How I’d Change this Question from my Textbook
Let’s transform a (cough cough) “critical thinking” question from one of the textbooks I had to use. This question comes from the Houghton Mifflin reading selection Beneath The Royal Palms but you don’t need to know the story to see the problem with this question.
Why did Alma’s family decide to make nativity figurines?
This is asking for low-level thinking. A correct response would indicate a pretty basic understanding of the text, but certainly not “critical thinking”!
So, let’s transform this into a beautiful question that will actually get students thinking.
Add Depth And Complexity
You can begin by adding one of the prompts of depth and complexity:
- List three 🌻 details that explain why Alma’s family created nativity figurines.
- Explain the ⏳ change over time that made it possible for Alma’s family to create nativity figurines?
- Write from the 👓 perspective of two opposing points of view towards the nativity figurines.
Connect To A Larger Idea
You could also move towards abstraction and connect this question to a big idea of some sort: a larger theme, saying, or generalization. Note that I always give kids the chance to agree or disagree.
- Explain how the nativity figurines support or contradict the 🏛️ big idea “conflict can lead to positive outcomes.”
- Explain how Alma’s family and their nativity figurines do or do not demonstrate a 🏛️ theme of perseverance.
- Explain how the nativity figurines support or contradict the saying 🏛️ “the best things in life are free.”
Connect Across Content
Get kids thinking across stories (or content areas) by purposefully picking another piece of content:
- Note three ⏸️🌻 parallel details between Alma’s family and the family of Jackie Joyner Kersee.
- Explain what Alma’s family would think about the story The Giving Tree.
- Would Alma’s family have supported the American Revolution or sided with the British?
Take It To The Top of Bloom’s!
Finally, move your thinking skill up Bloom’s Taxonomy by crafting an evaluative question:
- Do you agree with the family’s decision to devote time making nativity figurines?
- Which action represented a bigger sacrifice: making the nativity figurines or moving homes to support mom’s business?
Don’t Start Everything From Scratch
This is a simple example of taking grade-level curriculum and differentiating through small changes. When creating lessons or assessments, use your base program as a starting point. While it will probably lack actual critical thinking questions, there are wonderful seeds in there that, with your care, will blossom into an appropriate challenge for your students.