Lesson Plan: Using Prior Knowledge from Personal Experiences - Understanding Duke Ellington
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- Standards
Print Lesson PlanOverview
Students use prior knowledge to compare their own experiences to the experiences of Duke Ellington learning the piano when he was a boy.
Why is this an important concept?
What a learner already knows about a topic acts as a foundation upon which to build and store new knowledge. Learners comprehend new knowledge effectively when they can connect it to something they already know. Activating prior knowledge is a reading strategy that helps learners comprehend, adapt, and accommodate new information about a subject.
Grade Level:
4-6Suggested Time
50-minutes
Media Resources
- Duke QuickTime Video
Materials
- Duke Writing Prompt handout
- Pencils
The Lesson
Part I: Learning Activity
1. Before viewing the video segment, make a copy of the Duke Writing Prompt handout for each student. They will be used in the Assessment activity.
2. Explain to students that they are going to listen to a biography about the great pianist, musician, and band leader, Duke Ellington. Brainstorm what they know about Duke Ellington.
3. Purpose for viewing: Explain to students that Duke was just like them in many ways. As they view the video, ask them to think about experiences they have had that are similar to Duke's experiences as a child.
4. After viewing the video segment, discuss how Duke must have felt about practicing the piano when he was young. Then discuss why they think Duke did not want to practice playing the piano.
5. In small groups, ask students to discuss experiences they have had that help them understand how Duke felt about practicing the piano. This idea could also be related to skills students have to practice at school that they may not want to do.
For students who need additional guidanceFor students who need additional teacher support, you can share an experience that reminds you of Duke's experience and how you felt. If students need more examples, share an example of a skill or procedure they may have practiced at school and later became very good at. Then encourage students to share a few experiences with the class. Help students relate their feelings with those Duke must have had about practicing the piano.
Part II: Assessment
1. Using the Duke Writing Prompt handout, ask students to write a short description of how they think Duke felt about practicing the piano when he was young. Then, students describe an experience they have had that made them feel like Duke did.
2. Allow time for students to share their writing in small groups.
We assign reference terms to each statement within a standards document and to each media resource, and correlations are based upon matches of these terms for a given grade band. If a particular standards document of interest to you is not displayed yet, it most likely has not yet been processed by ASN or by Teachers' Domain. We will be adding social studies and arts correlations over the coming year, and also will be increasing the specificity of alignment.Media Resources Used in this Lesson:
Duke
(QuickTime Video)
Resource Produced by:
Collection Developed by:
Collection Funded by:
Funding for the VITAL/Ready to Teach collection was secured through the United States Department of Education under the Ready to Teach Program.