A Beginner's Guide to Anchor Charts (2023)

If you've spent any time on Pinterest, you've probably been inundated with images of awesome classroom anchor graphics. If you're like me, you've probably already wondered how anyone has the time to make those charts look so pretty and still cook their kids' dinner, grade papers, write homework, do laundry... just drifting.

For many new teachers, the pressure of having a Pinterest-worthy classroom can be overwhelming with all the other things thrown their way. If this is your case, don't stress! Many first-year teachers enter the classroom eager to take on the new challenge, but not understanding much about how best to get the best possible performance from teaching tools like anchor charts.

Today I'd like to share some background on what anchor charts are and how best to use them to support learning in your classroom. Whether you're a new teacher or a returning veteran, I hope you find some helpful tips and new information as you read.

This post may contain affiliate links.

What is an anchor chart?

An anchor chart is a teaching tool that helps you visually capture important lesson information. They are created, at least in part, during instruction to help emphasize and reiterate important information, procedures, processes, or skills that are being taught.

For example, if you are teaching students a problem-solving strategy to help them tackle multi-step problems, your chart might include process steps so students can refer to them as they solve problems.

Some anchor charts are interactive, which means students help complete them as part of the lesson by writing directly on the chart or using sticky notes. This can be a great tool to formatively assess student understanding during instruction.

You can use anchor graphics for any theme, and they are commonly seen inreading, writing and math classes. After class, the chart should remain visible for students to refer to during independent practice and in future classes.

Using anchor charts is a great way to actively engage students in lessons. You can use these charts to teach vocabulary, explain concepts, illustrate examples, and make the learning process fun and visually appealing for students.

Anchor charts serve as a great support in the classroom, providing a visual reference that you and your students can review as you work through guided and independent practice.

While the charts are great for all students, they are especially useful for various groups of at-risk students. They offer students with attention problems a picture of the steps to guide them through a process. They can also provide English learners with a vocabulary reference andkey academic language.

You can also use graphics to help students retain important information and make connections between prior knowledge and new information. Research shows that this is key to helping students develop a stronger understanding of new material.

How to make an anchor chart with your students

As you prepare to make a chart for your class, you should have a plan for what information you want to include and how you envision it to be presented before you teach the class.

Because your students must be involved in the actual creation process (either in a hands-on or verbal participation format), you don't want to create the entire chart in advance.

However, that doesn't mean you want to start the class from scratch!

You can prepare certain parts of your anchor chart, such as headings, charts, or questions you plan students to answer, ahead of time. This can allow you to focus more fully on the instructional portions during class, rather than trying to get everything on the page while your students watch you write.

This is what you need:

The best part is that you don't need a ton of supplies to make some really awesome anchor charts for your classroom. There are really only four things you need:

• Large Graph Paper - I love thenotepads(affiliate link) because I can peel and stick.
• Pencil
• Markers: I prefer the wide Crayola markers and themr sketch markers(affiliate link)
• Projector (optional) - Great for pulling images for tracking rather than trying to freehand graphics

During your mini-lesson, you can record student responses or allow them to record their ideas on sticky notes to add to the reference chart. You can also have students record their answers directly on the chart if you're feeling really brave.

Okay, but how do you make an anchor chart look good?

When you're new to creating anchor charts, the prospect of wanting everything to be perfect can be a bit overwhelming. First, no one expects Pinterest-level perfection like some of the examples you'll see below. This is especially true with the interactive anchor charts, which must be completed by students.

here are someSimple tips to help keep things neat and organized when making your charts:

1. Use your projector.Special fonts, graphics, etc. it can be displayed directly on the graph paper as you prepare the chart. Use a pencil to lightly trace the design to start.
2. Start with a pencil.For charts that will be 100% teacher written, create a lightweight roadmap of where all the information will go. You can write about this with a marker during the lesson as you complete each section with your students.
3. Stay simple.Trying to pack too much information into a chart can create a lot of confusion. Focus only on the most important details, and write large enough so that the student furthest from the table can still see the information.
4. Use sticky notes for student responses.Although you can have students write on the chart, you can use the same chart for multiple years if students respond with sticky notes.

That said, if your anchor chart doesn't turn out exactly as you expected during class, you can always rewrite it at a later time to make it look better or more organized. However, I would save you time and only do this if it's an anchor graph that you plan to use consistently over time, because your plate is already WAY full.

