Thinking skills

Useful web sites:

• North Yorkshire website - Teaching Thinking Learning : http://www.n-yorks.net/curriculum/thinking/thinkindex.html
• Standards Site Thinking Skills (although it is headed for primary - it is a very useful site and references other key stage resources too) : www.standards.dfee.gov.uk/thinking skills/

Thinking skills:

By using thinking skills pupils can focus on 'knowing how' as well as 'knowing what' - learning how to learn.

Information-processing skills

These enable pupils to locate and collect relevant information, to sort, classify, sequence, compare and contrast, and to analyse part/whole relationships

• Sorting
• Classifying
• Sequencing
• Making links
• Organising information

Reasoning skills

These enable pupils to give reasons for opinions and actions, to draw inferences and make deductions, to use precise language to explain what they think and to make judgements and decisions informed by reasons or evidence.

• Speculating
• Making deductions

Enquiry skills

These enable pupils to ask relevant questions, to pose and define problems, to plan what to do and how to research, to predict outcomes and anticipate consequences, and to test conclusions and improve ideas.

• Questioning
• Posing problems

Creative-thinking skills

These enable pupils to generate and extend ideas, to suggest hypotheses, to apply imagination, and to look for alternative outcomes.

• Hypothesising
• Looking for alternative outcomes

Evaluation skills

These enable pupils to evaluate information, to judge the value of what they read, hear and do, to develop criteria for judging the value of their own and others? work or ideas, and to have confidence in their judgements.

• checking and refining
• arguing
• Explaining
• Justifying

Activities to develop, practise and consolidate these skills involve working in different ways including: teacher reflection on, and modelling of, thinking skills; problem-solving in pairs; cooperative learning; and group discussion.

(Reference QCA Citizenship Schemes of Work Teachers Guide)