Question Builder

Question Builder focuses on one skill but provides options that help teachers impart that skill to a wide range of learners. Rather than using text, Question Builder asks students questions based on a picture, which may be more engaging for reluctant readers and puts the emphasis on questioning and answering skills rather than on reading ability. Since the question choices aren't read aloud, kids will still need to do some reading (or have a teacher read the answer choices). For Level One questions, kids "read" the picture to find the answer: "What is the dolphin wearing?" Level Two questions require students to read between the lines of the text or, in this case, pictures: a picture of a girl in a bathing suit, sitting in sand and playing with shells includes the question, "Where is this girl playing?" One answer choice is a correct statement -- "She is playing with the seashells" -- but does not answer the question. There's no explanation of why incorrect choices are wrong, so teachers will want to check in with students for clarification. Level Three questions differ slightly from the levels of questioning ELA teachers may be accustomed to, where Level Three questions are evaluative. In Question Builder, the Level Three questions require that students make assumptions based on combining prior knowledge with the picture. The question for a picture of an alligator in a jungle river is "How will the alligator catch his dinner?" Creative students may very well make sound arguments for why some options considered wrong in-app could be right. One Level Three question asks "Why is the girl happy?" and the correct answer is because she likes to ski, but incorrect options include "Because it is cold outside" and "Because her mittens are red."  There's no reason not to let them articulate their reasoning and learn in the process.