The One-Minute Schema Determiner

Schema is all the knowledge that is filed away in your brain.  The people you have met, things you have done, books you have read, and discoveries you have made – all those experiences build schema.   In Building Mathematical Comprehension, Laney Sammons tells us that “new knowledge must be associated with and linked to the existing schema to be assimilated.”  Effective readers and mathematicians draw upon their prior knowledge, or schema, to make connections when they encounter new learning opportunities or have problems to solve.

In Comprehension Connections,  Tanny McGregor suggests using a One-Minute Schema Determiner to help students see the value of making connections in reading.  Laney Sammons also suggests using it to help students realize the benefit of making connections when working with mathematical concepts.  Here’s an example:

• Create a T-Chart.
• Label the left side with a very familiar topic or term.
• Give the students 30 seconds to brainstorm what they know about the topic and record their thoughts.
• Label the right side with an unfamiliar topic or term.
• Give the students 30 seconds to brainstorm what they know about the topic and record their thoughts.
• Now ask students to reflect on which topic would be easier for them to handle.

After completing the chart, take the time to discuss its results, and ask students what they notice.  Introduce the concept of schema and explore how much easier it is to talk about familiar concepts than those that are brand new to us.  We are all more confident when we can draw on our prior knowledge.  This is a quick and effective activity to help our students see how we can develop understanding of new concepts by making connections to what we know.

Laney Sammons shares a great way to demonstrate the concept of schema to students – The Schema Roller:

Model the number 10 several different ways on small pieces of paper. (ten, 5+5, 100-90, tally marks, etc.)  Roll a lint roller over the pieces of paper.  In this example, the “schema” is what the roller has picked up – what sticks.  This gives students a visual model of the many ways you have learned to make the number 10 over the years.  This is your schema – your prior knowledge.  You will draw on this knowledge as you make connections and explore new concepts.

“Students remember new information more easily when it is connected to what they already know.”  – Laney Sammons