Tools for Critical Thinking and Problem Solving


 

 

P21 Skills and Tools

 

Tools for Communication and Collaboration

 

Tools for Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

 

Tools for Creativity and Innovation

 

Information, Media, and Technology Skills

For information and resources on critical thinking and problem solving, visit  Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Students can use the tools below to think critically and solve problems.

  

 

Tools for Critical Thinking and Problem Solving:
Samples:
  • ActivInspire, VoiceThread and Scribble Maps are all tools that can be used by students to show their problem solving process.  In this VoiceThread example, a student explains how he was able to reduce a fraction. 
  • Concept mapping tools like Bubbl.us, Gliffy and Kidspiration provide a way for students to visualize their thinking.  This Gliffy example shows a flow chart being used to explain the feedback loop.
  • Create A Graph, Excel and Gapminder can help students make meaning of information through the input, display, and analysis of data.  For example, in a Biology lesson, students can analyze this Gapminder Graph to determine the relationship between economic growth and the impact on the environment.
  • Tools like Microsoft Word or Wordle can help students think critically about text by summarizing or chunking the text visually.  In the video example below, Wordle is used at the beginning of a genetics unit to give students a visual introduction to important vocabulary. In another example,  Word clouds are used as an anticipation guide to highlight keywords and themes before reading a text, as well as to prompt discussion after reading (see the section heading Teaching and Learning Vocabulary > eVoc strategy 1: Learn from visual displays of word relationships within text in this article)

 

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