Thinking Maps

09/18/2026

It's Friday Map Day, and this week, we're branching out!
Meet the Tree Map: one of the 8 Thinking Maps used in classrooms every day to help students classify information, organize main ideas, and break down details with clarity.
Whether you're sorting types of quadrilaterals in math or building reading comprehension, the Tree Map gives learners a visual structure to think not just memorize facts.

Ready to explore all 8 maps and the tools that bring them to life?
Visit www.thinkingmaps.com to learn more

09/16/2026

PRESS RELEASE: Thinking Maps® Launches Foundations: A Visual Language for Critical Thinking. A landmark resource for building schoolwide thinking cultures!

From the Teacher's Guide to the full Coaching Toolkit, Foundations gives every school the tools to build one shared visual language for critical thinking, K-12.

Read it now: https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/936898238/thinking-maps-launches-a-landmark-resource-for-building-schoolwide-thinking-cultures

Questions? We'd love to hear from you: thinkingmaps.com | 800-243-9169

09/15/2026

Which Thinking Map do you reach for most?

Circle Map for brainstorming and context. Flow Map for sequencing and process. Tree Map for classifying or Main Idea and Details. Bubble Map for describing with adjectives. Every one of the 8 Thinking Maps® builds a different type of thinking, and most educators have a go-to.

Tell us yours in the comments.

Don't know all 8 yet? Visit thinkingmaps.com to see the full framework or call 1-800-243-9169 / email [email protected] to talk with our team.

09/11/2026

It's Friday, and that means it's time for The Friday Map!
This week, we're spotlighting the Circle Map-one of the eight Thinking Maps.
Whether students are exploring a new concept, activating prior knowledge, or diving into a science lesson on spiders, the Circle Map gives learners a visual space to gather everything they know about a topic and connect it to the bigger picture.
See how TMLC's Map Gallery and AI tool bring the Circle Map to life in the classroom. Ready to try it yourself? Visit www.thinkingmaps.com

09/09/2026

What changes when an entire district starts thinking differently? We asked Suzanne Farmer, CAO of Danville Independent Schools, to share what she’s seeing firsthand since bringing Thinking Maps to teachers and students across the district.

Her response says it best: “Thinking Maps has been really transformational to our district.”
And the impact goes beyond instruction. Suzanne shares that Thinking Maps has helped make students “more reflective as students,” while giving them a common way to start their work, continue it, and communicate their thinking. And this is just the beginning. We’re excited to share more from Suzanne about the impact Thinking Maps is having across Danville Independent Schools. Enjoyed this video and want to see more customer success stories? Give it a thumbs up, leave us a comment below, and keep checking back for more videos like this one!

Already using Thinking Maps? Tell us in the comments below how it made a difference in your district!

New to Thinking Maps? Let’s start a conversation about supporting teachers, students, and district-wide learning.

thinkingmaps.com | [email protected] | 800-243-9169

09/03/2026

If your school or district runs AVID, you already know the goal: students who think critically, own their learning, and walk out ready for college and career.

Thinking Maps get you there faster.

Join us Thursday, September 10 at 3:30 PM ET for a live webinar on Aligning Thinking Maps with AVID, where we'll show how the two work together, not as separate initiatives, but as one coherent system for building independent thinkers.

You'll see:
✅ How Thinking Maps reinforce AVID's core instructional practices
✅ Where the frameworks overlap on critical thinking and student ownership
✅ Practical ways to bring both into the same lesson, at any grade level

Built for educators at every level whether you're new to AVID, new to Thinking Maps, or looking to tighten the connection between the two.

Register now: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/9017659840324/WN_DlN5Pr8PSZusT8QyG36q6w #/registration

Questions? Email us at [email protected] | www.thinkingmaps.com | 800-243-9169

09/02/2026

New blog alert! Your Classroom Maps, Now Reaching Further - Meet the AI Map Conversion Tool.

"The AI Map Conversion Tool takes hand-drawn or image-based Maps and turns them into exercise-ready digital Maps inside TMLC — no rebuilding from scratch required."

It's a bridge, not a replacement: snap a photo of a Map from your classroom wall, or start from an image, and let the tool do the heavy lifting. We dig into how it's built for the way district leaders and classroom teachers actually work, and how it's a natural on ramp to the Map Gallery.

Read the full blog post now: https://www.thinkingmaps.com/resources/blog/ai-conversion-map-tool/

www.thinkingmaps.com | [email protected] | 800-243-9169

08/27/2026

39 states. One clear signal: writing is the next frontier of literacy funding.

New Hampshire just secured $8.7M in federal funding for evidence-based writing instruction, K-8. Arizona landed $11.5M for the same last year. Writing is now written into reading legislation in 39 states with Kentucky's 2022 law going furthest, mandating writing instruction be woven throughout the curriculum.

Policymakers are backing writing with real dollars. Is your district ready?

Thinking Maps' visual frameworks are aligned to the research behind these mandates, including Joan Sedita's Writing Rope model giving you a defensible, evidence-based approach for grant applications and board conversations.

Request the Thinking Maps & Science of Reading Alignment below: https://www.thinkingmaps.com/resources/whitepapers-alignments/

Questions? Call 1-800-243-9169 or visit thinkingmaps.com.

Whitepapers / Alignments

08/25/2026

Thinking Maps® has launched Foundations: A Visual Language for Critical Thinking — the definitive two-volume guide for building a culture of thinking, schoolwide.

Foundations gives educators a structured Plan of Action to close the Cognition Gap between what standards ask and what we teach, with a Teacher's Guide and Coach's Guide built to work together.

Read the full press release on K12 Dive here: https://www.k12dive.com/press-release/20260824-thinking-maps-launches-foundations-a-visual-language-for-critical-thinkin-1/

Questions or media inquiries? Contact Lindsey Gervais at 919-342-3926

www.thinkingmaps.com | [email protected] | 800-243-9169

08/24/2026

Every classroom works a little differently and Map Builder is built to keep up.

Choose asynchronous collaboration so students can learn and contribute at their own pace, perfect for expanding Map instruction into homework. Or go synchronous and bring your team together in real time to share ideas and build one Map together.

Sharing is simple either way, building and sharing directions are always right in the top-left corner of Map Builder.

However your class collaborates, one Map keeps everyone connected.

Start collaborating today at thinkingmaps.com | call 1-800-243-9169 | [email protected]