Activating and Connecting Prior Knowledge



Comprehension Strategies: An Overview…Summarized from BIBLIOGRAPHY \l 4105 Johanson, T., & Broughton, D. (2014). Exploring Comprehension in Physics. Saskatoon: McDowell Foundation.Keene, E., & Zimmermann, S. (1997). Mosaic of Thought: Teaching Comprehension in a Readers Workshop. Portsmouth: Heinemann.Public Education & Business Coalition. (n.d.). Thinking Strategies for Learners: A guide to PEBC's professional development in reading, writing, mathematics and information literacy. Retrieved December 15, 2018, from Public Education & Business Coalition: Ministry of Education. (2008). English Language Arts 6. Retrieved from Saskatchewan Curriculum: and Connecting Prior KnowledgeThis comprehension strategy involves students connecting their learning to their experiences, events in the world, and to other learnings they may have in and/or out of school.We simply can’t understand what we hear, read, or view without thinking about what we already know.We teach learners to:Relate to prior experience.Make connections between text, media, and personal observation.Connect the new to the known – use what they know to understand new information.You may hear statements like…This reminds me of…I noticed…It made me think of…I used my background knowledge to…I never knew…I learned…This is different from…No, I think…That changed my mind…Readers:Connect new learning with prior knowledge.Clarify new learning by deleting inaccurate information.Make text to self, text to text, and text to world connections.Activate knowledge about authors, genre, and text structure.Take steps to build background knowledge when necessary.Apply what is known about sound-letter relationships and word parts to make sense of unknown words.Writers:Select topics of personal interest.Plan writing is a way that capitalizes on what is known and what one wants to share.Build schema about a topic or text structure when present knowledge is inadequate.Use what is already known about the content, genre, text format and conventions.Make word choices based on understandings.Use knowledge of sound/letter relationships and word patterns to spell unknown words.Mathematicians:Use current understandings as first steps in the problem-solving process.Use number sense to understand a problem.Add to schema by trying more challenging problems and hearing from others about different problem-solving methods.Build understanding based on prior knowledge of math concepts.Develop purpose based on prior knowledge.Use prior knowledge to generalize about similar problems.Develop own problems.Researchers:Choose topics that are of interest.Launch investigations that ask questions based on previous interests and experiences.Consider what is already known to decide what information is needed.Monitoring ComprehensionThis comprehension strategy involves students recognizing and acting on their own confusion, and their self-questioning to determine understanding.We monitor our comprehension and keep track of our thinking in a number of ways. We notice when text makes sense and when it doesn’t. We ask questions, infer, activate background knowledge, and make connections, all in the effort to promote understanding.We teach learners to:Become aware of their thinking as they read.Notice when meaning breaks down and their mind wanders.Employ ‘fix up’ strategies – reread for clarification, read ahead to construct meaning, use context to break down unfamiliar words, skip difficult parts and continue to see if meaning becomes clear, check and recheck answers and thinking, examine evidence.You may hear statements like…I think…I understand…This feature makes me think…I don’t understand…This doesn’t make sense…Huh? I don’t get this part…Oh, now I get it…A part I had trouble with…Readers:Reflect on understandings.Recognize when understanding breaks down.Identify when and why the meaning is unclear.Decide if clarifying a particular confusion is critical to overall understanding.Explore a variety of strategies to remedy confusion.Consider, and sometimes adjust purpose for reading.Identify confusing words.Writers:Monitor writing during the composition process to ensure it makes sense at the word, sentence, and text levels.Pay close attention to purpose, making word choices and style decisions based on that purpose.Read and reread writing to listen for clarity, organization, voice, and impact.Share work so others can help check for clarity and purpose.Make decisions about when to turn a small piece into a larger project, when revisions are complete, or when to abandon a piece altogether.See places for revisions in own text as well as those being reviewed for other writers.Pay close attention to surface-level conventions (spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization) so that the writing can be clearly understood by others.Mathematicians:Use manipulatives/charts/diagrams to help them make sense of the problem.Understand that others will build meaning in different ways and solve problems with different problem-solving strategies.Check their work in many ways (e.g. working backwards, redoing problem).Agree/disagree with solutions and ideas“Think aloud” about what’s going on in their head as they work through a problem.Ask “does each step make sense?”Discuss problems with others and write about problem-solving process to clarify thinking.Use accurate math vocabulary and show work so others can follow their thinking.Researchers:Recognize what needs to be found and learned.Identify what is comprehended and what to do if comprehension breaks down.Pause to reflect and evaluate information.Choose effective ways of organizing information – notetaking, webbing, outlining, etc.Use several sources to validate information and check for accuracy.Revise and