Infographics, your class, and you

I am not sure when I first started to sense the term “Infographic” was boiling over into popular culture. Over the last year, I have certainly been hearing it used more and more. And you know, it’s definitely trending.

So what is the Infographic all about? Well, back in my day, we called them charts and graphs. And we liked it! Our charts and graphs, they displayed data and did what they were supposed to do. So what’s with all the fancy talk about boring old pie charts and what not?

Ok, I am having a bit of fun with you, but at their heart, Infographics are charts. Or graphs. Even diagrams.

But they are also more. They are dynamic diagrams and an art form unto themselves. They are the true visualization of information, and their design and flow is where data parsing and creative imagination meet. And they can be a wonderful tool for teaching to, teaching with, and teaching about.

Want to get started? How about a free tool to get your whole class started? Yes, free always sounds good to me too. I am going to start you with: Visual.ly

What’s super interesting about visual.ly is that aside from providing the tools for creating Infographics, you can share your creations and visually browse through thousands more. What great classroom applications can you think of? Post a comment and let me know how it all worked out.