Saddleback Valley Unified School District

THINKING MAPS YEAR 1 TRAINING

Thinking Maps is a whole-school, brain-based approach to teaching and learning designed to build foundational critical thinking, problem-solving, comprehension, and and communication skills necessary for academic success. The Maps provide a shared visual "language for learning" for an entire school. Thinking Maps are a set of eight visual patterns or icons that each represent a specific cognitive process. Unlike graphic organizers, which are highly varied and inconsistent, the eight Thinking Maps are used consistently across all grades and content areas. This ensures that students develop automaticity with the major thought processes by using the Maps to engage the cognitive processes they represent. As students build fluency with the Maps, they internalize these cognitive skills and learn how to become better learners, thinkers, and communicators.