Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius

Transcription

1 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius This workshop is aimed at those of you who struggle gathering and sorting information when beginning to write an essay. Using MindGenius you can plan essays and presentations visually and then export your work to MS Word or PowerPoint MindGenius is a useful tool for people with dyslexia, as well as anyone who wants a visual tool for processing ideas and planning. Last updated Faye Brockwell July 2018 This document and other Information Services documents are held online on our website:

2 University of Brighton Information Services Contents Workshop requirements... 4 System and software Mind Genius Internet access and a web browser Microsoft Office... 4 What is MindMapping?... 5 The Origin of MindMapping... 6 The 8 Steps to successful Mind Mapping... 7 The Screen Layout... 9 Create a New Map...10 Creating a New Mind Map...10 Saving a Mind Map...10 Editing and Adding Branches...11 Collapsing and expanding branches...13 Zooming...13 Changing your map layout...13 Moving and deleting branches of a map...15 Deleting branches of a map...16 Editing branch text...16 Adding colour and images to your map...17 Changing the colour of branches automatically...17 Editing Branch Properties...17 Adding a boundary...18 Editing the map style...19 Templates Creating a Template Using a template for a new map:...20 Adding pictures to the map...21 Add a picture from the MindGenius picture gallery...21 Add a picture from your own files...21 Page 2 July 2018

3 Change the position and size of branch pictures Adding branch numbers Adding Notes and Associated Resources Adding Notes Adding links to websites and linking to other files Adding links to a document Spell-checking your map Exporting your Mind Map into Word Exporting your Mind Map into PowerPoint Additional help and resources... 29

4 University of Brighton Information Services Workshop requirements No files are required for this workshop Videos to accompany this document can be found at System and software Mind Genius 2018 This document uses MindGenius MindGenius is not available for Apple Mac Within the university: All Windows computers in student pool rooms and teaching rooms have MindGenius 2018 installed. Any new university Windows computers have MindGenius 2018 installed. Most staff Windows computers have MindGenius installed, but some may have an older version as the upgrade was not pushed out automatically. If you don t have MindGenius installed on your computer, or you find you have an old version, all staff can request free installation of this on their university Windows computer by contacting the Service Desk on Home installation: All staff and students can also install Mind Genius 2018 on their home windows computers for free. For more information: visit and click on the Software link in the left-hand menu click on the Discounted software for staff or Discounted software for students link on the page Mind Genius on ios devices The Mind Genius app is available for free from the App Store. Whilst the functionality of the app is minimal, you can use the app to create the structure of a map, which you can then to yourself to work on further using the desktop app Internet access and a web browser This is required for adding links to the internet to your mind map Microsoft Office This is required for the export to PowerPoint and Word.. Page 4 July 2018

5 What is MindMapping? Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Mind mapping (or concept mapping) involves writing down a central idea and thinking up new and related ideas which radiate out from the centre. By focussing on key ideas written down in your own words, and then looking for branches out and connections between the ideas, you are mapping knowledge in a manner which will help you understand and remember new information. Page 5

6 University of Brighton Information Services The Origin of MindMapping Linear Note Taking: We tend to write notes linearly, writing on lines and in sentences. However, this process is lengthy and unfortunately valuable key information is lost within masses of information quickly. Highlight Keywords: When reviewing information we tend to highlight or underline keywords little nuggets of information that are important within the body of text. Eliminate Insignificant Information: MindMapping takes this a stage further. By highlighting and focusing on keywords you eliminate at least 90% of the notes and are left with the highlighted, important text. Connect keywords: The keywords don t mean much on their own but when you connect, order and associate them they form a comprehensive summary. Categorise the Information: The use of colour helps to distinguish and categorise information. Your brain is more likely to be excited by colour and as a result become more interested in the subject content. Personalise the Information: Create your own personal images and symbols that will help you understand and remember the relationships between your thoughts. Mind Maps can be applied to most of life's situations providing clarity of thought and purpose in whatever needs tackled. You can use a map for: Page 6 July 2018

7 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius The 8 Steps to successful Mind Mapping Page 7

8 University of Brighton Information Services Why Computer-aided mapping? Both maps above are based on text on the website Page 8 July 2018

