Identify your learners' needs. Graphic organizers visually sort new information and help learners make connections between old and new information. Many learners benefit from this visual approach; however, if you have spatial or social learners, they might find it difficult to use graphic organizers. If the majority of your class learns this way, then divide students and allow some to work on graphic organizers while others can find other ways to display information and make connections.
Determine your students' reading abilities. Traditional graphic organizers will not work well for early or emergent readers unless tailored to fit their needs. If you can, group students by their similar reading abilities. Students with high reading levels can be expected to complete graphic organizers, while emerging readers can alter the graphic organizer. Or, you can also divide students into groups of different abilities to see if they will benefit from graphic organizer use, with the idea that students of high reading and writing abilities will help those with emerging abilities.
Assess the effectiveness of graphic organizers in your classroom. Compare test scores and students' comprehension of a lesson's material to another unit of study in which you did not use graphic organizers to see if students' scores improved, stayed the same or declined. If the scores improved, then it is likely that your class benefits from the use of graphic organizers to visualize information.
Ask students if they felt that the graphic organizers helped them understand information. If not, ask them what kinds of activities enhance their understanding.