As we move students to higher levels of thinking, scaffolding the instruction is necessary in order for students to experience success. One way I knew I could help them was to first, intentionally plan on which questions I would ask and secondly, provide students with sentence frames that went with the question stems. The intentionally planning of the question stems ensured that I was targeting the appropriate DOK level of the standard. The sentence frames provide the students an opportunity to use key vocabulary. They provide structure and help to answer questions confidently and use the academic language in different levels. I have written question frames on sentence strips and hang them on my pocket charts. Some teachers use chart paper or make power points. Here are some question and sentence frames I’ve used. DOK Level Question Stems for Teachers Sentence Frames for Students Level 1 Can you recall _______? I would include ____because_____. Level 2 How would you summarize _____? Based on____, I would _____. Level 3 What conclusions can you draw from the text? Based on____ provided in the text, I predict_____ Level 4 What information can you gather to support your idea about ___? Taken from the STAAR Guide to Success Do you have any examples of question stems and sentence frames that you have used?
