Question

How do you generate questions for your students that address a variety of levels and capabilities of mathematical thinking in a whole class situation? Provide two examples of such questions for a stated grade level.

Answer 1

To generate questions for students that addresses a variety of levels and capabilities of mathematical thinking in a whole class situation the following should be considered:

• Closed-end questions should be avoided because it would only elicit answers from the memory of the students.
• Yes or no questions should also be avoided because these questions are also not helpful to develop higher order thinking skills in students.
• Open-ended questions that stimulate deeper thought and reasoning should be asked.
• These questions should be prepared before the class.
• It should be ensured that these questions stimulate the higher thinking order cognitive levels as analysing, evaluating, and synthesizing.

Examples

1) For the grade 1 students who now know to add upto to the digit of 20, instead of asking them 10+3=?, a closed question, the question can be flipped and can be asked if the answer is 13 which possible number can be added. Thus, students would come with all possible numbers that can added for making it 13, and this would elicit higher order thinking skills as analysis, evaluation and synthesis. Also, the students will come up with different answers.

2) The first grade students who knows the different shapes the higher order question could be of what's the difference between the various shapes as what is the difference between the shape of their ball and the shape of their book.