Classrooms For

Thinking!!January 30th 2009

Tony Ryan

Four key applications

•Self-talk your way to meta-thinking •Code for the quality of your classroom

thinking facilitation•Intellectually hassle with the Focus

Question•Build in lots of highly engaging thinking

strategies

Q. What IS quality thinking for YOU?Q. How do you think (eg when you’re reliving a memory of a recent event)?Q. What is your most effective thinking process when working through an issue towards a solution?

How do you think??!!!

Intellectual options for you!!•Do further study•Set complex questions.... and

answer them•Cognitively exercise for a specific

time each day•Find like minds, and engage in

regular intellectual discourse

1. Self-talk•An awareness of one’s own thinking

and emotional state•Begin with an explicit lesson•Model your thinking (and encourage

the modelling of other good thinkers)•Ask: What (and how) are you thinking

as you work on this lesson?

• Skills are not enough. A disposition for wanting / needing to think is critical

• Five possible groupings:

• curiosity, inquiry, playing with ideas, questioning;

• thinking broadly, making connections, being open-minded and fair;

• being careful and clear when reasoning; • being organised and planning ahead; and • willingness to take time to think.

• Paul (2000), cited in Hipkins 2006)

A disposition for thinking

2. Coding of your ‘thinking’ practice

•Choose specific lessons, and code for the quality of your thinking facilitation

•Choose full units, and code them for thinking

•Visualise a meta-coach, who is always coding YOU for your thinking practice

A thinking rubric??

Poor Sensational

Creative intent Nothing new!Aha moments

Contribute lots of ideas

Degree of reflection

Listening without thinking

Always analyse how to

use ideas

3. The focus question• In most cases, a single question that focuses

all learning in that study•Create a strong visual display of this

question•Examples of focus questions?• Just because we can, should we?•How can understanding algebra make your

life easier?• Is recycling worth the cost and the effort?•What is a quality life?

• Essential Question How does literature help us better understand ourselves?• Unit Question

How does Shakespeare still speak to a 21st century audience?• Content Questions

* Who are the characters in Romeo and Juliet, and how do they contribute to the deaths in the play?* What is imagery, and what are some examples of how Shakespeare uses imagery in Romeo and Juliet to present a compelling and powerful message?* What are the themes and issues in Romeo and Juliet that are relevant to today?

Curriculum-Framing Questions for English

• Essential Question How does math help us understand our world?• Unit QuestionsHow can we use algebra to help describe the physical world?How can formulas help us understand bicycles and bicycling?• Content Questions How do you create an equation given a problem of proportion?How do you solve an equation for a given variable?

Curriculum-framing questions for Math

•Step 1. Choose a specific study eg Cyber-ethics•Step 2. Brainstorm a Focus question about that

study that would even ‘stretch’ an adult•It must be 10 words or less•It must be a thinking challenge •It must be (one of) the most important possible question(s) about this topic

•Step 3. Then rewrite this adult question to suit the class

Developing an inquiry-based focus question

4. Thinking strategies??•Teach thinking strategies at the

meta-level (ie don’t just use them; explain them)

•Teach the strategies in context•Use a 2-colour planning process•Get visual with•Wall displays•Icons on IWBs

1. The Question Key 2. The Brainstorming Key

3. The Perspectives Key 4. The Graphics Key

5. The Matrix Key 6. The Decision Key

7. The Info Key 8. The Commonality Key

9. The Improvements Key 10. The Rubrics Key

THINKERS KEYS

11. The Action Key 12. The Reverse Key

13. The Brick Wall Key 14. The BAR Key

15. The Prediction Key 16. The Ridiculous Key

17. The Three Whys Key 18. The Inventions Key

19. The Personal Key 20. The Ripples Key

THINKERS KEYS

Some thinking sequences

•SOLUTION: Info / Question / Brainstorming / Decision / Action

•DESIGN: Prediction / BAR / Improvements /

•ANALYSIS: Perspectives / Rubrics / Three Whys

•LIFE ISSUES: Personal / Ripples / Action

What sequences could you use to resolve

these issues?• Eliminating subtle cyber-bullying by a

minority of students

• Developing a plan for encouraging more people to contribute to a community wiki

• Creating some really unusual ideas for a Fan Fiction story about World Of Warcraft

• Designing a 2020 mousetrap

Wrapping Up•What were the three key

messages / ideas for you in this session?

•How will you take each one of them further?

•Thank you!!!