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Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit's Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies department!

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28 Critical Thinking Question Stems For Any Content Area
by TeachThought Staff

Critical thinking isn't a skill, nor is it content knowledge or even evidence of understanding. While it involves and requires these ideas, critical thinking is also very much a state of mind - a willingness and tendency to sit with an idea and 'struggle wonderfully' with it.

In critical thinking, there is no conclusion; it is constant interaction with changing circumstances and new knowledge that allows for broader vision which allows for new evidence which starts the process over again. Critical thinking has at its core raw emotion and tone. Intent.

The purpose of these stems is to help students practice this slippery 'skill.' By having dozens of questions written generally enough to be widely applicable, but with an inherent rigor that challenges students to think, the ability to practice thinking critically is always available.
Critical Thinking Cards
In adddition to the text and cards, we've included a graphic below. You also can purchase them in card-format to be printed and used right away in your classroom, a sample of which you can see below.

By making them cards, they are not only easier to 'keep around'-on your desk, on a shelf in a workstation area, or even copied and given to students- but more importantly, meaningful thinking can become a part of your daily routines. Writing prompts, reading circles, Socratic discussions and more all benefit from critical thinking, and providing students with stems is a way of supporting them as their confidence grows and their habits as thinkers develop.

28 Critical Thinking Question Stems For Any Content Area
1. What evidence can you present for/against...?

2. How does ... contrast with ...?

3. How could you outline or concept map...? Explain your response with examples.

4. Why is ... significant? Explain your reasoning.

5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of ...?

6. What is the point or 'big idea' of ...?

7. How could you judge the accuracy of ...?

8. What are the differences between ... and ...?

9. How is ... related to ...?

10. What ideas could you add to ... and how would these ideas change it?

11. Describe ... from the perspective of ....

12. What do you think about ...? Explain your reasoning.

13. When might ... be most useful and why?

14. How could you create or design a new...? Explain your thinking.

15. What solutions could you suggest the problem of ...? Which might be most effective and why?

16. What might happen if you combined ... and ...?

17. Do you agree that ...? Why or why not?

18. What information would you need to make a decision about ...?

19. How could you prioritize ...?

20. How is ... an example of ...?

21. What are the most important parts or features of ...?

22. Which details of ... are most important and why?

23. What patterns do you notice in ...?

24. How could you classify ... into a more/less general category?

25. What makes ... important?

26. What criteria could you use to assess ...?

27. How could ... and ... function together? How do they work separately and together and different ways?

28. Where is ... most/least ...? Explain your reasoning.

28 Critical Thinking Question Stems For Any Content Area

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28 Critical Thinking Question Stems For Any Content Area |

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28 Critical Thinking Question Stems For Any Content Area by TeachThought Staff Critical thinking isn't a skill, nor is it content knowledge or even evidence of understanding. While it involves and requires these ideas, critical thinking is also very much a state of mind - a willingness and tendency to sit with an idea and 'struggle wonderfully' with it.

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We miss seeing and working with real people so very much!!! Please share a celebration or note in this column!!!!

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Start your meetings off on the right foot with Hej.today a check-in generator created by Daresay

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Reinventing how your students discuss text within the classroom

Edmund Burke once said "Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting." As a teacher, I am always looking for ways to reinvent how students interact with the text they are reading as well as new ways to facilitate discussion within the classroom. I want students to develop a deep love for reading but also foster the ability to engage in conversations based on their reading. While on my constant search for new tools and strategies to accomplish this goal, I stumbled across BookSnaps, an idea created by Tara Martin (http://www.tarammartin.com/booksnaps/).

BookSnaps are a creative way to allow annotation and sharing of excerpts from books and articles while making personal connections with the content. The students are able to record their own personal reflections while using bitmojis to express emotions that the text provoked in them and highlight text evidence to support their reflections. This strategy allows students to focus on specific aspects of text in a creative approach. BookSnaps are not only changing the way I have seen students share their thought processes but also how I am able to make connections with their reasoning! Booksnaps are a quick and easy way to share a visual of personal connections to text. Students can create them using many different platforms. Some of the most commonly used platforms include Seesaw, Google Drawings, Google Slides, Snapchat, and Pic Collage. They can be created by taking a picture of a book page or section of an article and uploading the image to a chosen platform. Once the image is uploaded, additional images, emojis, and Bitmojis can be added along with text, drawings, and other annotations. Once the BookSnap is created, students can share out!

