Bring Authentic Learning to Life with Infographics

By Jenny Pieratt, CraftED Curriculum. 

Bringing learning to life is the aspiration and challenge of almost every educator. We know that when students see the relevance in their learning, their engagement increases. And when that happens, our job is a whole lot easier and much more fulfilling.

Sometimes we don’t have a good answer to student questions such as “why are we learning this?” and in those moments  it can be difficult to find a real-world connection to the content in front of you. For these moments I want to offer up one way in which infographics can help you.

When students set out to learn new content, through whatever format you chose (inquiry-based research, lab exploration, webquest, webinar, direct instruction, etc.), it’s important to parallel their learning with ongoing reflection.

One critical question for students to explore as they learn is “who would benefit from learning this information?” This question evolves as students continue to learn, research and explore the following: “Does that population we identified have access to this information? why or why not?” 

When this stage of learning culminates it’s important to turn the learning into action by asking“How can we help this population know what we now know?” and “How might we leverage infographics as a tool to educate this community?”

Identifying an authentic audience for student work does so much for the learning process: it raises the stakes for the quality of work students produce and it gives meaning to their projects. It also makes it feel real, knowing that real people will see what they have made. Having an audience in mind also teaches students to tailor their messaging and be mindful of their voice – a skill not only valued by CCSS, but also a good life skill!

There are many ways to integrate real-world connections in the classroom. That being said, sometimes baby steps are the best way to start. Infographics intended for a public audience are a small step toward more authentic learning, and one that I hope you are considering.

If you’d like to learn more about infographics in the classroom, get extra advice from Jenny: 3 Tips for Pushing Critical Thinking with Infographics.

Jenny Pieratt, PhD is the Founder and President of CraftED Curriculum-an online resource of teaching tools for designing deeper learning experiences. She is a  National Faculty member of Buck Institute for Education, a former founding staff member of High Tech High North County and School Development Coach for New Tech Network. While she was in the classroom she  taught grades 5-10.

To learn more about Jenny and her work with CraftED visit www.craftedcurriculum.com and follower her on Twitter at @craftEDcm.

Do you need a tool to help build charts and infographics for the classroom? Infogram is here to help! Fill out the form below for more information.