Teachers nowadays do everything they can to help students enhance their skills and knowledge. A KWL Chart is one of the useful tools that they use in order for them to study efficiently. It is a graphical chart in which each letter in KWL is doing a big role. K is for Know in What I Know which also the first column of the chart, next is W for What I want to know and last is L for What I Learned. It helps the kid to keep in their minds what is written on the chart and motivate them to read, write and summarize a particular topic. Indeed is a good way of knowledge nourishing and sometimes these kind of charts are posted all over their respective classrooms to help students get familiarized with the chart and moreover the topic.
A KWL chart is a simple graph showing a clear vision for a certain topic. It is composed of three columns with their respective labels which are know, want and learn. Each column should have what it is purely representing for. Started by a particular topic, this should continue tackling until the very last thought written. This should help the kids build their knowledge so it doesn’t need to be tricky and deep. A KWL chart is commonly used by teachers for their students which are mostly kids, so it can be designed with attractive colors and images that would engage them to look and analyze the chart.
Knowing what the students interests are helps when creating a KWL Chart. For teachers, making a KWL Chart should be easy if they know what is its use and purpose. So here is the step by step tutorial on how to successfully make a KWL Chart:
Step1Choose an engaging topic.
Engaging because is important for them to have interest on a certain thing so that it wouldn’t be so hard for them to analyze what is written in it. This can be about gravity, things around them and all the things that they have known a bit and that makes them wonder.
Step2Brainstorm the topic.
Create a discussion plan in which all the possible questions and answers are written and noted. In this way, a teacher can elaborate and prepare a better learning process for the students.
Step3Plot the Graph.
The creative the teacher is the better. It is okay to make the graph simple since it only requires three columns, but it is better if the teacher can add eye catching designs and details to the graph. Name each column as it is, What I Know, What I want to know and What I Learned.
If the graph is intended for a classroom poster, the answer should be answered or filled in within the perspective of a kid or student.
Step4Explain the chart.
Once it is done, the teacher can now explain the graph to the students. And ask them to participate or answer the questions that he or she prepared and let them write it in the chart.
If the students are already oriented on what a KWL chart is, the teacher can ask them to do it individually. For example in a sheet of paper each of them would make the columns and then the teacher would give a certain topic. It can also be a group work, in which the Teacher would use a board and let the students fill in the columns.
1
Make sure that the students really understand what each column is about so that they would not be in confusion regarding the topic.
2
Choose an enjoyable topic. It is a way for them to put their attentions on what is being talked about and express their thoughts freely. Let them ask questions and speak their minds.
3
Review all the things that you discussed with them so it would be easily remembered.
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A teacher can always add another column especially if an answer or question is somehow irrelevant with the labels. It is a good way of expanding the way of thinking of the students.
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