Background Knowledge

Background knowledge refers to the "situations, problems, and concepts presented in targeted texts." (Hennessy, N. (2021). The Reading Comprehension Blueprint, p. 149)

A reader's background knowledge, or lack thereof, in connection to a text can affect the reader's understanding of the text. (Hennessy, p. 150).

Educators can both activate and build the background knowledge necessary for developing understanding of the texts that students read.

Building Background Knowledge

How can I support students in building background knowledge?

Engage students in listening to and reading rich texts.
Increase emphasis on content learning. Use read-aloud and shared reading that connect to content subjects such as science, social studies, health, the arts etc.
Use multiple texts on the same topic, including texts by creators with diverse identities, perspectives and experiences.
Before reading, explicitly teach facts the reader assumes students already know.
Front-load key vocabulary words that students will encounter.

Deepen Knowledge Through Writing

"One of the best ways to deepen students' knowledge is by having them write about what they read." (Kemeny, L. (2023). 7 Mighty Moves, p. 131).

Sentence stems like the following help students to synthesize and communicate their understanding:

Plants need light to grow because ____________________

Plants need light to grow, but ______________________

Plants need light to grow, so _______________________

Visit The Writing Revolution by Hochman and Wexler for ideas for teaching a variety of writing skills connected to reading and the content subjects.

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