Step+1+Task+Definition+-+Samples

=Step **1. Task Definition**=

General Samples

 * 1.2 Students use a graphic organizer to identify the information needed to complete the task.
 * 1.3 Given a topic, ask students to develop two sets of questions. One list has questions that require fact finding; the second list has questions that require research which requires drawing a conclusion.
 * 1.3 Given a topic, students use their own area interest to develop a research question.

Specific Samples
1.3 Social Studies Fact Finding vs. Research: **Fact Finding**: What was the Silk Road? **Research**:What effect did the global interactions of the Silk Road have on the development of understanding among cultures?
 * Fact Finding:** What is the Bill of Rights?
 * Research:** How does the Bill of Rights impact our lives today? What does it mean to be free?


 * Good research questions:**
 * are relevant in multiple settings (e.g., in the history and science classroom, the evening news and a student’s personal life).
 * recur naturally, creating opportunities for transfer to other situations.
 * are provocative. They must challenge students to rethink big ideas and assumptions and to go beyond superficialities to deep thought, lively discussion, sustained inquiry and new understanding.
 * are open-ended. They lead to genuine and relevant inquiry, not to easy answers. Essential questions
 * require students to integrate, synthesize, and critically evaluate information. While essential questions should be open-ended, they should also be feasible.
 * go to the heart of a topic.
 * are challenging. They encourage students to confront difficult issues or complex scientific ideas.
 * can examine real-world dilemmas or natural processes that students find interesting. They spark meaningful connections to prior knowledge and experiences.
 * can be interpreted through and from a variety of perspectives.
 * are consistent with curricular standards and frameworks.
 * lead to more questions.

Step 2 Samples

**Big6 (TM)** Eisenberg and Berkowitz, 1987.