By visualizing information, we turn it into a landscape that you can explore with your eyes: a sort of information map. And when you're lost in information, an information map is kind of useful.
As I looked for the perfect definition of an infographic I found Whatls definition to hit it right on the nail...
An infographic (information graphic) is a representation of information in a graphic format designed to make the data easily understandable at a glance. People use infographics to quickly communicate a message, to simplify the presentation of large amounts of data, to see data patterns and relationships, and to monitor changes in variables over time.
I explored infographic generating tools such as Easel.ly, Piktochart and Infogram. This is what I think of each tool:
First of all they are all free. You do have the option to upgrade but it is not necessary. The free account offers a variety of templates and images.
Piktochart is easy to use. It has a drag and drop interface. It has a variety of free templates and images. If you want more variety and colorful images, then you would need to upgrade.
Infogr.am is also free and easy to use. It doesn't have many background templates, but it does have a variety of graphs. Excel spreadsheets can be uploaded.
Out of the four infographic tools, this is my favorite. I didn't use this to create my infographic below because I discovered it after I had already created it using another tool. This is a tool that I will definitely continue using for future infographics. It has a drag and drop interface, easy to use, autosaves infographic. I really like the fact that it has plenty of colorful and free designs. It is not limited. You are able to upgrade, but it is not necessary.
Easel.ly is so easy to use. It has a drag to drop interface. It has a variety of free templates and images. The templates are nice and colorful, but the images are mostly black and white. If you want colored images, you would need to upgrade. It has editable text boxes in which you input your data and information.
Here is my first infographic created with www.easel.ly./
Here is my first infographic created with www.easel.ly./
Infographic data retrieved from:
Horrigan, J. (2015, September 15). Public wants Libraries to Advance Education, Improve Digital Literacy and Serve Key Groups. Retrieved September 15, 2015, from http://www.pewinternet.org/files/2015/09/2015-09-15_libraries_FINAL.pdf
I'm so glad I was introduced to infographics. As a classroom teacher, I already have many ideas in mind how to use them when teaching in the content areas. It is also a great tool for my students to use for enrichment in their content areas.
David McCandless. (n.d.). BrainyQuote.com. Retrieved September 17, 2015, from BrainyQuote.com Web site: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/david_mccandless.html
What is infographics? - Definition from WhatIs.com. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/infographics
I am not surprised that 85% of people want public libraries to coordinate their resources with local schools. That is something we are working on in our school.
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