We needed to create some graphic organizers to go along with our Grade Two Literacy Curriculum, so I thought it best to make a full blog post on the topic. After all, graphic organizers are a perfect tool for young writers! I wanted to be sure you knew about them.
Oh, and I also wanted to be sure you got some awesome free printable graphic organizers too, so those you can find at the bottom of this post.
We use this tool in our Curriculum to help young writers organize their thoughts. They are excellent for helping children organize their thoughts before writing a creative piece of their own. They are also excellent for helping children organize their thoughts before writing a summary of something they have read.
But there is one additional step needed before using a graphic organizer with children. Talk it out! Before we have children put pencil to paper at all, it is critical that we give them the opportunity to talk through their ideas. Young children are capable of speaking in far more detail and with far greater clarity than they can write, of course. So we need to help them use this skill.
By having our children speak with us first about their ideas, we can help them to organize their thoughts and think through details that might not be very relevant or details that they are missing. We can help them to structure their thoughts and make a solid plan.
Once this has been done aloud, it is time for the graphic organizer. Graphic organizers allow children to begin putting that discussion they had with a grown-up down on paper. It gives them a tool for organizing their writing and ensuring all important parts are included.
There are approximately 1 254 678 graphic organizers available online (give or take). The ones I have included for you here are nice and simple and work in so many different situations and with a wide variety of types of writing. We have called them “Personal Recount Organizers.” They help children to organize two different things, both important for writing:
First of all, children will be writing about: Who, What, When, and Why
Secondly, children will write about the sequence of events: First, Next, Then, Last.
Since all minds are different, we have two different graphic organizers available in the download with the same information organized in a different way. One includes a simple column, or stream, for children to record all the needed information. The second is a web, allowing visual learners to see how everything is interconnected. There is also one version with lines to write on, and another version without. 
Of course, if you are already in the middle of our Grade Two Literacy Curriculum, you are already set! And if you are not yet, join us! Check out our Grade Two Literacy Curriculum right here: https://shop.howweelearn.com/products/grade-two-literacy-curriculum
And now, without further ado, are your free printable graphic organizers. I hope they are helpful to you and your little writer!
Grab your FREE Printable Graphic Organizer Write (Ha!) Here
Thank you so much for reading, and please be sure to leave a comment below if you have any questions at all. I am here to help you along with this lifelong learning journey.
xo
Sarah
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