Definition
An instructional teaching method in which the instructor builds new learning on what the student already understands, using established knowledge as the foundation for introducing unfamiliar material.
Plain English
Start with what the student already knows, then connect new information to it so the new material has something familiar to attach to.
Context Anchor
Used in flight instruction when an instructor introduces a new maneuver, procedure, or concept by tying it to something the student has already learned.
Why Pilots Care
Reduces student confusion and builds confidence by connecting new aviation knowledge to familiar ideas rather than presenting it in isolation.
Intuition Check
Do not read this as a trick for making students guess the unknown. It means the instructor deliberately builds the new lesson from something the student already understands.
Example Sentence 1
Before introducing steep turns, the instructor used the known to unknown strategy by reviewing the level medium turn the student had already mastered.
Example Sentence 2
Before introducing stalls, the CFI applied the known to unknown strategy by first reviewing the student's understanding of basic aerodynamics.