In the classroom I have seen BookSnaps allow students to share connections with the text along with evidence to support a central idea or theme. In addition, it has allowed students to use Bitmojis to display emotions the text generates which often facilitates discussion among the readers when the text draws multiple emotions. Through the use of the BookSnaps, students are able to react to others' reflections and create dialogue around a common text. Often, after creating BookSnaps, students complete a gallery walk to view other students' thinking while asking questions based on the evidence provided within the BookSnap. They can also be used within small groups to help foster discussion around a common text.

Not only have I found value in students using BookSnaps in their literary discussion, but also I have discovered the benefit in my own professional learning conversations. BookSnaps have allowed me to connect with other educators through the use of the hashtag #booksnaps and create a space for online discussion. Through sharing out BookSnaps of my current reads I am able to reflect and often view the text through a different lens based on the conversation with other educators. The online community has allowed me to share my own learning digitally and connect beyond the walls of my district.

As educators, we are often looking for new ways to engage and connect with our students as well as other colleagues. BookSnaps have provided me this exact opportunity and has allowed me and my students to reflect on our text in new ways!
Want to learn more about BookSnaps? View my 30-minute webinar!
About the Author: Andrea Raines began her career in New Hanover County as a third grade teacher. After several years she transitioned into the role of instructional coach at the elementary school where she taught. For the last two years, Andrea has implemented professional development and on-site support working with her system's Beginning Teachers. New Hanover County is located in Wilmington, North Carolina, and serves approximately 25,000 students at its 45 public schools.

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Engaging Students with #BookSnaps - Achieve the Core Aligned Materials

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Edmund Burke once said "Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting." As a teacher, I am always looking for ways to reinvent how students interact with the text they are reading as well as new ways to facilitate discussion within the classroom. I want students to develop a deep love for reading but also ...

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Using Word Walls Successfully in Social Studies | Social Studies Success

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The Importance of Word Walls Using word walls in Social Studies is not a new strategy, but it has become increasingly important as students struggle with the high demand for vocabulary instruction required by the STAAR. Word walls benefit all of our students - not just our ELL's.

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| | Filed Under: Classroom Management and Organization, Digital Resources
Note: The PDF now includes links to Weekly Check-Ins as well!
One of the hardest parts about distance learning is not being able to see and talk with our students on a regular basis. Even if you are doing video conferences, it is hard to know how students are doing and if they need help. One option is to have daily check-ins using Google Forms. This post shares free daily check in google forms for distance learning and some tips for how to use them.

About the Daily Check-In Google Forms

These daily check-in Google Forms are one way to check in your with students on a daily basis. The responses can also be shared with special education or any support staff who serve the students.

I have included two check-in forms for you: one for the beginning of the day and one for the end of the day. You can send both of the forms or choose to only send one.

Beginning of the Day Check-In Form

This form is designed to check in with the students before they begin their assignments (but after they locate them).

The form asks the following questions:

How are you feeling today?

Do you have anything to tell me? This can be about school or life.

Were you able to find all of your work for today?

Do you need any help getting started with your assignments?

What questions do you have about your assignments?

End of the Day Check-In Form

This form is designed to check in with the students as they finish their learning for the day.

The form asks the following questions:

How are you feeling now?

How did you to do today?

How do you feel about your assignments today? (This is a linear scale with "I didn't understand anything" at one end and "I understood everything" at the other end.)

Do you have anything to tell me? This can be about school or life.

Note: There are now links to Weekly Check-Ins included in the PDF download as well!

Modifying the Check-In Forms

After you copy the forms to your drive, you may go in and modify any of the questions and/or add new questions. These screenshots are also included in the free download.

Assigning the Check-In Forms
If you need help assigning these check-in forms to your students, click here to grab a free guide to help!
When assigning the forms, I recommend you make a new copy for each week (you can keep the responses organized using the spreadsheet that Google Forms generates).

Another way to send the Check-In Forms to your students is to link them via a Google Slides Template. Here is an example template. The link to copy this template can be found in the section titled Get the Free Daily Check-In Google Forms and Slide Template Here.

