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    • beginning sounds
    • phonics
    • phonological awareness
    • read-aloud learning
    • rhyming
    • sight words
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    • books
    • comprehension
      • activating schema
      • connecting
      • inferring
      • predicting
      • questioning
      • retelling / summarizing
      • visualizing
    • concepts of print
    • environmental print
    • fluency
    • non-fiction
    • spelling
    • word building
    • word consciousness
    • vocabulary
  • writing
    • creative writing
    • grammar
    • informative writing
    • tripod grip
  • math
    • computation
    • counting
    • numbers
  • science
    • animals
    • plants
    • science experiments for kids
  • Activities
    • birthdays
    • cooking
      • new for us foods
    • crafts
    • foundations
      • colors
      • critical thinking
      • fine arts
      • listening
      • pretend play
      • sorting
      • speaking
    • holidays
      • new year’s
      • valentine’s day
      • president’s day
      • st. patrick’s day
      • april fool’s day
      • easter
      • mother’s day
      • teacher appreciation
      • father’s day
      • july 4th
      • halloween
      • thanksgiving
      • christmas
    • family life
      • family fun
      • giving back
      • lunchbox love notes
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learning during read-alouds: activating schema

home / reading / comprehension / activating schema / learning during read-alouds: activating schema
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activating schema get kids ready for reading

According to Rachel and Mary Gabriel, the “schema theory tells us that prior knowledge is essential for comprehension of new knowledge and that learning difficulties can often be traced back to insufficient background knowledge” (Gabriel & Gabriel, “Power in Pictures: How a Schoolwide Photo Library Can Build a Community of Readers and Writers.” The Reading Teacher, 63(8), pp. 679.).

Parents and teachers can help our little ones pull from their growing schema so that they can better understand and appreciate the texts we’re reading to them in read-alouds. Activating their prior knowledge or experience with a certain topic will increase their comprehension even before the children are reading the text themselves.

We can do this with ease, and it won’t take too much time at all.

And watching that lightbulb go off for your kiddo when she picks up a book about animal footprints and you remind her about the time she found raccoon prints (or whatever they were!), on the walk to the park last spring–it’ll be worth a million bucks. Not to mention that it’ll make her even more invested in the book and more able to make connections to the concepts, which will help her to understand everything that much better!

  • Activating Schema: Activating schema is just a fancy schmancy way of saying that a person is pulling from prior experience or involvement with a topic in order to better understand a new subject.

We can show children how to activate schema in the short span of one read-aloud, and if we deliberately model and practice the technique, it can become a strategy kiddos will begin to use automatically!

Everyone knows that certain textures, tastes, sounds, or smells have the power to bring us back to an experience that may seem long forgotten. Maybe it’s the woman on the train wearing your grandmother’s perfume or the smell of your great-aunt’s famous pumpkin muffins wafting from a neighborhood bakery. Whatever it may be, one little spark can trigger an avalanche of memories, so it only makes sense to draw on those pieces of information (called, “schemata”) in order for our children to create new and fuller understandings.

 

Reading a book about a bakery?

Talk about the times you’ve spent in bakeries, the foods you ate,
the smells, the sounds.

 

Depending on how much time, effort, and preparation you have, activating schema can be done with low-prep, medium-prep, or high-prep manner. Here are just a few of the many ways to activate prior knowledge:

  • Low-Prep: Just talk about what your child knows about a subject before you read the text. Ask him, What do you remember about being on a plane? How did it sound? What did you eat? How did you feel? Then introduce the text and start reading!
  • Medium-Prep: Gather several photos of your child from a time when she was in a situation similar to what he will read about in the text. Look at the pictures together and talk about what she sees in the photos, what she remembers personally from the experience, and what she liked–or disliked–about the experience.
  • High-Prep: Create a box or bag filled with items that relate to the subject of a text. For a book about the beach, grab some seashells, sand, a towel, and sunscreen. Have your child take the items out, one by one, and chat about how the items feel, smell, sound, and taste (if applicable). Talk about what your child knows about each item and how those items connect to the subject of the book.

Activating schema is just one reading comprehension strategy that parents can model, practice, and use with their children during read-alouds. It doesn’t have to be something formal; you can go through these steps casually, and you can use it in along with other strategies–like connecting or predicting–to further increase your child’s understanding of a text. The more we use these strategies now, before our kids are reading, the more likely that the strategies will become habits when our readers get older!

Originally posted as a series on ABC and 123: A Learning Cooperative, this is part of a series Iโ€™m doing here on Learning During Read-Alouds.

Next up is a biggie, one that I’ve had help with from the experts over at we teach: 5 Things Never to Say to Emerging Readers.

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About amy mascott

teacher, mother, dreamer. lover of literacy, fun learning, good food, and three crazy-cool kids. finder of four-leaf clovers | dc metro ยท http://about.me/amymascott
tweet with me: @teachmama

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Celebrate, we will! โ€˜Cause life is short but sweet for certain. . . 

What a weekend. So incredibly proud of all of these talented athletes!

๐Ÿ† 3rd in the state of Maryland for @sherwoodcheerleading ๐Ÿ’™๐Ÿค

UMD Womenโ€™s Basketball won todayโ€” great job by @marylandcheer โค๏ธ๐Ÿ’›๐Ÿ–ค

#lovethesegirls #cheerweekend #marylandlife #lifeinmaryland #moco
View
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This Sugarfina Advent Calendar is what your teens want. 

