What I Know

• Teachers must ensure that the subject is presented via methods that are appropriate and understandable for the students.
• Teachers must gauge where their class stands by a combination of pre-tests and any material provided by administration and through interacting with the students. Assignments, teaching methods, etc. can be adjusted to best meet class needs.
• Students come to the classroom with a wide range of needs and learning styles. Students of the same grade can be vastly different in regards to emotional, social, or academic development.

What I want to Know?

• What is Bloom’s Taxonomy and how does it impact how one teaches?
• What are each of the levels of Bloom’s taxonomy. In what ways can a teacher incorporate the methods of each level into their lesson? What are types of assignments that are appropriate for each level?
• If a cruise ship fell on you, would it hurt?

What I learned?

• Blooms taxonomy is a framework to focus on higher level thinking that assists teachers in designing assignments, questions, and feedback for students.
• Bloom’s taxonomy is hierarchical.

1. Knowledge: The first level is just being able to recall basic information about a text or selection. Appropriate questions at this level would be matching assignments, listing characteristics of a picture, arranging scrambled sentences or event sequences back in order, etc.
2. Comprehension: The student can understand the basic main ideas and facts of the selection. Appropriate questions at this level would be to ask the student to summarize story events, predict story events, explaining what happened before and after a picture or story, interpret a picture or story, etc.
3. Application: The student can apply their knowledge to solve problems. Appropriate questions at this level would be to ask the student to adjust a story character to anew setting, act out the story, determine how a character might have responded differently in a situation, relate the story to their own life or another’s life, etc.
4. Analysis: The student can examine the selection to determine causes and be able to use evidence to support generalizations. Appropriate questions at this level would be to ask the student to determine fact from opinion, compare and contrast, distinguish reality from fiction, etc.
5. Synthesis: The student can compile their knowledge in different ways to find alternative solutions. Appropriate questions at this level would be to ask the student to create something (story, product, etc) new from a story that is based on that story, restructure character roles for different outcomes, imagine yourself as part of the story, create a story from a title, etc.
6. Evaluation: The student can present and defend opinions and judge a piece of work based on a set of criteria. Appropriate questions at this level would be to ask the student to judge if a character acted correctly, decide if the story really could have happened, decide what character they would like to spend a day with and why, etc.

• Ask questions that present students with an opportunity to think out multiple outcomes. Ask them their opinions and to defend them. Ask them to explain why another might choose an action that they did. Ask them to make conclusions and judgements.