Transcript Depth and Complexity - Gifted and Talented Education

Depth and
Complexity Icons
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Power of Icons
Provide structure and support for taking a deeper and
more complex look at any topic
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Quick Easy Application to any Material
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For Visual learners--A picture is worth a thousand words
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Provide scaffolding to do higher level thinking for second
language students and students with learning disabilities
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Develop “Habits of Mind” that become ingrained
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Advanced learners are asked to reach into the upper ranges
of their ZPD
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Increase student enthusiasm and motivation
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Concrete Entry Points
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Brainstorm Common Everyday Icons
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Use the Detail Icon
as way for students to talk about
themselves (Seen and Unseen Details)
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Read a story like the Butter Battle Book by
Dr. Seuss to introduce several icons
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Use Multiple Perspectives
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Use the Rules
icon for class rules on first day
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Use the Big Idea
for writing a paragraph
for conflict resolution
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Dive Into Depth and Complexity
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An essential part of
differentiating the
curriculum through
depth and complexity
is using the icons,
and ensuring that
students are familiar
with them.
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Post a set of the
icons clearly in your
room
This prompts integration into discussions,
and shows students you value the icons
as intellectual tools.
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Use the Icons Within Your Lessons
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“Look for (appropriate icon) in our lesson today on
(content area).”
Use the Big Idea to summarize or end lessons.
Label your daily agenda and lesson plans with the
icons.
Have students label all work with the appropriate
icons.
Label all classroom work and charts with the
icons.
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Frame Stories or Concepts
With the Icons
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Frame the Teacher:
Introduce four icons by
making a frame around
the topic of the teacheryou!
Frame Yourself: Each
student completes a
similar frame
Frame stories or
concepts with the icons
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But remember,
we are not teaching the icons, we are teaching
concepts to new levels of depth and complexity
using pictures to stand for the thinking strategies.
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Depth
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Refers to approaching or studying
something from the concrete to the
abstract, from the known to the unknown.
Requires students to examine topics by
determining the facts, concepts,
generalization, principles and theories
related to them.
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Depth
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Necessitates uncovering more details and
new knowledge related to a topic of study.
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Encourages students to adopt perspectives
and to see patterns in connections.
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Depth has the following
major dimensions:
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Language of the
Disciplines: Specialized
vocabulary, names of skills or
tasks, tools used
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Rules: Structure, order,
hierarchy, explanation
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Ethics: Points of View,
Different Opinions, judging
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Details: Attributes, parts,
factors, variables
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Big Idea: Generalization,
principle, theory
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Patterns: Repetition,
predictability
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Trends: Influence, forces,
direction
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Unanswered Questions:
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Discrepancies, missing parts,
unclear ideas, incomplete
ideas
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Complexity
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Includes making relationships, connecting
other concepts, and layering.
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Why/how approach that connects and
bridges to other disciplines to enhance the
meaning of a unit of study.
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Complexity encourages students to
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Relate concepts and ideas at a more
sophisticated level
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See associations among diverse subjects,
topics or levels
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Find multiple solutions from multiple points
of view
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Complexity has three
major dimensions:
 Relationships
Over Time: Between the
past, present and future, and within a time
period
 Relationships
From Different Points
of View: Multiple Perspectives, opposing
viewpoints, differing roles and knowledge
 Interdisciplinary
Relationships:
With, between and across the disciplines
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Keys to Activate Deeper Learning
Use verbs associated with the nouns (icons) of
Depth and Complexity
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Language of the Discipline: categorize, identify
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Details: describe, differentiate
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Patterns: summarize, make analogies
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Trends: prioritize, predict
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Rules: judge credibility, hypothesize
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Ethics: judge with criteria, determine bias
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Big Idea: prove with evidence, identify main idea
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Unanswered Questions: note ambiguity, distinguish fact from fiction
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Keys to Activate Complex Learning
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Different Points of View: argue,
determine bias, classify
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Relationships Over Time: relate,
sequence, order
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Relationships Across Discipline:
compare and contrast, show relationship
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Dear Students,
There will be times when…
We all do the same thing.
Some do different things.
We all work together.
You work alone.
You choose for yourself.
I choose for you.
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Classroom examples using
depth and complexity
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