Day 27 –Sketchnotes with the Surface RT

30 Days with a Surface RT for Teachers 

Teaching and Learning with a Windows 8 Tablet

I discussed a computer-based app yesterday for mind mapping on the Surface RT. Today, I would like to discuss a more organic approach that is also loosely based on the mind mapping idea using something called sketchnotes.

Learning is Messy

Perhaps it is just me but when I am learning something new learning feels messy. I feel awkward like a baby trying to learn how to take those first steps. It would be really nice to create a perfect mind map the first time I learn something new but learning does not work that way. We have gaps in our knowledge that need to be filled and a mind map is a great way to expose some of those gaps.

I am the type that likes to doodle as I think about and learn new things. When we learn something new by definition we do not have control of all the knowledge and facts needed for mastery. Sketching helps me connect the knowledge I already have with new material. There is something about the hand and eye working together that provides the conditions necessary for learning AND remembering new things. Making associations from the known to the unknown is how we learn.

Tony Buzan is one of the leaders in the field of mind mapping and has conducted years of research into its effectiveness. He has written many books on the subject and has a system based upon his research. Buzan is one of the experts in the field but many others have used the mind mapping concept going back hundreds of years. I have provided a more general link below to a Wikipedia article about mind maps if you want a quick overview.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map

There are many different ways to use the basic premise of creating mind maps. You generally start with an idea or concept in the middle of the page and branch out from there.

Sketchnoting is a little different take on mind mapping and is not as structured.

A new trend in attending some conferences is to invite an artist to create something known as sketchnotes. As the name implies this is just a sketch about a particular topic that transforms the spoken word into a sketch that is usually done on a large sheet of paper taped to a wall. Here is another link to the Sketchnote Army that provides hundreds of examples.

http://sketchnotearmy.com/

There is no one right way to create a sketchnote, do what works for you. Some use colors others use monochrome. Some use more sketches, others use more words. The important thing is for these notes to help you learn and remember whatever content you are trying to master.

Now, how can we use the Surface RT to help us create freeform mind maps and sketch notes? There are actually many ways but I will mention a couple to get started.

The first app that works very well on the Surface RT is Sketch Book Express. I purchased a capacitive stylus to help me sketch more precisely than just using my finger and this works OK on the Surface RT. I say “just OK” because my experience on the Surface Pro with active digitizer Pen is much, much better. Since the Surface RT uses a capacitive touch screen it is similar to the iPad and is not meant for precise work. It feels like finger painting so you do not have a lot of control.

Yesterday, I used M8! app to create a detailed mind map about the Surface RT, below is my sketchnote example with a similar Surface RT theme. I did not sketch many symbols but wanted to represent the big features of the Surface RT.

Both the Surface RT and the iPad feel limited with precision compared to the superior drawing and writing experience on the Surface Pro. Having said that, it is quite workable if you do not need precise control and will do fine for most classroom work. 

Below is another sketchnote example I created on my Surface Pro, notice there is a lot more detail and I did sketch some symbols to help me associate the material because the digital Pen is easier to use.

Yesterdays M8! example was computer-based and all neat and tidy but my sketchnote today is free-form and messy. One is not better than the other, just different. The M8! app and the sketchnotes I created above represent the same information but in two completely different visual presentation styles. Some may find my sketches hideous and prefer the neat M8! computer-based app and that is fine, but for me I find value in associating my handwritten notes in a colorful sketchnote form. The good news is that the Surface RT is a flexible tool and you get to decide how to use it best for your needs.

OneNote for Sketchnotes

You can also use OneNote to make your mind maps and sketches. This is one reason I am such a fan of OneNote for teaching and learning. You can type your notes or you can use handwriting (or both). You can draw symbols and sketches at any time in OneNote. Best of all since you are doing this work in a OneNote notebook you can share it immediately with your students if you would like.

Instant access to a teachers notes sounds like something of value to a student learning new things.

Or...... if you want to do it old school you can just use regular paper and colored pencils and sketch things out the old fashioned way with no need to be limited by the digital touch screen. When you are finished with the paper sketch you can use the camera on the Surface RT to take a snapshot of your paper notes and insert the picture into OneNote..... and since OneNote has Optical Character Recognition it can search for words within the sketch.

Taking the cognitive burden of notetaking away from students learning complex subjects frees the learners mind to concentrate on the new. 

Maybe the students would not need to frantically worry about copying down everything you say to their own notes... maybe they could be freed to concentrate more on the material being presented rather than expending their energy on notetaking... maybe later they could regenerate your notes after class when they are studying into a mind map or sketchnote form, hmmmm, multi-pass learning :)

Think outside the box, there are a million ways to teach something new. The Surface RT has a lot of out of the box thinking going into its creation. This out of the box thinking is why I think some people do not get the Surface RT and deride it in the press. If you take the time to learn some new things about the Surface RT you will be rewarded with a very capable and affordable device for teaching and learning.

Until next time...
Keep on Learning,

Tom Grissom, PhD

Follow me on Twitter @tomgrissom

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