9 The Screen Layout Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Before we begin to work with MindGenius it is important to understand the screen layout. 1. File tab 2. Ribbon 3. Map Explorer 7. Templates 4. Notes editor 6. Map editor 5. Task pane 1 The File tab is where you will find the key functions such as save and print. 2 The ribbon appears at the top of the screen. The icons on the ribbon allow quick access to functions in MindGenius. Icons are grouped together on tabs. 3 The Map Explorer appears at the left hand side of the Map Editor and is used to navigate large Maps. The Map Explorer immediately allows you to focus in on an area of the Map 4 The Notes Editor is displayed below the Map Explorer. It is a text editor allowing you to add related notes to any selected branch Note: You can change the location of the Notes editor by clicking on the button on the Task Pane. This will move the Notes Editor to the bottom of the screen (as found in PowerPoint). 5 Below the notes editor is the task pane. This is a series of buttons that give you easy access some features of MindGenius such as Word Cloud and Picture Gallery. Clicking on an icon in the Task Pane loads the function into the window above. 6 The Map Editor takes up the largest part of the screen and is where maps are created and edited 7 The Templates pane appears at the right hand side of the Map Editor and comprises a template gallery with many pre-defined templates to get you started, as well as resources to help you use Mind Genius. Page 9

10 University of Brighton Information Services Create a New Map So let s get mapping! Our assignment is to write an essay on making the perfect cup of tea. Creating a New Mind Map Open MindGenius from the desktop. Click on the File tab and click to select New from the menu or click on New Blank Map in the Templates Pane. In the dialogue box type the text for the root branch of your map and click OK. The Root Branch is the first branch in a map; it describes what the map is about. Exercise A Create a new mind map 1 Create a new map with the title Making the perfect cup of tea. Saving a Mind Map Click on the File tab and click to select Save from the menu. Specify a location to save the map. Students working on university computers should save the map to One Drive or to a memory stick. Specify a name for the map and Click on Save. Exercise B Save your map 1 Save your map with the filename Tea essay. Page 10 July 2018

11 Editing and Adding Branches Double-click on a branch to edit the text. To add a new branch: Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius o o o click once on the parent branch type the text for the new branch press the Enter key on your keyboard. To add another new branch at the same level: o o type the text for the new branch press the Enter key on your keyboard. Exercise C Essay essentials All essays need an: Introduction Main body Conclusion Bibliography Let s put these key elements for an essay into our map to ensure that we don t forget them. Let s start by adding the first one: 1 Single click on the branch Making the perfect cup of tea and then type Introduction and then press the Enter key on your keyboard. The new branch has been added to the parent branch Making the perfect cup of tea 2 Use these techniques to build the map as shown below: Page 11

12 University of Brighton Information Services Exercise D Brainstorming your ideas for your essay Now we can get our ideas down for our essay. At this point, don t worry about the order of your ideas or the structure. We can organise that later. For now, just think of everything you can to do with making a cup of tea and add it to your map. The technique for this is: Click once on the topic on your map that you want to brainstorm ideas about Type your idea (no need to click the mouse anywhere else) Press ENTER on the keyboard Type your idea (no need to click the mouse anywhere else) Press ENTER on the keyboard And so on. Let s do that now. Let s add ideas of the main body of our essay (once we have these we can plan the introduction and the conclusion later) 1 Single click on the branch Main body and then type Cup type and then press the Enter key on your keyboard. The new branch has been added to the parent branch Main body 2 Use these techniques to build the map as shown below: Page 12 July 2018

13 Collapsing and expanding branches Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius You can also collapse the map to only display selected levels. This is a useful technique when revising a topic or if you do not want to display the lower-level detail of the map. To do this: Click anywhere on the blank background of the map to ensure that no branches are selected. On the Home tab click on the Display Levels icon Click to select the level you want to display The map will only display only the selected level. denotes that a branch has children. Click on the symbols in the map to expand branches and show detail. Tip: Once expanded, holding down the SHIFT key and then pressing the right or left arrows on the keyboard will collapse the children of a selected branch To display all levels again, click on the Display Levels icon on the Home tab Click to select All from the list. Zooming Is your map too big to read on the screen? Try zooming out using the Zoom tool on the toolbar at the bottom right of the screen. Changing your map layout Do you find the map layout difficult to read? Each of us has a preference for mind mapping. To change your map layout: On the Home tab, click on the Map Layouts icon. Select a layout from the gallery of layouts. For more layouts (including a change in the default order of the position of branches, click to select More Layouts and click on Map Diagram. Some like to read maps left to right (as the maps on the previous pages are laid out). Page 13

14 University of Brighton Information Services Others prefer a more circular layout: Whilst others may prefer a list-like layout like the one shown on the left. Page 14 July 2018