$33 shipped TO YOUR DOOR w my 10% off and FREE SHIPPING!

Normally itโ€™s $60! 

I have been sharing my fave, super-COOL, Advent Calendars for teens and adults in my stories today!

This one right here was ours from last year, and we โค๏ธ LOVED it!

It is made by @sugarfina and each day we were surprised with FABULOUS sweet treats! 

Good-bye to the ole, crappy, tinfoil chocolates. Weโ€™re taking fun, new, and different candies each day of the month!

Grab it here: zulily.gfpv.net/MX9Ngn

#linkinbio @zulily #adventcalendars #adventforteens
View
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Hey #MoCo Voters, Itโ€™s #ElectionDay2022! 

Do you need a ride to the polls? If you do, @VOTE411 and @lyft has got you covered! 

So, #NoExcuses. Get out there and make your voice heard!

#VotePlan #VoteReady #expectus #MomsDemandAction #appleballot #MCEA
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Get out and VOTE. 

Please. 

Not sure where to vote? https://www.vote.org/polling-place-locator/

#midtermelections #getoutandvote๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ #linkinbio
View
Open
Did you have a chance to join my IG live today?

It was a rainy, gross Sunday here in Maryland, and I shared one of my top picks for the holidaysโ€”> LEGO but for BIG KIDS. 

Or GRANDPARENTS. 

Or PARENTS. 

Actually ANY grown-up who likes to unplug once in a while and CREATE. 

I showed how I was doing with the LEGO Flower Bouquet (๐ŸŒท๐ŸŒบ๐Ÿ’๐ŸŒผ) and how many other awesome sets are 15% off and FREE SHIPPING (yayyyyy!!) over on @zulily ๐Ÿ’œ. 

Check it out. Theyโ€™ve got a ton of sets to choose from, like 
Marvel, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Friends, Disney, Mario Brosโ€”you name it. 

Find them here: https://zulily.gfpv.net/jWqkmn

Fab prices + free shipping = BIG WIN. 

#linkinbio #ad #LEGOforgrownups #everyonelovesLEGO #holidaypicks
View
Open
LEGO at 15% off and FREE SHIPPING! 

Check out the AWESOME set that is PERFECT for teens, grandparents, and ANY grownup who likes to create! 

This bouquet will last forever!

๐ŸŒผ๐ŸŒท๐ŸŒบ๐Ÿ’

Use this link โ€”> zulily.gfpv.net/jWqkmn

#bestgiftsforkids #grandparentgifts #ad #LEGOforgrownups @zulily
View
Open
WHAT HAS ARRIVED FROM @zulily !?

Since Zulily carries such a vast array of items, it could be ANYthing: 

๐Ÿ’œ boutique-style clothes or shoes

๐Ÿค brand-name clothing & shoes

๐Ÿ’œ toys

๐Ÿค books or magazines 

๐Ÿ’œ pantry items, snacks, & treats

๐Ÿค haircare or cosmetics 

๐Ÿ’œ pet toys, treats, or accessories 

๐Ÿค personalized gifts

๐Ÿ’œ houseplants, seeds, or bulbs

๐Ÿค basics for kids through adults

๐Ÿ’œ craft supplies and kits

๐Ÿค furniture or home goods

๐Ÿ’œ designer handbags, sunglasses, or belts

๐Ÿค luxury items and gifts

๐Ÿ’œ sports equipment 

๐Ÿค sports gear for ALL fansโ€”NFL, MLB, NCAA, you name it

๐Ÿ’œ small appliances & kitchen items

๐Ÿค towels, sheets, blankets, linens

๐Ÿ’œ home storage & organization items

๐Ÿค coats, hats, scarves 

๐Ÿ’œ just about anything you can imagine!

Follow my stories for the deals and steals for families and educators, or check the Zulily Highlight!

Especially nowโ€”as we move into the exciting holiday seasonโ€”I will more frequently share items, and they will MOVE QUICKLY! 

So make sure you are checking in regularly, and pleaseโ€”if you are looking for specific items and a specific price point, let me know! 

I am happy to do some research to help you out!

๐Ÿ’œ๐Ÿค๐Ÿ’œ๐Ÿค๐Ÿ’œ

#zulilypartner #linkinbio #ad #holiday #giftgiving bestgifts

Want to check it out for yourself? zulily.gfpv.net/teachmama
View
Open
๐ŸŸฆ๐ŸŸฅ๐ŸŸฉ๐ŸŸจ

THE best toy for kidsโ€”and classrooms!โ€”is on sale right now. 

The 101-piece PicassoTile Building Set (WITH CARRYING CASE!)
is only $34.99 on Zulily WITH an extra 15% off!

Stock upโ€”think: teachers, daycare providers, classrooms!
AND birthdays, holidays or rainy days!

This is a toy that I cannot recommend highly enoughโ€”perfect for littles through elemor middle school. 

From a tween I know and love: The *click* of the magnetic blocks is so satisfying, and honestly, theyโ€™re just really fun and relaxing to use. 

๐ŸŸฆ๐ŸŸช๐ŸŸง๐ŸŸฉ

hereโ€™s the link that will get you AN ADDITIONAL 15% off โ€”> zulily.gfpv.net/JrDdbE

And remember: FREE SHIPPING ON orders of $89+

#ad #linkinbio #besttoysforkids #dealoftheday

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