Using Thinking Routines

Thinking routines teach students to make their ideas visible and accessible. This is done through a variety of graphic organisers, which help structure ideation and reasoning. They are simple to use, yet powerful in impact. The purpose of thinking routines is to promote a deeper understanding of content and help students understand how they think and learn. As Margaret Mead writes, “Children must be taught how to think, not what to think”.

Why make thinking visible?

For many students, the thinking behind answers and how other students and teachers reach conclusions is ‘invisible’. By making thinking ‘visible’ students are let into the ‘secret’ of learning by seeing teachers and peers explain their thinking and reasoning.

“Learning is a consequence of thinking, not something extra we tack on for good measure but something in which we must actively engage to promote our own and others’ learning.” – Ron Ritchhart, Creating Cultures of Thinking (2015)

For learners to thrive in the 21st century, they must be able to share their thinking in the most accessible way for ‘active engagement’ with others.

Teachers at Pacific continue to embed thinking routines into all areas of the curriculum. It’s wonderful to see student thinking on a huge variety of topics, written on sticky notes throughout learning spaces. We have found that our students:

• Show more interest in and commitment to learning.
• Find more meaning in topics and also more meaningful connections between school and their everyday life.
• Are open-minded rather than closed-minded, more curious and ask more questions. They are not satisfied with ‘just the facts’, but want to know more and understand better.

Of all the skills that we want students to gain from their educational journey, the ability to think for themselves is possibly the most important.

Mrs Sue Zweck, Head of Learning K-5