Map Your Mind! 

Coggle: Online Collaborative Diagrams

@LisaBerghoff

Even with all of the new information and technology that we have today, some learning strategies are still the most effective when it comes to helping kids make connections and understand how the pieces of what they are learning all fit together. Nothing beats a mind map, also called a concept map, idea diagram, graphic organizer, etc. Regardless of what you call it, creating a visual map that shows your thinking can really help both students and teachers understand where kids are at when it comes to their learning.  

One of the most requested tools that I get asked about is for concept mapping. Often, it is challenging for kids to write small enough to get their whole map on one page. Or, if a student makes a mistake, it is very hard to fix it if the many pieces are already linked together. These tools are so helpful for kids who need a visual but often the kids who need the visuals the most struggle with how to create a diagram that makes sense.   There are many tools out there, but most of them just miss the mark with regards to their functionality.

I'm really excited to share Coggle with you! Coggle is a freemium website that allows you to create diagrams. With the "free forever" version, you can create 3 private and unlimited public diagrams. You can collaborate with others in real time, have the ability to download as a pdf or image, and much more. Click here to take a look at what is included. You can connect your Google drive and all of your diagrams save automatically. 

Here's a short video explaining how Coggle works. 

After creating a free account using your Google credentials, click on the green plus sign to create a diagram. You can invite others to edit or view your diagram. To send an invitation, simply type their email address in the upper right corner. Just like in Google docs, you can control the permissions. 

Once you have entered your title, you can click the plus signs to add more branches. You can add icons, images and links to websites right there on your diagram. And, if you have the ability to make comments along with your collaborators along the side. You can also view and copy previous versions so you don't need to worry about losing your work.  There is also a presentation mode built in so you can show your diagram to a crowd while projecting without the editing tools appearing on the screen. 

Look how easy it is! 

This is such a simple, yet powerful tool that has so many benefits for our students. I can't think of a single content area that would not be able to take advantage of Coggle.

Give it a try! 

If you have any questions or want some help getting started, please let me know!