To achieve good academic performance, it is important to have some strategies that save time and improve your productivity . Using a mind map to study allows you to prepare in the best way possible for the Exam and also for the entrance exam, in addition to helping you to memorize more tiring content.
This tool is especially important when studying topics related to the exact sciences, especially those that involve several branches and a complicated form. If you want to learn how mind mapping can help you in your study routine, keep reading and check out our tips!
What are mind maps?
A mind map is a diagram created based on a central idea and which unfolds through several branches. Each of them represents a development of the subject in question and its design resembles neurons in a brain.
This material can be created by hand or using various applications developed for this purpose. A color scheme is also feasible to organize the content and create a hierarchy between topics.
This tool is used to guide the learning process and to reinforce concepts related to a single topic. When preparing for a specific test or college entrance exam, it is normal to come across several topics and subjects covered in the assessment. Therefore, the mind map is an essential resource to facilitate memorization and to compress several pages of content into a single image.
Why use mind maps to study?
Using this learning tool has the potential to optimize your performance during study hours. If you want to know why you should use it, keep reading.
Helps with memorization
Mind maps present a sequence of information that facilitates the memorization of important topics for your development. There is scientific research that proves the efficiency of this tool in knowledge retention.
For example, there is a study that shows that using this method in studies can help you retain between 10 and 15% more information. Therefore, if you have difficulty memorizing important points of a subject, it is a good idea to use a mind map.
Facilitates understanding
Do you know those topics that you can’t get your head around when you’re studying? If you want to overcome this challenge and understand more about it, using a mind map can be an interesting way out.
Since this tool creates a chain of information, when you create it you can understand the details and, in this way, absorb even the most complex points of a subject. Therefore, to ace tests and competitions, it is worth incorporating maps into your routine .
Improves productivity
If you work and study and therefore have a busy routine, finding ways to be productive is an important step towards improving your qualifications and achieving your professional goals .
In this sense, using mind maps and tools that help create them is an interesting alternative. Through these resources, it is possible to study in a more focused way and have between 20 and 30% more productivity, according to this research .
How to use mind maps to study?
Did you see how this resource can help you understand complex topics and more challenging subjects? Now that you know the importance of using mind maps in your studies, see below how to create them in a simple and efficient way.
Set the theme
The first step in creating your mind map is to choose a topic. Since this will be the focus of your material, it is important to choose just one topic to cover. You can use your summaries and sections of books for reference while creating this material.
Imagine, for example, that the topic of interest is Feudalism. Given that this topic involves several aspects, it is interesting to use a mind map to organize all the subtopics.
List subtopics
When establishing a theme as the center of your map, it is important to gather all the content you have on the subject. Books, web pages, solved exercises and summaries are excellent sources of reference for developing the entire flow. Think of the subtopics as small developments of the subject in question and draw each of them in connection with the theme.
Following the previous example, the subtopics of Feudalism may involve: crusades, medieval churches, politics, serfs, economy, society, among others. Thus, it is possible to list the main characteristics of each of the elements listed above.
This construction compacts the content and organizes the information into blocks to make it easier to memorize.
Use drawings
Using patterns and a good color scheme can make your maps fun and more organized. By creating a color scheme, it becomes easier to remember than maps that don’t use this feature.
Drawings need to refer to the topics they are related to and make sense when memorizing them. Through them, you can study Mathematics , Chemistry and Physics in a much more fun way. So don’t hold back on creativity and let your artistic talents be applied even when preparing for college entrance exams.