ACTIVITY 5

Reading to learn new information: Planning learning before reading

Main goal

Using metacognitive strategies, planning, managing meaningful learning, web searching, selecting information critically and note-taking.

Group: 3rd year students

Time: 45 minutes

Materials: Diego Forlán´s biography, a Forlán´s picture from Wikimedia Commons, a KWL chart, internet connection for web search.

Stages:

Pre-reading:

1. Show students a Diego Forlán´s picture and ask them to tell you what they know about him.

2. Make a brainstorming on Diego Forlán on the board with some of the information you elicit from students.

Brainstorming 

3. Draw a KWL chart on Diego Forlán on the board. Help students organize their prior knowledge they have on the previous activity
    on the board under the “I know” column. Hand out the KWL chart.

Elicit more information from students by asking them some questions such as:

What is Diego Forlán´s occupation?

Where is he from?

What nationality is he?

Is he married?

Where does he live?

4. Model the strategy. Write down two pieces of information under the category “I know”.
    Ask students to copy them and add some more. Guide them in the process by monitoring their writing and provide
    them with immediate feedback.

KWL Chart


I know


I want to know


I learnt

Diego Forlán is a football player.

 

 

He is from Uruguay.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 5. Ask students to work in pairs or in groups to make some questions on the specific information they want to know on Diego Forlán.
     Help them students make the questions by relating them with the information they already know about him. The more specific the questions, the better.

KWL Chart


I know


I want to know


I learnt

Diego Forlán is a football player.

When did he start playing football?

 

He is from Uruguay.

Is he from Montevideo?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While-reading:

6. Help students to look for the specific missing information from the KWL chart on the web by trying to answer the questions they have made. Teach them how to look for information in the web. Make explicit recommendations on where to go (use of search engines and specific words for searching) and how to verify information validity and reliability (checking references and information source). Model a web search and go through the process by specifically saying the actions you take aloud step by step. You can use a Wikipedia article on Diego Forlán, provided you teach students how to verify the information sources present in the article as external links. Wikipedia article on Diego Forlán retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Forlán

 

7. Ask students to take notes and copy the links they have used to back up the information.

Post-reading

8. Finally, ask students to complete the KWL chart and share it on the board or on a googledoc document you can create and share with them for collaborative work.

KWL Chart


I know


I want to know


I learnt

Diego Forlán is a football player.

When did he start playing football?

He started playing football in…./ when he was...

He is from Uruguay.

Is he from Montevideo?

Yes. Diego Forlán is from Montevideo.