Right-click to Add Text to write our title inside the oval. Tip: you can hold Shift as you drag to keep it a perfect circle. Click on the drawing canvas and drag the oval to whatever size you like. Click on Shapes again under the Insert tab and choose Oval under Basic Shapes. We’ll use an oval for our core concept (you can use the focus question itself or just a short version of it). Then select Shapes and choose New Drawing Canvas at the bottom of the dropdown menu. Open a new document in Microsoft Word and click on the Insert tab in the ribbon at the top. Step-by-step guide to making a concept map in Microsoft word Step 1 Let’s see if we can create a quick concept map in Microsoft Word based on that concept. Concept maps are generally read from top to bottom.Ī simple example of a focus question is “How do astronomers classify planets in the solar system?”. You start with general concepts at the top, such a concept related to the focus question, and work downwards to map out more specific concepts. Concept maps are hierarchical in structure. Once you have your focus question – the main idea of your concept map – you can create it as a shape at the top of your map. The better your focus question, the more useful your concept map, so it’s worth spending some time working it out. This can be a phrase, word, or question that the map is designed to explore. To start constructing a concept map, it can be useful to start with a focus question. These shapes and lines make up a network of concepts and their connections. The lines and arrows represent relationships and can also include text labels to explain the nature of these relationships. On the most basic level, a concept map consists of titled circles or boxes connected with lines or arrows. That can be especially useful when collaborating in teams or explaining ideas to anyone unfamiliar with your area of expertise.

When you create a graphical overview of ideas, you make them easier to comprehend and also remember.Ĭoncept maps not only help you to understand and visualize how ideas relate to each other, they also help you to communicate your knowledge to others. Creating a concept map is a way to organize, explore, and expand your understanding of a topic. Concept maps were first used in universities in the 1970s, but are now also used by engineers, designers, businesses, and anyone who needs to illustrate how concepts relate to each other.

Drawing a mind map in word