Since very early in life, you have been actively forming schemas--organized clusters of knowledge and information about particular topics. the topic can be almost anything--an event, an object, a situation, or a concept. for example, consider the schema you have for a typical kitchen. it probably includes food, a refrigerator, a toaster, sink, cabinets, silverware, and so forth. you started forming your kitchen schema early in life by gradually identifying the common elements first in your own kitchen, then in other people’s kitchens. over time, these common elements became associated and organized into a cluster of knowledge, producing the working schema you have for a kitchen.