This framework for differentiation will give your students practical ways to think more deeply about a topic.
My biggest problem when implementing Depth and Complexity? I used them in a shallow and simple way!
While the official depth and complexity icons look great, they lead to all kinds of problems in the digital world and also take ownership away from students. Emoji are an elegant solution to both problems.
You can use the prompts of depth and complexity yet still ask very shallow questions. Here's how to avoid this common pitfall…
I stopped and started with “What đź‘„ special writing techniques does the author use? List examples.”
All I did was ask students to list and explain three “disciplines.” Let’s take it a bit further!
It seems obvious, but if someone tells me what they’re wondering about, I shouldn’t move on to another topic!
“Define these terms in your own words” may contain depth and complexity… but it’s neither deep nor complex!
Yes, I actually gave my students this question: “How could two experts’ đź‘“ perspectives regarding information from this reading selection differ from one another?” yikes.
I want to go beyond just listing how a character changed. Let’s get students thinking about that change!
Here’s a Depth and Complexity worksheet I used to use with my students: I look at it now and shudder. I was making so many mistakes here. Let’s just zoom out and imagine that I asked the same questions at a book club with fellow adults. Me: What is this story’s main theme? Him: Oh, […]
Here’s an example of a question I asked my students: ⚖️ What moral or ethical issues are raised in this book? What controversies exist? Now, the first problem is that this question is way too wordy. I often gave my class rough drafts of questions. Nowadays, I want to make sure to proofread, revise, and […]
Here’s a Depth and Complexity question I found on an old worksheet: What title would you give this chapter? Explain why your title fits the chapter’s 🏛️ Big Idea. Sure, I’m using Depth and Complexity. But how am I asking students to think? Bloom’s Taxonomy is much more important than Depth and Complexity. (And it’s not […]
Here’s another question from a worksheet I used to use: Do you notice any 🌀 patterns in this book? And then the next question moved on to another topic. Do you notice any 🌀 patterns in this book? Were there any ⚖️ ethical issues? What was the 🏛️ big idea? I was leaving so much […]