Written by Matthew Magain, Sketch Group.
During a 45-minute “sketching boot camp” at a school in Adelaide earlier this year, a few teachers in the class wrote on their feedback form:
“I’d love to see more about how I can apply this in the classroom.”
Fair.
Visual thinking is exciting in a workshop, but the real test is when it comes to lesson planning.
On the flight home, I realised I actually follow a repeatable process when I apply visuals to academic content.
So I gave it a name: CAFE.
Because good visual thinking, like good coffee, should wake up the room.
C = Clarity
The first question I ask is: Where are students likely to lose the big picture?
History is a perfect example.
When we learn about Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. or Burke & Wills’ ill-fated expedition across Australia, we often hear names, dates and outcomes, but rarely see a simplified map showing the movement.
Imagine having something like this to learn from instead:
An illustrated journey of Burke & Wills’ ill-fated expedition from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria and back.
- The map of the expedition
- Illustrations of key moments on the journey
- A timeframe combined with key landmarks
- Arrows and annotations making clear the order of events
Now students can see scale. They understand distance. Logistics make sense.
Clarity isn’t about decoration. It’s about cognitive orientation.
If a simple visual helps students grasp sequence, scale or relationship more easily, it belongs here.
A = Application
Next question: What does this look like in the real world?
In the workshop, I wrote a chemical equation on the board:
C₃H₈ + O₂ → CO₂ + H₂O
What if, instead of jumping straight to balancing it, we helped understood that what they were looking at were not just letters and numbers, and not even molecular shapes, but actual, relatable items from the real world?
An example of how to make an abstract chemical equation more applicable to the real world
- C₃H₈ is propane, so we draw a BBQ gas cylinder
- O₂ could take many forms; for example, an oxygen mask
- For CO₂ the first idea that came to me was that of a fire extinguisher
- H₂O depicted as a glass filling from the tap
Suddenly the symbols weren’t floating abstractions. They had context.
Application bridges classroom theory and lived reality.
F = Fun
If there’s no obvious diagram and no easy real-world anchor, I ask: How can I make this more engaging?
Fun isn’t fluff. It’s friction reduction.
Examples of how to present mathematical formulae in a way that is more fun for students to digest.
This might mean:
- Simple figures introducing a maths formula
- Box figures debating a concept.
- Arrows connecting ideas.
- Containers highlighting definitions.
- Larger headings and repeated colour creating hierarchy.
The same tools used in sketchnoting (connectors, containers, characters, contrast) make content easier to digest.
When students smile, they lean in.
E = Empathy
This is the most overlooked lens.
How can I help students step into someone else’s shoes?
In English or Drama:
- Hamlet holding the skull, with a thought bubble revealing his internal conflict.
In History:
- Two opposing generals shouting battle cries, but also revealing doubts in thought bubbles.
Examples of how to depict key moments in literature in a way that evokes empathy.
Empathy turns information into experience. And experience sticks.
Visual thinking in the classroom isn’t about turning every lesson into art class. It’s about asking four better questions:
- How do I make this clearer?
- How do I ground it in reality?
- How do I make it engaging?
- How do I humanise it?
That’s CAFE.
If you’re a teacher experimenting with visual approaches, which of the four feels most natural to you, and which feels like a stretch?