NLGL Creative Synthesis Project
STRATEGIES
What strategies and activities can be utilized in literacy instruction to develop background knowledge?
Robert Marzano (2004) states, "The most straightforward way to enhance students' academic background knowledge is to provide academically enriching experiences."
Teachers have the opportunity to provide students with firsthand learning experiences that their background knowledge might not otherwise afford. The activities described below are designed to be centered around learning goals for elementary-age students (specifically second grade readers) and to support Common Core literacy and ELA standards. I have developed these activities throughout the course of the NLGL program for the purpose of improving my reading instruction by bolstering students' background knowledge:
Project-Based Learning:
PBI-G International Pen Pal Project
Students explored the question, "What is education like in other parts of the world?" In order to answer this question, students reached out to pen pals in other countries, such as Germany and Australia. Together, students came up with questions they wanted to ask and shared interested information about their lives, hobbies, and schooling with their pen pals. After students received letters from their international pen pals, they were able to synthesize this information into a helpful infographic using Piktograph.
Build a Multi-Genre Classroom Library
Classroom libraries are a great resource to supplement literacy instruction, as they provide students the opportunity to build background knowledge by exploring topics on their own or with classmates. The National Counsil of Teachers of English (NCTE) recognizes these additional benefits of classroom libraries:
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motivate students by encouraging voluntary and recreational reading
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help young people develop an extensive array of literacy strategies and skills
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provide access to a wide range of reading materials that reflect abilities and interests
Classroom libraries are a great resource to supplement literacy instruction, as they provide students the opportunity to build background knowledge by exploring topics on their own or with classmates. The National Counsil of Teachers of English (NCTE) recognizes these additional benefits of classroom libraries:
-
motivate students by encouraging voluntary and recreational reading
-
help young people develop an extensive array of literacy strategies and skills
-
provide access to a wide range of reading materials that reflect abilities and interests
Discover Digital Tools for
Subject-Specific Vocabulary Instruction
Students were introduced to new vocabulary and facts about dinosaurs in the Mesozoic era in Science. As a strategy for teaching subject-specific vocabulary, students were asked to synthesize information about the Tyrannosaurus Rex and create their own animated picture using the app, ChatterKid. In order to do this, students reread the passage about T-Rex, identified important facts, and synthesized these facts into a short audio clip. This activity was effective in improving students' recall, their ability to locate important information in the text, and their interest in this topic!
Anticipation Guides:
A Before-Reading Activity
As part of my Scaffolded Reading Experience (SRE) Project, I administered an anticipation guide to my class as the "Before Reading" element of my B-D-A lesson plan. This anticipation guide was to be used in conjunction with the book Oceans by Miranda Mcquitty. Students' responses on the anticipation guide informed my instruction, as I was able to get a general sense of students' levels of background knowledge about specific topics related to ocean life and pollution. The anticipation guide was also effective in piquing students' curiosity about the topics we would be exploring.
More Ways to Build Background Knowledge:
Carousel Walk
Create stations around the room where students can engage in discussion on a certain topic prior to reading a text. This is a great way to encourage students to share background knowledge!
Read Alouds
Conducting read alouds before introducing a new concept can help increase students' interest and curiosity, while exposing them to key vocabulary words.
Current Events Materials
Magazines like Time for Kids are targeted for students of specific reading levels and are helpful in keeping students up-to-date with current events that may be relevant to topics they are learning about in the classroom.
Note Taking Strategies
Teaching students how to annotate as they read can help them become more cognizant of information that surprises or confuses them. It can also provide informal assessment data by which to guide instruction.