Quick classroom approaches to developing higher order thinking skills
As promised, following the post on Bloom’s taxonomy, here are some approaches to use in sessions to develop higher order thinking skills. Once again thanks to Joanne Miles for the original post.
- Laminate some big questions and stick them on your classroom wall or put them up on a flip chart:
What are you learning now? What are the key points for you?
How can you use this elsewhere in your course/future studies/ work or life?
How does today’ s lesson link to your assignment/assessment/ group task?
Which skills are you developing today?
What question have you got right now?
At an appropriate point in the lesson, point to the questions and get learners to reflect quietly and note ideas or discuss with a peer. You can then ask some checking questions afterwards. I saw this work very well as a mid session plenary activity, as it helped learners connect activities back to outcomes for that lesson and the wider application in their course.
New College Durham - TLA Talk 