Day 4 focuses on using Depth and Complexity to support gifted/talented learners through deeper questioning, stronger classroom discussion, and more meaningful student thinking. In this self-paced course, participants will explore how Depth and Complexity thinking tools can help students move beyond surface-level understanding and engage in analysis, inquiry, connection-making, multiple perspectives, and big ideas.
Throughout the course, participants will review connections to the Texas State Plan, examine the difference between depth and complexity, explore Kaplan’s icons as thinking tools, and practice using those tools to strengthen classroom questions and prompts. Participants will also complete a simple Depth and Complexity frame connected to their own classroom topic, TEKS, text, concept, or unit.
This course emphasizes that the goal is not to teach icons as isolated symbols, but to use the thinking behind the icons to support advanced learning experiences for gifted learners. By the end of the session, participants will have practical strategies for selecting thinking tools, revising questions, organizing student responses, and planning classroom use in a way that feels purposeful and manageable.
This is a self-paced course. Participants may enroll at any time during the registration period and complete the coursework at their own pace before the course closing date. Course access begins September 1 and ends December 31 2026