Depth and Complexity Icon Bookmarks With Key Words

These Depth and Complexity Icons will enable your students to dig deeper in their learning and think in more complex ways. This product contains the 11 elements of Depth and Complexity that were developed by Sandra Kaplan. These visual prompts are designed to guide students to go beyond the surface level by diving in deeper and understanding concepts with greater complexity.

I tell my students that you can think about it like the ocean. When you stay at the surface in the middle of the ocean, you may see an occasional bird or boat go by. However, mostly you’ll see endless water. When you dive in to the depths of the ocean, there’s a whole world of creatures that has opened up. You’ll see fish, turtles, dolphins, jelly fish, etc. If you go even deeper, you’ll see a new world of bioluminescent creatures.

The students can use the visual elements by themselves or they can layer the elements with each other (as in using multiple elements in a sentence or question). These bookmarks are great to use in small guided reading groups, individual or partners, or even in literature circles.

The Icons that promote Depth are as follows:

Ethics (Morals, Right vs. Wrong, Values or Judgments, Pros and Cons)

Big Idea (Overarching Idea, Theme or Generalizations, Whole)

Details (Evidence, Description, Characteristics, Parts)

Unanswered Questions (Unknown or Unexplained, Uncertain, Dilemma)

Rules (Classify, Organize, Structure, Methods or Procedure)

Trends (Tendencies, Style, Influence)

Patterns (Repetitive, Cycle, Predict, Recurring)

Language of the Discipline (Speech, Terminology, Vocabulary)

The Icons that promote Complexity are as follows:

Changes Over Time (Past, Present, Future, Change, Connections Across Time)

Across Disciplines (Multidisciplinary, Across Different Subjects, Connections)

Multiple Perspectives (Different Points of View, Different Ways of Seeing Things, Affected by Roles)

This set of Depth & Complexity Icon Bookmarks includes key words.

You can purchase more Depth and Complexity materials here.

Depth and Complexity Multi-pack (ONLY $5)

Depth and Complexity Questions - Critical Thinking Cards for Literature Circles (black and white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Bookmarks (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Bookmarks with Key Words (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Bookmarks (black & white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Bookmarks with Key Words (black & white)

Blank Depth and Complexity Frame - Can Customize Frame With Icons (both black & white and color)

Blank Depth and Complexity Frame With Lines - Can Customize Frame With Icons (both black & white and color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Posters (black & white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Posters with Key Words (black & white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Cards (black & white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Cards with Key Words (black & white)

Depth and Complexity Icon Posters (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Posters With Key Words (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Cards (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Cards With Key Words (color)

Depth and Complexity Icon Chart (black & white) FREE

This goes well with Literature Circles. You can find materials here.

Literature Circles Bundle With Depth and Complexity (Only $6.50 and Editable)

Literature Circles - Role Cards With Depth and Complexity

Literature Circles - Role Posters With Depth and Complexity

Literature Circles - Graphic Organizers With Depth and Complexity

Literature Circles Rubric and Reflection With Depth and Complexity