This week I was able to take a lot away from the readings. I have always wondered best techniques to build background knowledge. How do you know how much background knowledge each student comes into your classroom with? Where should I begin instruction? How much background knowledge is necessary for success within the topic?
Chapter 2 in our text book was interesting because it gave me quite a few techniques to use in my classroom to help students build background knowledge. The tea party strategy seemed as though it would be the most interesting to students. Most anything that gets kids up and moving is a great idea in my eyes. This strategy forces children to discuss different ideas or aspects as it pertains to a particular topic, then analyze what they discussed to make predictions and activate background knowledge.
My question with this, though, is how will I incorporate this into my social studies block? The text suggests using a few minutes for this activity and then discussion, but will I have time in my day to allow this type of interactive activity? The social studies block is so short compared to math and language arts. I would hate to take valuable instruction time away. Also, what ages would this activity be most effective? I know my procedures must be in place and effective for this activity to work without turning into chaos in the classroom.
In my opinion, this would be a great activity to get students excited about what they will be learning next!
Chandley,
First, I’m assuming you mean February 12 (title), right? Feel free to edit your post!
I’m glad you found the textbook to be filled with useful ideas. There are so many ways to build background knowledge. I agree that the movement that is such an integral part of the tea party strategy is part of what makes it so engaging for students. I also think they like the puzzle aspect of trying to figure out how all the sentences fit together to make a whole.
While time for social studies is limited, the classrooms I am working with right now are using whole class reading time to engage in reading for social studies, so there is more time than the small amount allotted later in the day. I do think you can make this work.
Chandley, I would like to build off of what Dr. Stohr said. Even though social studies time is limited you can look for ways to implement cross-curricular opportunities. One idea you might consider is using whole group reading time the day before your social studies lesson to help students build background knowledge about the topic you plan to teach the next day. The Tea Party strategy is also a comprehension reading strategy and will fit right into the reading block. After participating in the Tea Party students can practice making predictions while collaborating in a group, write predictions on chart paper, post predictions in the classroom, and engage in a gallery walk. The more students engage with the text ahead of time the more prepared they will be to read it.
Thank you for your reflection. I am glad you see the value in building background knowledge!