Critical Thinking

Competency

Base your opinions on facts.

Do not base your facts on opinion.
 Critical thinking involves making judgments
based on reasoning, considering options, and
analysis using using specific criteria to draw
conclusions.

Example: Child has chocolate on their

Critical fingers, face, and in their mouth. There is an
Thinking open bag of chocolate chips on the ground
near the child. The bag is from the cupboard
that is open.

Conclusion: Child ate the chocolate.

 The critical thinking competency encompasses
a set of abilities that students use to examine
their own thinking, and that of others, about
information that they receive through
observation, experience, and various forms of
communication.
Critical
Thinking Example: You know that your cat has eaten
mice before. Your pet mouse is missing. Your
cat is licking its paws clean. Your sister tells
you that she accidently let the mouse out. You
know there was a loud crash and your cat
meowed loudly 5 minutes ago.
 The critical thinking competency encompasses
a set of abilities that students use to examine
their own thinking, and that of others, about
information that they receive through
observation, experience, and various forms of
communication.
Critical
Thinking Example: You know that your cat has eaten
mice before. Your pet mouse is missing. Your
cat is licking its paws clean. Your sister tells
you that she accidently let the mouse out. You
know there was a loud crash and your cat
meowed loudly 5 minutes ago.
What is
Critical
Thinking?
 Let’s go to our class website and
do Fact or Opinion 1
Fact or
Opinion 1 Use a piece of paper to answer
your questions
 First, we will do a couple together
 Development of critical thinking begins
within families, before students enter
formal schooling, and expands at every
level of schooling.
How do we
develop How can adults help students develop
critical Critical Thinking skills?
thinking
skills? These skills develop over time and
experience through age and schooling
 As a kid, why is critical thinking
important to you?
What does it
mean to think What are some reasons that critical
critically? thinking might be important as a
teenager/young person?
Why is it
important?
What are some reasons that critical
thinking might be important as an
adult?
 Students learn to analyze and make
judgments about:
Profile One:  a piece of work
 a position (opinion)
Analyze and  a process (the way to do something)
Critique  a performance (dance, theatre, sports)
 a product (something made)
 an act (something done)
 A critical thinker considers:
Profile One:  purpose
 evidence
 criteria (explicit or implicit) to draw
Analyze and conclusions and make defensible
Critique judgments or assessments.
They consider a variety of perspectives.
 What is ‘perspective’?

Perspective Why is it important?

What difference might

it make?
  Athletes in the NFL chose to protest
violence against African-Americans by the
police by taking a knee during the national
anthem.
 Do you support this method of protest?
 Do you not support this method of protest?
Example  Why?
 Perspective of other groups:
 Person of colour
 NFL owner
 Military veteran
(come up with 3-5 points to support your opinion. Try to base
your opinion on facts)
5 minutes
Profile One: Why is it important to make informed
judgements?
Analyze and
How might this affect you as a person
Critique (child or adult?)
“I can…” statements.
 Critical Thinking Detective (Bk
2) Exercises
Activities How to Solve These Cases
 Critical Thinking – Solve the
Crime: The Candy Bar Thief

Activity One What did you do to solve the

crime?

What kind of critical thinking

actions do you think you took?
  Students learn to engage in an inquiry and
Profile Two: investigation where they identify and
explore questions or challenges related
Question and to key issues or problematic situations in
their studies, their lives, their
Investigate communities, and the media.
  Students will identify an issue of
importance to them
 State you first/initial opinion as you
understand it now
 Research the issue from multiple sources
Activity Two (min. 5)
 Collect facts and arguments for and
against your perspective of the issue
 Document your opinion now (this may be
individual as not all members may agree)
  This can be done in any format you
choose (ie. PPT, vlog, report) to present
to the group
 You must cite all of your sources
 Issues examples:
Activity Two  Social media and kids
 Racism
 Kneeling for the anthem
 Adults ruining kids’ sports
 Immigration
 Hunger
 You must have
a topic today:
Groups No exceptions!
Hand in a page with your
group members and topic to
Mr. Smith by the end of the
period
“I can…” statements.
What does it Group discussion – answer the three
mean to ‘acquire’ Group questions to the left.
information?

What does it
mean to Create 3 – 5 points to answer each
‘interpret’ Create question
information?

Why is it
important to do Post Post your answers on the Padlet
these things?
 On the Personal Communications
reporting sheet, rate yourself and
Where are where you think you are currently.
you?
We will go through it together.
  Students apply critical thinking to create
or transform products, methods,
performances, and representations in
Profile Three: response to problems, events, issues, and
needs.
 They work with clear purpose and
Develop and consider the potential users or audience
Design of their work.
  They work with clear purpose and
consider the potential users or audience
of their work.
Profile Three:  They explore possibilities, develop and
refine plans, monitor their progress, and
adjust their procedures in the light of
Develop and criteria and feedback.
Design
 They can determine the extent to which
they have met their goals
“I can…” statements.
Critical
Thinking
Activity #3
 Challenge
Drag Race – who goes the fastest: tournament
One

You are going to

Challenge Straightest – who can go the straightest the
build a balloon Two longest?
powered car

Challenge
Who can go the furthest?
Three
  You must use only the following
equipment:
 Plastic bottle
 Balloon
Instructions  Elastics
 Tape
 Wood
 Cardboard and paper
 *NO glue!
  You have two weeks to make your car
 The third week will be the tournament
and testing
Instructions
 Have all materials here next week
 Research and draw up a plan and
materials list today
  When you bring your car to the final
challenge, you must bring all your prep
and planning in the form of a booklet/
portfolio.
 Document your process
Instructions  Sections you must include:
 Planning
 Building
 Final product
 “How our project changed”
 “Things we learned”
Go!