You can build conventional mind maps just by using the Issue idea type; however, Debategraphs come to life as you begin to recognize and apply the meaning of the different colored spheres and the arrows.

In essence, building the maps involves three steps:

> breaking down the topic into meaningful ideas;
> figuring out the relationships between those ideas; and,
> expressing the ideas and relationships

In the simplest case, Issues (or questions) are raised, Positions (or potential answers) are suggested in response to these Issues, and Supportive and Opposing Arguments are advanced for and against the Positions (and each other).

Each building block has its own color (and associated arrow color) so that the types of ideas and relationships can be seen at a glance – and the core building blocks (Issues, Positions, and Supportive and Opposing Arguments) can be combined and recombined multiple times to build maps on any scale.