Organization and Hierarchy
When determining how to create a graphic, it is important to remember that hierarchy, or communicating relative importance between elements in a display, determines where the eye is first drawn. If we place our most important piece of information in the lower right hand corner of a visual aid to be used in Western culture, it will likely be the last piece of information seen.
When working with hierarchical organization, vertical, horizontal, and diagonal alignment are important elements to consider. When speaking about vertical alignment, the information placed at the top of your graphic will be seen as having high importance, whereas information placed at the bottom of the graphic will be seen as having low importance. Horizontal organization is similar except that information found on the left hand side of the graphic is more important and information on the right as less important.
For my graphic this week, I created a rubric for the research paper 6th-8th grade students are working on. I have created the graphic with a few elements:
1. The information on the left side, or categories, will give them easy access to which category they are looking for. Because I want all students to do work that exceeds the objectives, I have placed the Level 3 information first. Hopefully students won't even read the 'Doesn't Meet Objectives' column so they aren't striving for mediocrity. The information is still contained in the rubric because I use it to grade the research papers and highlight where a student's work would be found.
2. I have placed the Purpose and Content portion of the paper at the top of the horizontal alignment since it is the most important part of my students' writing. I worry far less about the grammar and mechanics, located at the bottom of the horizontal hierarchy. However, because it is still important, it needs to be included.
3. I have shaded the rows within the rubric so there is no confusion as to which expectations are included in each category.
4. I have listed each of the objectives in list format with periods at the end of each sentence versus putting the objectives in paragraph form which would be confusing to read and understand the expectations.
When working with hierarchical organization, vertical, horizontal, and diagonal alignment are important elements to consider. When speaking about vertical alignment, the information placed at the top of your graphic will be seen as having high importance, whereas information placed at the bottom of the graphic will be seen as having low importance. Horizontal organization is similar except that information found on the left hand side of the graphic is more important and information on the right as less important.
For my graphic this week, I created a rubric for the research paper 6th-8th grade students are working on. I have created the graphic with a few elements:
1. The information on the left side, or categories, will give them easy access to which category they are looking for. Because I want all students to do work that exceeds the objectives, I have placed the Level 3 information first. Hopefully students won't even read the 'Doesn't Meet Objectives' column so they aren't striving for mediocrity. The information is still contained in the rubric because I use it to grade the research papers and highlight where a student's work would be found.
2. I have placed the Purpose and Content portion of the paper at the top of the horizontal alignment since it is the most important part of my students' writing. I worry far less about the grammar and mechanics, located at the bottom of the horizontal hierarchy. However, because it is still important, it needs to be included.
3. I have shaded the rows within the rubric so there is no confusion as to which expectations are included in each category.
4. I have listed each of the objectives in list format with periods at the end of each sentence versus putting the objectives in paragraph form which would be confusing to read and understand the expectations.
research_paper_rubric_–_intermediate_language_skills_b.docx | |
File Size: | 155 kb |
File Type: | docx |