How to hang an anchor poster in the classroom?

This can be a problem depending on the types of walls you have in your classroom. Cinder block walls tend to be especially tricky. More than once I have returned to my room after a long weekend to find all my posters and anchor graphics have fallen off while the air conditioning is turned off.

That being said, there are several ways to display anchor charts that can help maximize their use. First, try to select an area that you will use consistently over time for each topic. This will help students develop the habit of referring to this area when seeking help or needing to verify information in the lesson.

Here are some options for hanging your anchor graphics:

Use a curtain rod.A skinny curtain rod with two metal hooks can be a great way to display anchor graphics. Add new graphics to the ring over time for easy reference.

Try the hooks.command hooksmimagnetic hooksboth can be great options, depending on your walls and whiteboard space. If you're in a portable classroom, magnetic hooks can really keep things organized and easy to move around when needed.

Poster frames can also be a great option.If you like things to look a little neater, cheapposter framesit can be a great alternative. Just make sure you get the correct size so they will fit correctly on the graph paper.

Use a pants hanger.You can easily place the poster inside the pants hanger. Then attach it to the top of a whiteboard, a locker, or a nail. Most stores will be happy to give you one for free if you say you're a teacher.

Use hot glue to help with the cinder block walls.Hot glue clothespins or hooks to cinder block walls. You can easily remove them later, but they won't come off like duct tape or putty.

Dedicate space to the bulletin board by creating a focus frame.Create a theme-based focus chart that includes vocabulary, patterns to cover, etc. Leave space to display your anchor graphics once you've created them. This creates a one-stop shop for students when they need to reference something for more information.

The 4 Most Popular Types of Anchor Charts

While there are many different types of anchor graphics out there, Pinterest can clearly show us. Most of the anchor charts you'll create for your classroom fall into one of four main categories. These four types are interactive charts, vocabulary charts, strategy charts, and procedural charts.

Here's a bit more information on each type.

1. Interactive Anchor Charts

The interactive anchor charts are designed to be completed as part of the lesson process. They are a way for students to show their learning. These anchor graphics are usually designed in such a way that they can be used multiple times in one unit.

For example, when teaching a skill such as main idea and supporting details, the anchor chart could include the graphic organizer where students can add a main idea and supporting details using sticky notes from a reading the class did together.

Interactive anchor charts can be a great tool forformative heads.

2. Vocabulary anchor tables

This type of chart focuses on content area vocabulary. It often includes visual examples, definitions, and details that can help students apply the term to academic learning and conversation.

Here's a great example:

3. Strategy Charts

This type of chart is common in classrooms. They provide steps and strategies that students can refer to when working on assigned tasks. Designed as a form of scaffolding instruction, the Strategy Reference Charts present the step-by-step process the student must go through to implement the material taught in the lesson.

This often includes examples of work done as guided practice and graphic organizers, acronyms, or other tools students learned to use during their mini-lesson time.

4. Tables of classroom procedures

These charts remind students of classroom expectations. This can include theclassroom routines and procedures. It may also include how the student's work should be structured or completed before it is turned in.

Teachers sometimes create anchor charts to show note-taking expectations or add titles to assignments. The purpose of these charts is to make it easier for students to organize their assignments and materials in a way that helps them successfully complete classroom tasks.

The positive and negative aspects of visual aids

While the thought of creating a chart in front of your students may give them goosebumps, anchor charts offer several important benefits to student learning.

They not only provide visuals that help keep students engaged during the lesson, but also help facilitate self-directed learning. Instead of relying on the teacher to answer every question that arises, students can refer to the reference chart to enlighten them and reassure them that they are on the right track.

However, it's important to remember that there can be too much of a good thing. It's important to prioritize what information you're putting on a specific chart, but it's also important to prioritize how many charts are in view at any given time.

Too many pictures in the classroom can be a huge disruption to learning.This means that instead of helping your struggling learners by giving them visual cues on how to complete the task at hand, you may end up making it more difficult because they get overwhelmed by too much visual stimuli.

Therefore, it is important to find a balance. As a new teacher, you may feel pressured to make an anchor chart for everything. Take the time to assess whether this is something your students will use over and over again. If not, feel free to release that pressure!