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Differentiation TechniqueFind The Controversy

Read The Overview: Find The Controversy in Any Topic

By leveraging a point of contention, we can get students interested in just about any topic. Yes, even boring old spelling has controversy we can exploit!

Specific Examples of “Find The Controversy”

Paradox: Ship of Theseus

Paradox: Ship of Theseus

Here's a fun thought experiment your students are sure to get a kick out of: when something is slowly replaced over time, is it still the same thing in the end?

How *Not* To Ask Questions About A Novel

How Not To Ask Questions About A Novel

These "discussion questions" highlight so many of the problems we've been looking at.

Which is longer: a Ray or a Line?

Which is longer: a Ray or a Line?

Let's move beyond memorizing definitions and get kids grappling with the fascinating concept of infinity!

3 More Paradoxes, Part III

Here are even more amazing paradoxes to baffle your students: Buridan's Bridge, the Bootstrap Paradox, and the Barber Paradox.

Running A Curiosity Project

Merlin Mann stated that employees’ motivation increases when they get to “build a robot” once in a while. That is, do something creative beyond regular work. Can we do this at school? Offices have “casual Fridays,” can we have “curiosity Fridays?"

3 More Paradoxes

Last month’s paradox post was very popular, so here’s another. These are a blast to share with kids. Use them to help students think through a complex problem, finding all possibilities. Work on the ability to articulate thinking. And, naturally, have them find and create their own.

Multiple Perspectives: Right And Wrong At The Same Time?

It's essential to teach our students to think flexibly and consider multiple points of view. Flexible thinking leads to product innovation, diplomacy between nations, and advances in science. School, however, often encourages students to settle into a "one right answer" mindset.

Ask Them Which Is Better

Moving from analysis to evaluation sure makes things more fun. Why? Check out these examples. Which would you rather answer?

Conflict and Quadrilaterals

Rather than merely asking "what patterns are there in these quadrilaterals" we'll set up an exploration of conflict and quadrilaterals.

Paradox: Does Majority Rule?

A quick, but challenging discussion topic for any age: "Is it always fair to make decisions based on a majority vote?"

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