15 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Moving and deleting branches of a map Now we have our ideas down, we need to organise them into a logical order for our essay. We can do this by moving the branches around. To move a branch, drag and drop with your mouse. The arrows on the screen will indicate which parent branch you are moving to: These move a branch to become a sub-branch of the branch the pointer is over, i.e.in the example on the right it would become a sub-branch of Pitfalls of a Team. The arrow direction changes depending on the position of the branch. In this case the branch will be inserted at the same level as of the branch the pointer is over but above it. In this case the branch will be inserted at the same level as same level as of the branch the pointer is over but below it. The no-entry sign is displayed dropping the branch will have no effect and no move will take place. Exercise E Moving branches to form your essay structure Looking at our map, we can get an overview of our ideas and try to see patterns and links and see which of the ideas are more important for each topic. For instance, the answer to the questions Milk first? depends on the answer to two other questions the type of cup and whether a teapot is used. So it may be best to talk about those two things first in our essay. In addition to this, the most important thing about when to add your milk is that the tea needs to be brewed at 100C. So we should put that first when talking about that topic. With this in mind, move the branches on your map so that your map looks like the map on the next page: Page 15

16 University of Brighton Information Services Deleting branches of a map To delete a branch: click to select the branch press the Delete key on the keyboard. A pop-up window will appear asking you to confirm the deletion. Click on OK. Exercise F Deleting branches 1 Delete the Glass node from the cup type. 2 Add another node in its place called Paper. Editing branch text To edit the text on a branch, double-click on that branch. Exercise G Editing branch text 1 Change the China cup type to read Bone China. Page 16 July 2018

17 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Adding colour and images to your map When you started to create your MindGenius Map it was based on a default style template that defined the shapes of each branch and the colour and fonts of the text used. Some people find colour and images help when planning using a mind map. You can change the colour and appearance of your map in a number of different ways. Note: some people find it useful to change the colours on their map. However, it is not an essential part of using MindGenius for planning an essay or assignment. Changing the colour of branches automatically If colour helps you to distinguish between areas of your map, try the auto-colour function: Click on the Format tab. Click on the Auto-colour icon. Click on the Auto-colour icon again to turn it off. Editing Branch Properties Sometimes you may want to make one branch stand out from the others for emphasis. You can do this by editing its properties. Exercise H Editing the appearance of one branch This exercise takes you through just some of the things you can do to format a branch s appearance: 1 Click once on the branch you want to edit to select it. For this exercise, click once on the Cup type branch. 2 Click on the Format tab on the ribbon at the top of the screen and use the icons to format the branch. 3 For example, use the Solid Fill option to change the colour of the Branch to Light Green. Page 17

18 University of Brighton Information Services 4 For more formatting options, click on the icon in the Branch group on the Format tab (under the Connector Style icon) to open the Branch Appearance dialogue box. 5 For example, click on the Branch Shape tab to edit the style of your selected branch including the Shape Style, Line type/colour and Fill Colour. 6 Click on the Font tab to edit the appearance of the text within the branch. 7 Click OK to finish editing the branch. Try editing Font Colour and Font Size and the Shape Style, Fill Colour and Line Style of the Cup Type branch on your map. Adding a boundary You can add a boundary to an area of the map for extra emphasis and to group areas together. Click once to select the highest branch of the area want to add the boundary to. On the Format tab, within the Boundary group, use the Style and Fill options to apply a boundary to the selected branch and all of its sub-branches. Exercise I Adding a boundary Let s try that. 1 Add a boundary to the Milk first? node of your map. That section of your map may now look something like this: 2 Before moving on try editing the properties of a branch in different ways, change the fonts used and the styles of the shapes and connectors to make you familiar with what is possible. Page 18 July 2018

19 Editing the map style Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Editing a style saves you time as if you update the formatting for a certain branch level, the changes will automatically apply to all branches of the same level. Click on the Format tab. Click on the Edit Map Style icon to open the Format Styles window. On the Style Formatting tab choose the branch level to update. Format the branch as required using the icons on the tabs. Click on OK. This will apply the changes to the map. If the changes are not applied to the map, check that the Style Assignment tab has the correct assignments. Exercise J Editing the map style Let s change the look of the Core and the Level 1 Branches: 1 On the Format tab, click on the Edit Map Style icon, then click on the Style Formatting tab 2 Select Core from the list of levels on the left (this will allow us to change the root level of the map) 3 Click on the Branch Shape Tab and choose Ellipse from the Shape Style List, note the sample changing 4 Try changing the font colour for Level 1 to red. Then change the branch fill to be yellow. Click OK when you have finished. Page 19

