K-W-L Chart For The Cheetah printable pdf download

Designing Effective Projects: Tapping Prior Knowledge

Know-Wonder-Learn Charts

Learning About Know-Wonder-Learn Charts

A Know-Wonder-Learn (K-W-L) chart is one of the most commonly used graphic organizers to tap

students’ prior knowledge. This simple chart activates students’ prior knowledge by asking them

what they already know about a particular subject. This allows the students to make personal

connections before the content is deeply explored. The students brainstorm their ideas on the

Know section of the chart. Then the students independently or collaboratively brainstorm

questions they have about the content in the Want to Learn section. Once students begin to

answer these questions during a project, they record this information on the Learn section of the

chart.

By using this chart, students are constructing meaning from what they’ve been learning,

comparing their new knowledge to what they already know, and are able to clarify their ideas.

This also keeps students focused and interested in the content and is a way to keep track of what

they are learning. Ultimately, the chart could be used as a document for an assessment portfolio

to show what the student has learned.

A K-W-L chart can be used across the curriculum at any grade level. It can be used to start a new

unit of study and referred to throughout the unit. It is usually not a graded document but rather a

place for students to write down their ideas and questions without the fear of being judged or

graded. This chart also helps with student organization and can be a starting point for peer-to-

peer or whole-class discussion.

Example K-W-L Chart

This sample K-W-L chart is from the Unit Plan,

African Adventure

Safari.

____________________________________________________________________________

Name____________________

K-W-L Chart

For

The Cheetah

Write about what you know about your African animal. Then write questions about what you

want to know. When we have finished the unit, you can write about what you’ve learned.

What I Know:

What I Want to Know:

What I Learned:

Example

A cheetah eats antelope.

How does a cheetah kill the antelope?

Cheetahs will run at 70 mph to

Where do antelope live?

catch the antelope. They find the

How many antelope will a cheetah eat

antelope grazing on the African

in one week?

savannah. The cheetahs have to

Do antelope ever escape from the

suffocate the antelope because

cheetah?

they have small jaws and can’t kill

in one bite.

K-W-L Chart For The Cheetah

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