1. Select a drawing medium
Many people use pen and paper or a whiteboard because they’re readily available. Still, it’s not easy to save your whiteboard scribbles or make your handwritten diagram look professional once you’re done.
There are also options through Word or other platforms to create a concept map digitally. The advantage of saving your work in a digital format so it’s easy to share, edit, and polish your diagram.
2. Create a main concept
Whatever medium you choose, the next step is determining the central idea you want to detail. The central idea of this assignment is Chapter 11 (Fundamentals of the Nervous System).
3. Identify key concepts
After selecting a main concept, the next step is to write down sub-concepts. Make a list of the information covered in Chapter 11 (Fundamentals of the Nervous System), and rank them from general to specific. This list should consist of around 15-25 key sub-concepts, possibly more.
Describe each concept as briefly as possible; usually, one or two words per sub-concept. Keeping your descriptions concise will prevent your map from becoming text-heavy.
4. Organize shapes and lines
Order each of your concepts in a hierarchical format, with the most general ideas at the top of the map under your main concept and the most specific ones at the bottom. Your concept map will take form as you connect shapes with lines and pinpoint the correct location for each idea.
Concept maps typically have text, or linking words, written on each line to make sense of the relationship between a general concept and more specific ones. The text might include a specific verb like “provides” or “encompasses.”
Once you’ve created this preliminary concept map containing the basic links, add cross-links to illustrate relationships between concepts on the same specificity level.
5. Fine-tune the map
As you add links to every concept, carefully examine the relationships you’re illustrating. Ask yourself questions like:
Does every concept fit well in its respective place?
Is there a better position for this idea or group of ideas?
Can I use a more accurate linking word to represent this relationship?
