.svg)
How to Create Concept Maps from Online Documents with Algor Education
For those who have access to online documents such as digital books, PDF notes or simply Word or doc files, creating concept maps from their own texts is very convenient and effective.
On Algor Education, documents and environment communicate in the same screen and you can extract the text and images of the nodes of your map directly from the documents uploaded to the platform. This web app allows us to extract from the document what we need to build the map, keeping the document in the workspace, while our concept map will take shape every time we add nodes.
In this article we will see how to create concept maps in a few clicks from online documents in a few simple steps:
Register for a free account today and get 50mb of document storage!
To use the Algor Education web app, it is necessary to register with a free account. Registration is very simple: you can sign up via email and password, or log in with your Google account. Not registered yet? Go to Algor Education and create your free account!
With the Free Plan, you will have 50 MB for your documents. Now let's see an example of creating a map starting from a PDF.
A step-by-step guide
Once you log in or sign up, your "Personal Area" will open up, where you will find the various functionalities of the app that you can use: Maps, Documents, Voice Synthesis. To use your documents, you will need to upload them to the app. Click on the "Upload" button, select the document from which to create your concept map (among the files on your device). Once uploaded, the PDF file will appear in the "Material" section of your Personal Area.
Your document is correctly uploaded in "Material". From here, you just need to click on it to open and view it in its entirety. The document will appear like this.
On the left, you will find a menu with various tools such as the highlighter or pencil to write and underline the parts that interest you within the document. To create a map from this document, you will need to click the button on the right side of our screen, where the concept map icon is represented. By clicking the icon, the "New" option will appear to proceed to create the map.
From this moment on, the map will be linked to the document: every time you open your PDF to consult it, you can easily retrieve it for a quick review or to apply new modifications.
A step-by-step guide with examples
Now you can build your map concept by concept.
In our example, the central topic of the concept map we want to build is volcanoes. Therefore, in the main node (in red) we will write the title of the topic and from there we will start creating the hierarchical flow, from general to specific in a hierarchical manner.
To create child nodes starting from the title, simply click on the parent node, go to the document and highlight the text that interests us. After selecting the sentence or keyword we want to insert into the new node, the "+" icon will appear allowing us to generate a new node.
To continue building the map, simply select the parent node from which we want to connect the child nodes. We then choose a new macro-topic "The Structure of a Volcano" and then insert even more specific concepts.
It is important to underline that the document and the concept map communicate with each other: if, for example, we change the highlight color in the document to a word or phrase that we have inserted as a node in the map (for example, the "crust" node in yellow), the background color of the map will also change correspondingly in yellow.
When we have completed the construction of the concept map, we can view it full screen by hiding the document (we will need to click on the document icon in the top left) and proceed with customizing the map. In fact, we can add images from the PC or the web, Youtube videos, links to web resources, change the color of the nodes and the font of the texts.
This process of building the concept map is extremely fast and easy because we don't have to manually write the content of the various nodes but we just need to, as we have seen, highlight the words or phrases that interest us and insert them with a simple click.
Having the ability to draw from the document itself will guarantee a simpler work and at the same time a learning experience of 10!
Revolutionize your study habits with algor education's dynamic online concept maps
Building online concept maps allows for more dynamic studying: it reduces the time needed to create the maps and ensures greater personalization and convenience. That's why choosing the web app Algor Education to create your maps is the right and tailored choice for you and your study needs. For more information on how to download digital textbooks, check out our dedicated guide.
Revolutionize your concept mapping with algor education's automatic text-to-map and quick map features
With Algor Education, you can create your concept map manually, node by node, or automatically with the support of automatic suggestions from your text. Algor allows you to select a text, summarize it, and display it as a map automatically. Check out this video guide on Text to Map to find out how. In addition, a brand new feature is the Quick Map, which, starting from a simple keyword, automatically suggests questions related to the starting topic and their corresponding answers, which will help you compose the map. Easy, right?
Revolutionize your learning with customizable mind maps and easy access to materials anywhere, anytime!
You will have an intuitive operational area where you will find all the materials uploaded by you (such as documents) and your previously created mind maps, ready to be consulted whenever and wherever you want, even from your smartphone. Your mind maps are completely customizable, from fonts to colors, and you can add images, videos, and links to the map that will help you in learning all the topics!
Algor education's text-to-speech technology and dyslexia-friendly fonts for inclusive studying experience
Algor Education also makes studying accessible to everyone thanks to text-to-speech technology and dyslexia-friendly fonts, with a simple and intuitive interface.
Our web app ensures a 360° study experience for all students, especially those with learning disabilities or special educational needs (SEN) who recognize concept maps as the ideal and personalized tool for their every need, guaranteeing them a complete study experience.
The goal is to build, day by day, the ideal digital environment to offer everything that will contribute to making studying more inclusive. Whether you are a student, a parent, a teacher, or a tutor, we invite you to try our web app: you won't be disappointed!
Article by Rosaria Spiniello, content creator.
