KWL+Chart

K-W-L Chart By: Jessica Park

[|PDF of a K-W-L chart worksheet]

A K-W-L chart is a graphic organizer, that is also a SDAIE (Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English) strategy. It is typically used throughout a lesson and usually for a lesson that is centered on learning from a book. A K-W-L chart is a great way to start a lesson, for the Anticipatory Set.
 * WHAT IS A K-W-L CHART?**

A K-W-L chart has many benefits for ELL students and mainstream students alike. It helps students to connect information that they already know with the information that they will learn by the end of the lesson. The K-W-L chart also allows students to share their prior knowledge and gives them a chance to discuss what they have learned throughout the lesson.

A KWL chart is divided into three sections: K, W, and L In this section, the teacher has the students access prior knowledge of the subject. The students are then able to share with each other the prior knowledge that they had, which indirectly adds to their peers' learning. In this sections, the students brainstorm what they would like to learn from this lesson. In this section, the students think about the new information that they have learned and help the teacher to create a list.
 * COMPONENTS OF A K-W-L CHART**
 * - K** stands for what students already Know.
 * - W** stands for what students Want to know.
 * - L** stands for what students have Learned.

1) Pick a topic and a book/text to go with the lesson. (The book/text does not have to be very long, it can even be a simple picture book). This step will be part of the lesson planning. 2) Create a K-W-L chart. Typically, K-W-L charts are created on chart paper, but KWL charts can be outlined on other mediums. For example, the teacher can create the K-W-L chart on to the white board or give students individual worksheets that have the KWL chart printed on it. 3) Start the lesson by filling in the first column of the K-W-L chart, which is K (what students already know). Have the students discuss what they already know about the topic of the lesson. Students can share words, facts, opinions, etc. It is also important for the teacher to ask questions and guide the students to accessing prior knowledge. 4) Next the teacher will fill in the second column with the students. In this section, the teacher will have the students think about what they want to learn during the lesson. Typically, students come up with questions that they want answered as the book is read. 5) The teacher will read the story/book/text to the students or the students will individually read the story/book/text. During this time, the teacher can be creative in how to make sure the students retain the information that they learn through the reading. 6) The teacher will fill in the third column of the K-W-L chart with the students. The teacher will go through the questions in the W column and have students see if any of the questions were answered through the reading. The teacher can also have students share interesting facts or other information that they learned through the reading.
 * HOW TO USE A K-W-L CHART**

SDAIE Strategy - KWL Chart video demonstration (This video can only be viewed through this link as it is unlisted on Youtube.)
 * VIDEO DEMONSTRATION**