Unlock the power of what students already know. In this three-part series, teachers will explore how activating prior knowledge strengthens comprehension, engagement, and retention. Through practical strategies like concept mapping, anticipation guides, and reflection routines, participants will learn to connect new content to existing schemas and design lessons that make learning stick.
🚀 Part 1: Why Accessing Prior Knowledge Matters
Explore the research and reasoning behind accessing students’ prior knowledge. Participants unpack how existing schemas shape comprehension, retention, and engagement. Learn why activating and assessing what students already know (or think they know) is essential to meaningful instruction.
🚀 Part 2: Strategies to Assess Prior Knowledge
Identify strategies for activating and building students’ prior knowledge. These strategies help make student thinking visible, uncover misconceptions, and connect new learning to existing schema. Explore each strategy in depth, practice using them, and plan ways to adapt these strategies into your classroom.
🚀 Part 3: From Insight to Instruction
Move from theory to practice by learning how to apply what you discover about students’ prior knowledge to real instructional decisions. Using the Lesson Adaptation Framework and the From Data to Design Planning Template, participants will analyze student evidence and adjust lessons to meet their student’s needs.