Ladders of Questioning

Types of Questions Literal Interpretive Experience-Based Factual Address key elements Interpretive Inferential Motive of author or a character Experience-Based Connecting Link text to prior knowledge, other texts, or experiences

Level 1: Literal Questions Answers Factual Address key elements Found directly in text Good answers lead to an accurate and complete summary of text

Level 2: Interpretive Questions Answers Inferential Motive of author or a character Answers Found by following patterns and seeing relationships among parts of the text Good answers lead to an identification of the significant patterns

Level 3: Experience-Based Questions Connecting Link text to prior knowledge, other texts, or experiences Answers Found by testing the ideas of a text against readers’ schema Good answers lead to an appreciation of the text and further discussion an internal representation of the world; an organization of concepts and actions that can be revised by new information about the world 

Example: “Marigolds” Level 1 Describe Lizabeth’s actions in this scene. What are the meanings of the words “sterility,” “verve,” and “poignancy”? How is Miss Lottie described? What sense words are used to describe the marigold garden? What does Lizabeth do right after she destroys the flowers?

Example: “Marigolds” Level 1 – English 10 Questions

Example: “Marigolds” Level 2 Why do you think the narrator destroyed the marigolds? Why is Lizabeth unable to stop her actions? Why did Miss Lottie so tendery care for the marigolds? Why had Lizabeth’s understanding of Miss Lottie changed? How do you interpret the last line of the story? Can you identify any stylistic devices? How do they add to the meaning of the story?

Example: “Marigolds” Level 2 – English 10 Questions

id est (Latin for "that is") Example: “Marigolds” Level 3 Can you think of a time when your anger got out of control? What were the consequences of your behavior? Have you had an experience that changed your perception of another person? (i.e. divorce, failures, sickness) id est (Latin for "that is")

Example: “Marigolds” Level 3 – English 10 Questions