CRITICAL, CREATIVE, INFERENCE, & LITERAL STEM QUESTIONS TO USE WITH READING PASSAGES
CRITICAL
- Do you agree with how _____ solved the problem?
- Do you agree with the actions of the main character? Explain why or why not.
- Is there a better solution to ______?
- How does the character impact the sequence of events in the story?
- How would you change the story?
- Use a picture to describe the settings, events, or characters in the story.
- Do you agree with what the character did?
- Describe ______'s role in the story.
- How would the plot be different if ______ wasn't in the story?
- How does the beginning of the story affect the ending?
- Identify two traits for _____.
- From whose point of view is the story being told?
- Compare and contrast yourself to the main character.
- What is the setting of the story and how does it affect the story?
- Why are the characters important?
Creative
- How does the author feel about ______?
- What could be another title for this story?
- What comes to mind when thinking about the character's problem?
- What would happen if ______?
- What is a possible solution to ______?
- Write or tell your own ending.
- Compare the main character of this story to the character of another story.
- In this story, what is your opinion of this action? What would you do differently?
- What character is most like you and why?
- If you were the main character in the story, would you have solved the problem in the same way?
- What would you do if this happened to you?
- Identify a part of the story that makes you feel happy, sad, etc.
- How would the plot change if the story took place in a different time period?
- Does this story remind you of another story you've read?
- Describe how you would have reacted to _______.
Inference
- Why did _____ do ____?
- Which picture from the story illustrates the main idea?
- Give explicit examples from the story to explain ______.
- Compare and contrast two events in the story.
- Explain how the characters in the story responded to major events and challenges.
- If the setting changed, how would it affect the story?
- Choose one detail from the story that demonstrates that the character is _______.
- Explain how the mood of the main characters contributed to the overall text.
- What did the author mean by_______?
- How did the picture(s) help you understand the story?
- Tell what would happen if ______
- What is the moral of the story?
- How did ____ feel at the beginning of the story versus the end?
Literal
- What is the main idea of the story?
- Describe your favorite character.
- Describe the main character.
- Describe how the main character solves the problem in the story.
- Using words and phrased from the story, describe the character.
- Who are the characters in the story?
- Describe how the characters in the story responded to major events.
- What happened next, after, or before ______?
- What is the setting?
- Describe the major events in the story by using the illustrations.
- What are the major events in the story?
- What happened in the beginning/middle/end?
**Credit to Jessica Crocker