Scarborough’s Rope displays for us the interconnectedness between word recognition and language comprehension in order to reach a skilled level of reading. The first strand listed under language comprehension is background knowledge.
Why is background knowledge so important for reading comprehension? How can Fathom Reads help build background knowledge? Read more to find out!
What is background knowledge?
Background knowledge is the bank of knowledge that a reader has on a specific topic. Most times readers have background knowledge from previous learning opportunities or personal experiences.
How does background knowledge aid reading comprehension?
As Scarborough’s Rope demonstrates, background knowledge plays a crucial role in reading comprehension. When students have a bank of knowledge about a given subject or content area, their reading comprehension, of that respective subject, is likely to be increased.
For example, let’s say you are having students read a short text on baseball. Those who have prior experience playing the sport, watching it on television, or attending a live game will likely find it easier to grasp the material. This familiarity with the subject matter provides them with a foundation for understanding. Whereas, students who have no prior knowledge on the topic may have more difficulty in comprehending the text, as they are being introduced to it for the first time.
How can you build background knowledge with Fathom Reads?
In more than 900 of our eBooks, we have incorporated links, that when clicked, open a pop-up video. Each video linked has undergone a through review by our team and is indented to offer students additional information on the book, or specific page they are on.
Before starting a lesson, we suggest allowing students time to flip through a book on their own. They can use this time to watch the embedded videos and become more familiar on a topic on their own before you dive further into the topic.
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