20 University of Brighton Information Services Templates So now you know how to alter the style of a map. What if you have created your own style and want to use it every time you start a new map? What if you find yourself creating many similar maps? In this case you need to create a template. A template can contain more than simply an embedded style; it can also contain content Creating a Template To create a template: Update your styles as above. If you want the template to open as a new empty map, without any predefined content, delete all of the branches from the map too before you save it as a template. Click on the File tab and choose Save As. Click on the drop down in the Save as type box and choose MindGenius Template. In the Save in box, choose a file location (staff can use MyFiles or use the default file location, students should save to their M drive or USB stick). Specify a name for your template in the File Name box. For this example, name the template mind mapping Click on Save Using a template for a new map: In the Navigation Pane on the right click on My Templates. Navigate to find where you saved your template, select the it and click Open. 1 For this exercise, navigate to and choose the mind_mapping template we just created. The map opens, prompting you to re-name the root branch you can alter the name core level. After clicking OK, note that this new map looks identical to the one you opened earlier but it is a different map. It is based on the template you created. Using this procedure you can create templates for commonly used types of maps. Remember there already is a set of templates included with MindGenius Page 20 July 2018

21 Adding pictures to the map Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius It is believed that the memory's storing and recalling powers can be enhanced through the use of pictures for emphasis and association. In other words adding associated pictures to a branch may help you remember the information held in that branch. So let s add some pictures! Add a picture from the MindGenius picture gallery Click once on the branch that you want to add the picture to. Click on the Picture Gallery icon the screen. at the bottom left of Scroll down to find a relevant picture. Double click on the picture to add it to the selected branch. Exercise K Add a picture from the MindGenius picture gallery 1 Click on the Cup type branch of your map 2 Click on the Picture Gallery icon at the bottom left of the screen. 3 Scroll down to find a relevant picture. 4 Double click on the picture to add it to the Cup type branch. Add a picture from your own files Click once on the branch that you want to add the picture to. On the Insert tab click on the Browse for a Picture icon. Locate the picture file on your computer, click once to select it, then click Open. Exercise L Add a picture from file 1 Add a picture to the Teapot or cup? branch. Look in the My Pictures folder or library on your computer and choose a picture file to add. *You may need to find some suitable pictures on the internet and save them to your computer first. Remember to reference any images from the web if your mind map will be used as part of an assignment. Page 21

22 University of Brighton Information Services Change the position and size of branch pictures Click on the branch containing the picture Click on the Insert tab To change the size of the picture use the Size icons and To change the position of the picture within a branch, use the Position icon. To delete an image from a node, click on the Remove icon Your map may now look something like this: Page 22 July 2018

23 7.3.1 Adding branch numbers Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Branches are added sequentially, in other words they have a numeric order. To display the branch numbers: click on the Format tab Click on the Numbering icon. Adding Notes and Associated Resources Completing an essay or assignment involves a varying degree of time spent researching the subject. MindGenius allows you to store the information associated with your branches in a number of different ways. So let s have a look at what you can do. Adding Notes Branch titles should be short. However, sometimes you want to store more text for a branch, for example: explanatory notes about a topic a flash of inspiration for what you want to write about a topic a quotation that you want to use when writing about a topic. The Notes Editor can be used to contain this additional information. If you export your map to MS Word, any notes will be included as body text in your Word document. If your export your map to MS PowerPoint, any notes will be included in your presentation as speaker notes. Click to select the branch you want to add notes to. In the Task Pane, click on the icon to display the Notes Editor. Above the notes pane, click on the icon to dock the notes panes below the map and to make more formatting options become available. Click inside the Notes Editor and type your notes Page 23

24 University of Brighton Information Services Click anywhere on the map. An icon will appear on that branch to indicate that there are notes associated with the branch. To view the notes you will need to click on the branch. Tip: You can copy and paste text into the Notes Editor documents using CTRL+C and CTRL+V as normal. You can also format the notes using the toolbar above the Notes Editor. Exercise M Add notes to your map 1 For this exercise add the following notes to the Optimum temperature for brewing is 100C sub-branch.. The water temperature for green tea should be around 80c; using a lower temperature avoids the bitterness that can be experienced using freshly boiled water Taken from on 26/07/18. Adding links to websites and linking to other files During your research process you will probably gather resources to support your essay or assignment; these can also be stored in your map. Here s how: Exercise N Adding links to websites Let s say you ve found a collection of useful websites that you would like to refer to in your assignment or essay, adding them to a branch would be a useful way of storing and using the links, so here s how: 1 Click on the sub-branch that you want to add a link to. 2 On the Insert tab click on the on the Hyperlink icon. 3 In the dialogue box that opens up type the details of the website and then click on OK. 4 For this exercise, add the details above to the Optimum temperature for brewing is 100C sub-branch. Page 24 July 2018

