Knowledge organiser


A knowledge organiser is an educational template on a single A4 sheet consisting of grids, each with a term and a short explanation, making it clear to the student as to what is essential to learn. Each grid has an overall theme and these vary according to the subject being taught. The term became well known throughout social media, and its creation and popularity has been credited to previous Michaela Community School teacher, Joe Kirby.

Origins and use

In 2015, Michaela Community School teacher, Joe Kirby, wrote a blog detailing the value of listing, on one side of A4 paper, key points to learn. He coined the template a knowledge organiser.
To construct a knowledge organiser, the unit of study and the content requiring to be taught needs to be identified. Subsequently, around five to ten key points based on the key areas are documented on one column and their definition in the opposite column. Dates, events and characters can be listed as items to learn. Individually tailored, knowledge organisers may be more useful in subjects such as history rather than English. The method has increased in use by a number of teachers who can then clarify what is important to learn.