts, etc. This tool provides us with a great opportunity to do all these activities in an easy way and, what’s more, in a personalized way. Dudeney and Hockly make a point on this when they mention the fact that Web 2.0 allows for a more personalized way of teaching since teacher can produce their own materials according to the needs of their students. The same thing happens with students themselves, who can be active users of this and other tools with the objective of enriching their learning process. The fact that each student may create his or her own mind map and share it with the teacher or other students with no difficulty, fosters a feeling of autonomy in the students and of solidarity with their peers. This will most probably motivate the learners to keep working and improving their language.

Why is it useful to apply it in the classroom? It is useful to apply this tool in our classes since it creates links between new and old words which may be a very useful strategy for some students to learn the new words. Stablishing connections between concepts is a visual way of learning but it may also benefit other kinds of students since it is a logical way of learning and revising what they have learnt by creating consistent relations. Each student can choose how to organize their mind map so that it fits their needs and enhances their learning. As Peachey states, the learners can become autonomous as a result of being producers of their own material and not only consumers.

How do we use it? media type="youtube" key="CGzWJbz8YSA" width="560" height="315" 1. First of all you have to go to https://www.text2mindmap.com 2. You can start creating your mind map by typing what you want to see in the centre of the map on the box that appears on the left side of the screen. 3. When you want to add a branch you have to start a new line and press the key TAB which will create a space before what you write. This way you can create as many branches as you wish in different levels. 4. To check that your mind map is going as you expect you can click on 'Draw Mind Map' under the box where you are writing and you will see a preview of your mind map on the right side of the screen. 5. To organize the branches you can click on them and drag them wherever you want. If you go to the tab 'Options' under the box where you are writing, you will find that you can lock the branches so that they don't move from the place where you have dropped them. 6. Other options are changing the color of the branches or the levels, changing the font, colour and size of the letters, and changing the colour and width of the lines that link the branches of your mind map. This is an example of what your mind map should look like:[| https://www.text2mindmap.com/24WdNr3] 7. Once you are satisfied with the resulting mind map you will find several options under the box. You may choose to create a new mind map, to save it and send it to your e-mail address or to download it to your computer. Now you can start creating!

Activity

__Age group:__15 years old

__Level__: intermediate

__Type of project:__ analysis of a story

A great way of putting Text2MindMap into practice is to use it to analyse a story. You may choose to divide the class into groups and create only one mind map in which each group will analyse only one aspect of the story or you can choose to have each group create a mind map and then share them to see what can be improved by reading the others. The analysis may include: - Title of the story. Why do you think it was chosen as the title? - Point of view. How does it affect the development of the story? - Setting. Time and place. - Characters. Include both round and flat characters. - Plot. Introduction, conflict, climax and conclusion. - Your favourite part - New words that are relevant to the story. Verbs, nouns and adjectives. The mind maps should end up looking like this one: []

To assess the activity the teacher may ask each group to explain the main ideas behind their mind map to the rest of the class and guide a debate in which the other groups may suggest new ideas or express agreement and disagreement politely. When evaluating the students the teacher may take into account:
 * Comprehension of the story
 * Use of new vocabulary and expressions
 * Fluency when expressing opinion

By Agustina Toja 2016