“Should Hansel and Gretel be Angry with Their Father?”
In my last two blog posts, I shared Bloom’s Taxonomy of thinking and why it is important for us as teachers, parents and grandparents to be aware of how our questions are promoting and strengthening the natural thinking skills within our children.
I am going to share a simple example of using all levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy to compare the fairy tales of Hansel and Gretel and Goldilocks.
Hansel and Gretel Goldilocks
Knowledge (recall) Why did the father (list) What 3 things did
leave the children alone in Goldilocks touch in the
the woods? bears’ home?
Comprehension(explain) Why did (predict) How will the
dropping breadcrumbs bears feel when they
not help the children get home?
get home?
Application (apply) What would you do (sketch) Draw three
if you were lost in the pictures: Baby Bear’s
woods? bowl, chair and bed.
Analysis (diagram) Draw detailed (analyze) How come
pictures of the witch’s Baby Bear can sit in his
house: outside and inside. chair without breaking it?
Let’s experiment.
Synthesis (plan) What plan did (relate) How are
Gretel think of in order to Hansel’s and Gretel’s
save Hansel from being manners similar to
eaten by the witch? Goldilock’s manners?
Evaluation (judge) How would you (defend) Do you think
feel if your parents left the bears had a right to
you alone in the forest to be angry with
die? Goldilocks?
The above questions are just some examples of questions I ask children about these two stories.
I am guiding them to become critical thinkers, to use all their thinking skills, and to interact with their knowledge. I am guiding them to make the stories “their own”. I am guiding them to apply this thinking in multiple situations throughout the rest of their lives.
Asking critical thinking questions of our children as we read with them, watch a show or movie with them and experience life with them provides us the opportunity to share our thoughts and values with our children. This is both a joyful and important part of our job as teachers, parents, and grandparents.
In my next blog post, we’ll explore promoting and strengthening children’s thinking skills outside of “formal” education. I’ll share why my grandson exclaimed, “Grandma is EVERYWHERE!”
If you are questioning whether someone in your life is dyslexic and you’re not sure what to do, feel free to contact us.