edit for clarity, accuracy, and interest.Check sources for appropriate references and copyrights.Asking QuestionsThis strategy involves students actively wondering about topics, and questioning facts and information.Questioning is the strategy that propels learners on and is at the heart of inquiry-based learning. Humans are driven to make sense of the world, and questions open the doors to understanding.We teach learners to:Wonder about the content, concepts, outcomes, and genre.Question the author.Read to discover answers and gain information.You may hear statements like…I wonder…I’m curious…Why…I don’t get this…Huh?...My big question is…I still wonder…Do you know anything about …Readers:Generate questions before, during, and after reading about the text’s content, structure, and language.Ask questions for different purposes – e.g. clarifying, making predictions and inferences, wondering about the author’s choices when composing.Realize that one question may lead to another.Pursue answers to questions.Distinguish between questions that lead to deeper understandings and ‘just curious’ types of questions.Contemplate others’ questions as inspirations for new questions.Pose self-monitoring questions to help understand unknown/unfamiliar words.Writers:Monitor progress by asking questions about choices made in terms of content and pose in such a way that lead readers to generate their own questions.Wonder about own writing: Is it quality writing that has deep meaning, is well organized and meets purpose and needs of the readers?Extend what is known about writing conventions by asking questions such as, “If I can spell ___, what else can I spell?”Mathematicians:Ask questions before, during, and after math problem: Could it be this? What happens if? How else could I do this? Have I seen this problem before?Test answers/estimations by using different approaches to a problem.Questions others to understand own process and to clarify problems.Extend own thinking by asking questions for which the answer is not known.Researchers:Narrow a search and find a topic.Clarify meaning and purpose.Evaluate work by considering: What are the most effective resources and how will I access them? Do I have enough information? Have I used a variety of sources? What more do I need? Does it make sense? Is it interesting and original thinking? Does my writing have voice?Making InferencesThis comprehension strategy involves students predicting, hypothesizing, interpreting, and making conclusions.Inferential thinking allows learners to grasp the deeper essence of text and information. Readers infer by taking their background knowledge and merge it with clues in the text to draw a conclusion or arrive at a big idea that is not explicitly stated in text.We teach learners to:Use context clues to figure out meaning of unfamiliar words.Draw conclusions from evidence.Predict outcomes, events, and observations.You may hear statements like…I’m inferring…I’m thinking…It seems to me…Probably…I’m guessing that…I predict…If I were the main character…I suppose…Readers:Draw conclusions about the reading by connecting the text with own schema.Make, confirm, and/or revise reasonable predictions.Know when and how to infer answers to unanswered questions.Form unique interpretations to deepen and personalize reading experiences.Extend comprehension beyond literal understandings of the printed page.Make judgments and create generalizations about what is read.Create a sense of expectation while reading.Use context clues and knowledge of language to predict the pronunciation and meaning of unknown/unfamiliar words.Writers:Compose text that allows and encourages readers to make thoughtful inferences and draw meaningful conclusions.Consider audience when making decisions about what to describe explicitly and what to leave to the readers’ imagination.Show, not just tell what is meant.Consider far more detail than is actually put into the writing so that readers can draw conclusions, make predictions and make connections of their own.Provide enough print support and contextual structure so readers can infer the meaning and importance of the words in the textMathematicians:Predict, generalize, and estimate.Make problem-solving decisions based on conceptual understanding of math pose by drawing pictures, using charts, and creating equations.Solve problems in different ways and support methods through proof, number sentences, pictures, charts, and graphs.Use reasoning and make connections throughout the problem-solving process.Conjecture (infer based on evidence).Use patterns and relationships to generalize and infer what comes next in the problem-solving process.Researchers:Think about the value and reliability of sources.Consider what is important to a reader or audience.Determining ImportanceThis comprehension strategy involves students evaluating information, making judgments about information, and identifying key ideas and concepts.We read nonfiction to learn, understand, and remember information.We teach learners to:Target key information.Choose what to remember.Construct big ideas from smaller ideas.You may hear statements like…This is really important…This information makes me think…I think this part means…My background knowledge tells me…The most important ideas are…So far, I have learned that…Readers:Identify key ideas, themes, and elements.Use text structures and text features to help decide what is essential and what isn’t.Use knowledge of important and relevant parts of text to prioritize what they commit to long-term memory and what they retell and/or summarize for others.Consider the author’s bias/point of view.Determine which words are essential to the meaning of the text. Know when choosing to skip words/phrases of text will or will not impact their