Mind mapping is an associative, radiant and hierarchical thinking technique. It’s designed to mirror the structure of the brain and its basic building block – the brain cell. When we talk about radiant hierarchy it simply means that we start in the center and radiate out successive levels of detail.

Mind maps are great for:

Note Making Note Taking
Exploring your own thoughts Recording information in meetings
Planning Discussions
Organizing Lectures
Thinking creatively Summarizing books
Making associations
Gaining insights

The key to get maximum value from the maps is to establish good technique and be prepared for experiments.

How to draw a mind map?

Starting in the center, write or draw the main topic of your note. Highlight it, so it will draw everyone's attention.

Now you can divide your topic into SUBTOPICS.

Connecting lines are important in mind maps, because they show relationships between ideas. Connecting lines depict the flow from one idea to the next.

Time to get more detailed and specific. In order to do this we need some KEYWORDS. Use just few of them (the most important). Write them in capital letters.

• It’s essential to use colors and drawings. We acquire pictorial material 60 times faster than the written one.

• You can use these symbols or establish your own:

An example of a

very simple mind map:

Task 1: Our first task will be to create a mind map connected with the topic of health. Take your time, think of as many associations as possible and describe them:

Task 2. Divide into small groups, exchange the views and try to create a map together.

Task 3. (If we have time) Now share your views and we’ll try to create a collective mind map on the board.