The oldest students were part of a short unit where we explored Bloom’s Taxonomy. What better way to learn about higher and lower level questions than to write your own after studying and discussing each level of Bloom’s framework. Just as responding to higher level questions is more challenging for a reader, they were also the more challenging questions to write.

After reading text on a familiar topic the children were first challenged to write questions at the remembering and understanding level. These questions basically ask a reader to identify and recall information, and retell or explain in their own words. The following week students wrote questions using the same text at the application level and analysis level. These questions used information from the text in new ways and made connections. Finally students wrote questions at the evaluating and creating level. They had to create questions that asked their reader to judge, criticize and assess and finally how to combine ideas to make a new whole.

Once the questions were written they exchanged their questions, and accompanying text with a partner who was challenged to answer the questions.