Timelines represent information that proceeds in temporal order. Flowcharts represent information that is also serial, but there are discrete steps, or steps that must be completed in order. When all the steps in a flowchart are dependent on the previous one, and when the last step is connected to the first step, then a cyclical organizer is best. A hierarchy is also like a flowchart, except each subordinate step may have more than one branch. A second class of graphic organizers effectively illustrates materials having a single main concept.
Information related to the main concept is included on either side of, or around the idea.
Examples consist of continua, argumentation structures, and spider maps. A continuum looks similar to a timeline, however it is not serial. Instead, continua represent the range of possibilities represented by a concept. They are well suited for material that contains many gradations between two extremes. Figure 6 represents a sample continuum.