Viewing the Responses

You can easily view the responses by generating a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet is automatically sorted by date and time so you can keep your responses organized. You can also sort the responses alphabetically by student name.

***Get the Free Daily Check-In Google Forms and Slide Template Here
****Click here or on the image below to grab the PDF with the links to each Google Form and the Google Slide Templates (and tips for copying/modifying the forms and viewing the responses).
Note: make sure you copy the forms to your drive. If you manipulate the link, you will be compromising your students' data. YOU MUST COPY THE FORM TO YOUR DRIVE AND CREATE A NEW FORM THAT IS ONLY ACCESSIBLE BY YOU AND YOUR STUDENTS!

Note: There are now links to Weekly Check-Ins included in the PDF download as well!

More Digital Distance Learning Resources
How to Assign Google Forms How to Create Google Form Assignments Viewing and Analyzing Responses in Google Forms How to Assign Google Slides How to Have Students Show Their Math Work Digitally - Free Student Google Slides Guide Tips for Distance Learning Planning
Blog Posts and Free Guides

Digital Learning Activities
Main Idea Differentiated Practice - These are perfect for assigning differentiated reading practice (texts at two levels to your students). Text Structure Differentiated Practice - Another option for differentiating your reading practice easily. Reading Test Prep Task Cards - This is perfect for reading review! It includes 8 Google Forms in all (with 8 questions per form).
Google Form - Reading Activities
4th Grade Math Test Prep Review 5th Grade Math Test Prep Review 4th Grade Math Differentiated Skill Sheets 5th Grade Math Differentiated Skill Sheets Math Choice Boards (Grades 3-5 Available) 5th Grade Math Skill Posters Decimal of the Day Review 5th Grade Find the Error Math Tasks
Google Slides - Math Activities
4th & 5th Grade Reading View Color by Reading Activities Reading Interactive Notebook Color Coding Text Evidence Printables Reading Intervention Passages with Read Aloud Audio 4th & 5th Grade Reading Flipbooks Theme Activities - Printable and Digital Versions Inference Activities - Printable and Digital Versions 5th Grade Language Review 5th Grade Language Posters Finish the Story! Engaging Narrative Writing Center
Google Slides - Literacy Activities

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Free Daily Check-In Google Forms for Distance Learning

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Filed Under: Classroom Management and Organization, Digital Resources Note: The PDF now includes links to Weekly Check-Ins as well! One of the hardest parts about distance learning is not being able to see and talk with our students on a regular basis.

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The Ultimate Collection of Jamboard Templates

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If you have a template I can share on this list tweet me @HollyClarkEdu or FB Group facebook.com/groups/infusedclassroom 👉🏼Please click on three dots and then Make a Copy to get a copy for yourself.👈🏼 🚀More ideas like this in The Chromebook Infused Classroom on amazon.

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When I first started teaching 5th grade, I had a pretty serious misconception about students and writing. I thought that students would be able to express themselves verbally and in writing about what we were learning. Wrong-o, Ari. There were a few that were articulate, but as a group, my students needed some scaffolding.

Hello, sentence stems. Sentence stems help students communicate what they are thinking about, help many students with special needs, and provide focus for our lesson.

In this post, I've provided some basic sentence stems for social studies, math, and science.

3 Tips for Using Sentence Stems

1. Make sentence stems optional.

I've found that the students who need the sentence stems KNOW they need it and will use it. As students get more comfortable with explaining their thinking, many will naturally use the sentence stems.

2. Model how to use sentence stems when responding in notebooks and aloud.

Unless students have used them before, they may not know what to do with it a blank line. Show them your expectations and how it can be helpful. Have students practice using sentence stems when answering questions with a partner. You can practice with easy ones like "My favorite subject is ___ because ___."

3. Keep a list of sentence stems handy for you and your students to reference.

Sometimes my brain hurts and I just need things to be readily available. I made 3 printable pages of sentence stems for social studies, science, and math that you can download and have on-hand. Download this free resource now.

Hopefully this post gave you some ideas on how to implement sentence stems in your classroom!

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When I first started teaching 5th grade, I had a pretty serious misconception about students and writing. I thought that students would be able to express themselves verbally and in writing about what we were learning. Wrong-o, Ari. There were a few that were articulate, but as a group, my students needed some scaffolding.