Why Assess Previous Knowledge?
It is extremely important to assess your students' previous knowledge about every topic that you teach. By knowing what they know and don't know, you are able to guide your lessons and meet each child at their individual level. There are several easy ways to do this that don't require much time or effort.
KWL Chart
Having students document what they already know about a topic through the use of a KWL chart allows teachers to assess a student's previous knowledge. Students divide their paper into 3 columns. In the K column, they write what they already know about a topic. In the W column, they write what they want to learn about the topic during your unit of study. After the unit is complete, students can go into the third column and write what they have learned.
| kwl_chart.docx |
Anticipation Guides
Anticipation Guides act as a pre-assessment and a post-assessment. Students determine what their previous knowledge is about a topic, and then go back after reading and researching and compare what they have learned to what they thought before. To extend this activity, have the students explain and justify their beliefs upon completing the reading/research.
| Force and Motion Anticipation Guide |
| Underground Railroad Anticipation Guide |
| NC Gold Rush Anticipation Guide |
List, Group, Label, Write
The List, Group, Label strategy offers a simple
three-step process for students to organize a vocabulary list from a reading
selection. This strategy stresses relationships between words and the critical
thinking skills required to recognize these relationships. To challenge the students a bit more, adding the writing component allows students to generate more concise summaries.
| List, Group, Label, Write |
Pre Reading Plan (PreP)
The Pre-Reading Plan (PreP) helps students activate prior knowledge as a starting point for better reading comprehension. The PreP strategy guides students as they make associations between their prior knowledge and the central ideas in a reading selection. Students are then able to reflect on these associations, comparing how the new information reinforces, extends, or challenges prior knowledge.
Example of PreP
Example of PreP
