Connecting+to+Background+Knowledge

=CATAPULT Into Literature (Zwiers)=

Procedure

 * 1) Model and scaffold the use of the steps shown below. Tell students to take notes during this discussion.
 * 2) Create a half-sheet worksheet to remind students of CATAPULT steps as they read.
 * 3) If there is time, have students share their CATAPULT notes in pairs, groups, or with the whole class.

diagrams, or maps tell us? How will they add to our ability to visualize events and characters? ||
 * **C**overs (front and back) || What does the front cover show us about what we might visualize in the story? What does the back cover tell us about the story (the words, pictures, or both)? ||
 * **A**uthor || What is the author's background? Has he or she written any other stories that might be like this? What were they about? Are the same characters in this story as in the others? ||
 * **T**itle || What does the title lead us to predict about the story? Lets hear some possible predictions. ||
 * **A**udience || For whom was this story written? Old, young; male, female; city-dwelling, country-dwelling; past, present, or future readers? ||
 * **P**age 1 || Read page 1 and think about what the story might be about. ||
 * **U**nderlying message or purpose || With what we have thought about so far, what message or purpose might the author have for the readers? ||
 * **L**ook at visuals, maps, or sketches in the text || As we look through the story, what do the pictures, sketches,
 * **T**ime, place, characters || From clues so far, what can we say about when the story takes place, where it takes place, and the characters? What can we guess might happen to the characters? ||

=Closed Eyes Visualize (Zwiers)=

Procedure

 * 1) Explain to students that picturing text in their minds is vital for understanding it.
 * 2) Show students a series of three of four pictures (or show short video clips).
 * 3) After each picture, have students close their eyes and visualize what was in the picture. They also can write down words to describe the images if they want.
 * 4) Tell students to visualize a variation of each picture. For example, if you showed them a picture of mountains, have them modify this mental image to have several mountain climbers on the cliffs in a snowstorm.
 * 5) Tell the students that this is what happens during reading: We start with a rough image, and the text makes us modify it with other details.