overall understanding.Make decision about when unknown/unclear words need clarification immediately and accurately, and when substitutions can be sued to maintain meaning and fluency.Writers:Pay attention to the world and record what is believed to be significant.Decide what ideas and/or information to include in writing based on own purposes and needs of intended audience.Select the genre and text structure that best communicates the ideas and/or informationProvide only essential details necessary to reveal intended meaning or to produce desired effect.Select specific words that most accurately convey intended meaning.Mathematicians:Look for patterns and relationships.Identify and use key words to build an understanding of the problem.Gather text information from graphs, charts, and tables.Decide what information is relevant to a problem and what information is irrelevant.Researchers:Evaluate and think critically about information.Sort and analyze information to understand it better.Make decisions about the quality and usefulness of information.Decide what is important to remember and what is not.Choose the most effective reporting format.VisualizingThis comprehension strategy involves students making mental pictures and/or mind maps of ideas and how they interconnect.Visualization builds complex connections and involves more than just how something looks. It extends to other senses such as smell, touch, sound and taste.We teach learners to:Gain information from the images they construct and view.Create mental images drawn from background knowledge and observations.You may hear statements like…I am getting a picture…I can see (smell, hear, taste)…I have a picture in my head…I’m visualizing…Readers:Become immersed in rich detail during reading.Crate images connected to the senses of sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell to enhance and personalize understandings.Attend to ‘heart’ images – feelings evoked while reading.Revise images to incorporate new information and new ideas revealed in the text.Adapt images in response to the images shared by other readers.Use what is known about a word’s appearance to understand unknown words. Ask “Does that look right?” and “Does that sound right?”.Writers:Consciously create strong images in writing using strategically placed detail.Attend to own images while drafting text.Select words that create strong images for the readers.Create impact through use of strong nouns and verbs.Match illustrations and text format (e.g. spacing, font, paragraphing) with the “visual impression” they have in mind for the story.Study the ways other authors use “image-evoking” language.Use what is known about letter/sound relationships and spelling patterns to compose words that look and sound ‘right’.Mathematicians:Use mental pictures/models of shapes, numbers and processes to build understanding of concepts and problems and to experiment with ideas.Use concrete models/manipulatives to build understanding and visualize problems.Visually represent thinking through drawings, pictures, graphs, and charts.Pictures story problems like a movie in the mind to help understand the problem.Visualize concepts in their head (e.g. parallel lines, fractions).Researchers:Create rich mental pictures to understand text better.Weave written images with multisensory (auditory, visual, kinesthetic) components.Use words, visual images, sounds and other sensory experiences to communicate understanding of a topic.Summarizing and SynthesizingThis comprehension strategy involves students recalling, retelling, creating new meaning, and remembering information.Synthesizing information allows us to see the bigger picture as we read or observe. Thoughtful readers merge their thinking with information to come to a more complete understanding.We teach learners to:Add to their knowledge base.Paraphrase information.Move from facts to ideas.You may hear statements like…I never knew… now I know…I have a comment…I think the big idea is…Now I understand that…I have learned that…This gives me an idea…Readers:Continually monitor overall meaning, important concepts and themes while reading.Recognize ways in which text elements fit together to create larger meaning.Create new and personal meaning.Develop holistic and/or thematic statements which capture the meaning of the text.Capitalize on opportunities to share, recommend, and criticize books.Attend to the evolution of thoughts across time while reading a text, and while reading many texts.Select specific vocabulary from the text(s) to include in the synthesis because of the realization that specific language is highly meaning-laden.Know when certain vocabulary is critical to the text’s overall meaning, and therefore, must be understood if comprehension is to be achieved.Writers:Compose in such a way that readers can create new meaning from the writing.Use what is known about the authoring process, genre and text structures to compose meaningful, engaging texts.Includes cues in the text to help readers determine essential themes and ideas that would need to be included in any synthesis statement.Study the work of other writers in order to create vision for their own bine what is known about surface conventions when composing to create meaningful, easy-to-read text.Mathematicians:Generalize from patterns observed.Generalize in words, equations, charts, and graphs to retell or synthesize.Synthesize math concepts when used in real life applications.Use deductive reasoning (e.g. reach conclusions based on known information).Researchers:Utilize information from a variety of resources.Construct meaning about a topic.Enhance understanding by considering different perspectives, opinions and sources. ................
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