Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Prior Knowledge Improves Reading Comprehension

Prior Knowledge Improves Reading Comprehension Using prior knowledge is an important part of reading comprehension for children with dyslexia. Students relate the written word to their previous experiences to make reading more personal, helping them to both understand and remember what they have read. Some experts believe that activating prior knowledge is the most important aspect of the reading experience. What is Prior Knowledge? When we talk about prior or previous knowledge, we refer to all of the experiences readers have had throughout their lives, including information they have learned elsewhere. This knowledge is used to bring the written word to life and to make it more relevant in the readers mind. Just as our understanding about the subject can lead to further understanding, misconceptions that we accept also add to our understanding, or misunderstanding as we read. Teaching Prior Knowledge A number of teaching interventions can be implemented in the classroom to help students effectively activate prior knowledge when reading: preteaching vocabulary, providing background knowledge and creating opportunities and a framework for students to continue building background knowledge. Pre-teaching Vocabulary In another article, we discussed the challenge of teaching students with dyslexia new vocabulary words. These students may have a larger oral vocabulary than their reading vocabulary and they may have a difficult time both sounding out new words and recognizing these words when reading. It is often helpful for teachers to introduce and review new vocabulary before beginning new reading assignments. As students become more familiar with the vocabulary and continue to build their vocabulary skills, not only does their reading fluency increase but so does their reading comprehension. In addition, as students learn and understand new vocabulary word, and relate these words to their personal knowledge of a subject, they can invoke that same knowledge as they read. Learning the vocabulary, therefore, helps students to use their personal experiences to relate to stories and information they read. Providing Background Knowledge When teaching math, teachers accept that a student continues to build upon previous knowledge and without this knowledge, they will have a much more difficult time understanding new mathematical concepts. In other subjects, such as social studies, this concept is not readily discussed, however, it is just as important. In order for a student to understand written material, no matter what the subject, a certain level of prior knowledge is needed. When students are first introduced to a new topic, they will have some level of prior knowledge. They may have a great deal of knowledge, some knowledge or very little knowledge. Before providing background knowledge, teachers must measure the level of prior knowledge in a specific topic. This can be accomplished by: Asking questions, beginning with general questions and slowly increasing the specificity of questionsWrite statements on the board based on what students have shared about the topicHave students complete a worksheet, without grading, to determine knowledge Once a teacher has gathered information on how much the students know, she can plan lessons to students further background knowledge. For example, when beginning a lesson on the Aztecs, questions on prior knowledge might revolve around types of homes, food, geography, beliefs, and accomplishments. Based on the information the teacher gathers, she can create a lesson to fill in the blanks, showing slides or pictures of homes, describing what types of food were available, what major accomplishments the Aztecs had. Any new vocabulary words in the lesson should be introduced to the students. This information should be given as an overview and as a precursor to the actual lesson. Once the review is completed, students can read the lesson, bringing in the background knowledge to give them a greater understanding of what they have read. Creating Opportunities and a Framework for Students to Continue Building Background Knowledge Guided reviews and introductions to new material, such as the previous example of the teacher providing an overview, before reading are extremely helpful in providing students with background information. But students must learn to find this type of information on their own. Teachers can help by giving students specific strategies for increasing background knowledge about a new topic: Reading summaries and conclusions of chapters in a textbookReading the end-of-chapter questions before reading the chapterReading the headings and subheadingsFor books, reading the back of the book for information on what the book is aboutOlder students can review cliff notes before reading the bookSkimming the book, reading the first line of each paragraph or reading the first paragraph of each chapterSkimming for unfamiliar words and learning definitions before readingReading short articles on the same topic As students learn how to find background information on a previously unknown topic, their confidence in their ability to understand this information increases and they can use this new knowledge to build and learn about additional topics.References: Increasing Comprehension by Activating Prior Knowledge, 1991, William L. Christen, Thomas J. Murphy, ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills Prereading Strategies, Date Unknown, Karla Porter, M.Ed. Weber State University The Use of Prior Knowledge in Reading, 2006, Jason Rosenblatt, New York University

Sunday, March 1, 2020

Miller Surname Meaning and Origin

Miller Surname Meaning and Origin The common Miller surname is usually occupational, but there are also other possibilities. Miller is usually an occupational surname referring to a person who owned or worked in a grain mill.The Miller surname also possibly be derived in some instances from the Gaelic words meillear, meaning having large lips; malair, or merchant; or maillor, a man wearing armor or a soldier.In ancient times the Miller surname originated from the Molindinar (mo-lynn-dine-are), a Scottish burn (rivulet) that still flows under the streets of modern Glasgow. Surname Origin:  English, Scottish, German, French, Italian Alternate Surname Spellings:  MILLAR, MILLS, MULLAR, MAHLER, MUELLER, MOELLER Fun Facts About the Miller Surname: The popular Miller surname has absorbed many cognate surnames from other European languages, for example, the German Mueller; the French Meunier, Dumoulin, Demoulins, and Moulin; the Dutch Molenaar; the Italian Molinaro; the Spanish Molinero, etc. This means that the surname alone doesnt really tell you anything about your distant family origins. Famous People with the Surname MILLER: Arthur Miller (1915-2005) - American playwright best-known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play Death of a Salesman.Shannon Miller - American gymnast and Olympic gold medalistAlice Duer Miller - American womans suffrage activist, journalist, and writerWilliam Miller - author of Wee Willy Winkie and other nursery rhymes (1810-1872)Reggie Miller  - American basketball player Genealogy Resources for the Surname MILLER: 100 Most Common U.S. Surnames Their Meanings: Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census?Miller Family History: Gary Miller offers information on his Miller families of Chester and Columbia counties in Pennsylvania, along with some transcribed Miller records from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.Miller Genealogy of Western North Carolina: Marty Grant has provided a huge amount of information on his three Miller lines in Western North Carolina, along with links and information on other Miller families around the world.Miller DNA Study: This large DNA surname study includes over 300 tested members of the Miller family with the goal of untangling 5,000 distinct Miller lines in the world today.Miller Family Genealogy Forum: Search this popular genealogy forum for the Miller surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Miller query.FamilySearch - MILLER Genealogy: Explore over 22 million historical  records, digital images and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Miller surname and its variations on this free website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. MILLER Surname Family Mailing Lists: RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Miller surname.DistantCousin.com - MILLER Genealogy Family History: Free databases and genealogy links for the last name Miller.- References: Surname Meanings Origins Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967. Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005. Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004. Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989. Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003. Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.