ITC: 89 – 13 Techniques for Activating Prior Knowledge in the Classroom

Folks who study how the brain works and how it affects learning stress that more learning will take place if we can connect new knowledge to prior knowledge. I will share 13 ways to activate prior knowledge.

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I just finished reading Brain Rules by John Medina. It was a fascinating look into how the brain works. Medina talked about sensory memory, short-term or working memory, and long-term. If we want our students to remember what we are teaching them, we have to obey the rules the brain puts into place. For long-term memory to form, we need to keep strengthening the connections already formed.

It is a lot harder to remember something if you do not have experience with the topic. Experts learn new concepts faster when they relate them to their discipline because they recognise patterns more quickly and connect new information to prior knowledge. Novices struggle with new knowledge because they do not have prior knowledge or do not recognize how it connects to previous experiences.

This week we are going to investigate activating prior knowledge. Specifically, we will look at why this is important and 13 different ways to help connect new information to prior knowledge.

Additional Reading

• ITC: 44 – Andragogy – Treating Learners as Adults
• ITC: 42 – Strategies for Teaching Vocabulary to College Students
• ITC: 43 – Using Concept Maps in the Classroom
• ITC: 88 – How to Use Gallery Walks in the Classroom
• Activating Prior Knowledge
• Activate Background Knowledge
• K-W-L Strategy
• The importance of engaging prior knowledge
• Are You Tapping into Prior Knowledge Often Enough in Your Classroom?
• Performance-Based Prior Knowledge Assessments
• Prior Knowledge Self-Assessments
• Using Classroom Assessment Techniques
• Using Concept Maps
• Using Concept Tests
• Assessing Prior Knowledge
• Activating Prior Knowledge
• How Prior Knowledge and Assumptions Impact New Learning

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