25 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius 5 You will see an icon has appeared on the relevant branch (the icon will be the icon for your default internet browser). Now add a second website of your choice, following the instructions 1 3. If you add more than one website address the icon will change to a paperclip. Hover over this icon with your mouse to display the web sites you ve just added. To visit one of the sites simply click on the title. Adding links to a document It s possible to add attachments to your map. For instance, if you ve created a separate document containing your detailed notes for a certain topic, you can add a link to this document to your map. This is useful when you export your map to Word as all linked information can be exported with your map. To add a link to a document: Click on the sub-branch that you want to add a link to. On the Insert tab, click on the Attachment icon. In the Add Attachments dialogue box, type the description of the file in the Description box. Click on the Browse icon. Locate the document file on your computer and double-click to select it Click OK. An icon will appear on your selected branch to indicate that an attachment has been added. For instance, if you add a Word document, you will see the logo. If you add multiple attachments to one branch, the icon will change to a paperclip Exercise O Adding a link to a document 1 Try adding a file attachment to one of the branches in your map. Spell-checking your map To check the spelling of your map: Click on the Tools tab on the ribbon and click on the Spell Check icon. Page 25

26 University of Brighton Information Services Exporting your Mind Map into Word So we ve created branches, added images, resources and notes, now how do we get this information into an essay form? Exercise P Exporting into Word 1 Close MS Word if you already have it open on your computer. This is because the export to Word only works if you do not already have MS Word open on your desktop. 2 Save your map. 3 Click on the Export tab on the ribbon and click on the Word icon. 4 In the Save As dialogue box that appears: o o o choose the location to save your file to (your One Drive or a USB stick) give the file a name click on Save. When using a university computer, do not save to the desktop or to the C drive as these files will be deleted when you log off. 5 In the Save as Word dialogue enter the details as shown below: 6 Click OK. Word should now open with your new document, ready for you to expand upon your initial preparation and research. If you get an error message saying that the call was rejected by the rejectee, it may be that you have Word open in another window. Close Word and try to export your map again. Page 26 July 2018

27 Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius Each branch of your map will be assigned a heading style according to its level. Using styles in Word will save you a lot of time when working with long documents, such as essays and theses, as they allow you to: Save time formatting long documents Produce professional-looking documents Create tables of contents easily Edit the structure of your document easily. If you use Word, you should really know how to use styles properly. To learn more about styles, see our Working with Long Documents information on Exporting your Mind Map into PowerPoint Mind Maps can be exported to MS PowerPoint. Your map forms the structure of the presentation. You can plan the structure of the presentation in Mind Genius. The export works as follows: The Core node will export as the title slide of the presentation. An introduction slide is created with the Core as the title and all Level 1 nodes shown as bullet points. One slide per Level 1 node is created*, with sub-branches appearing as bulleted text. Notes are exported as speaker notes. Exercise Q Exporting into PowerPoint 1 Close PowerPoint. 2 Save your map. 3 Click on the Export tab on the ribbon and click on the PowerPoint icon. 4 In the Save As dialogue box that appears: o o choose the location to save your file to (your One Drive or a USB stick) give the file a name and click on Save. When using a university computer, do not save to the desktop or to the C drive as these files will be deleted when you log off. Page 27

28 University of Brighton Information Services Use the drop down to specify the maximum number of bullet points per slide. Specify which levels in your map will be converted to the titles of slides in your presentation. With the default setting of Level 1 and Page Break: o o o The Core node will export as the title slide of the presentation. An introduction slide is created with the Core as the title and all Level 1 nodes shown as bullet points. One slide per Level 1 node is created*, with sub-branches appearing as bulleted text. For larger maps, you may want to change this. Click on the Include Options tab for more options. Use the checkboxes to specify which elements of your map you want to export and Click OK. With the default settings: the root branch has become the title of the slideshow each level 1 branch has become a slide header sub-branches have become bulleted points on the slide notes have become the speaker notes of each slide. to get rid of the MindGenius branding, click on the Design tab and choose an alternative design for your presentation. your slideshow is practically ready! Page 28 July 2018

29 Additional help and resources Essay & Assignment Preparation using MindGenius For more training materials on using MindGenius, see: For more information about mind mapping you may be interested in visiting: Page 29