Cues, Questions and
Advance Organizers
High-Yield Instructional
Strategies
Using cues, questions, and advance organizers
help students activate prior knowledge and
deepen understanding of current learning. Cues
and questions should focus on what is important
instead of what student’s might find interesting.
Advance organizers are organizational
frameworks presented to students prior to
teaching new content to prepare them for what
they are about to learn. Advance organizers take
the surprise out of what is to come, help
students retrieve what they already know about
a topic, and focus them on the new information.
Cues &
Questions
Cues and questions are
used to develop critical
thinking and discussion
before, during, and after
the learning activity.
They provide hints about
upcoming lessons,
reinforce prior
knowledge, and provide
new information.
“Cue Tip”
Use “Cue Sticks” to elicit
student responses to
higher-level questions.
Students can also select
a “Cue Stick” to create
and answer a higherlevel question relating to
the unit of study.
“Cue Sticks”
Inferential &
Analytical
Questions
Teachers should provide
students with ample
practice answering
inferential and analytical
questions, since these
are the types of
questions that will
appear on STAAR exams.
Questions should also
focus on what is
important and should be
aligned with the course
TEKS. State
standardized test
questions often mirror
the wording of the TEKS.
Links:
http://havefunteaching.com/worksheets/readingworksheets/inferences-worksheets/
http://www.havefunteaching.com/worksheets/graphic
-organizers/predicting-outcomes/predict-and-infergraphic-organizer.pdf
http://teacher.depaul.edu/resources/Inferential%20Q
uestion%20Maker.pdf
http://www.decd.sa.gov.au/northernadelaide/files/link
s/readingshortstories.pdf
http://www.decd.sa.gov.au/northernadelaide/pages/c
omp/37986/?reFlag=1
http://www.curriculuminstitute.org/conferencearchives/handouts/CCSSO%20Que%20Questions.pdf
http://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/models/tips/analyzing.
htm
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/staar/t
estquestions/
http://reading.ecb.org/teacher/inferring/infer_lessonp
lans.html
http://eduscapes.com/sessions/pilot/pilotinference.ht
m
http://www.med.wright.edu/sites/default/files/aa/facd
ev/_Files/PDFfiles/QuestionTemplates.pdf
Advance
Organizers
Expository Advance
Organizers explain new
concepts and emphasize
important content.
Narrative Advance
Organizers present
information in story
format and help set the
objective for future
lessons.
Graphic Advance
Organizers are used to
activate prior knowledge,
make predictions,
organize information,
stimulate thinking skills,
and provide a visual
framework for making
connections to course
content.
Graphic Organizer Templates
http://freeology.com/graphicorgs/
http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/
http://my.hrw.com/nsmedia/intgos/html/igo.htm
http://www.educationoasis.com/curriculum/graphic_organize
rs.htm
http://its.leesummit.k12.mo.us/graphic_organizers.htm
http://www.sanchezclass.com/reading-graphicorganizers.htm
http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/graphic/
http://teacher.depaul.edu/Documents/Math Graphic
Organizer Guide.pdf
http://www.writedesignonline.com/organizers/
http://irondalecom.jefcoed.com/Documents/Graphic
Organizers/organizer science.pdf
http://havefunteaching.com/worksheets/graphic-organizers/
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/graphicorganizers-reading-comprehension
http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/graphic_organizers.p
hp
http://edhelper.com/teachers/graphic_organizers.htm
http://books.heinemann.com/comprehending/graphicOrganiz
ers.html
http://www.vrml.k12.la.us/graphorgan/
http://www.vrml.k12.la.us/graphorgan/older/graphic_organize
rs.htm
http://www.greatsource.com/iwrite/students/s_expos_graph_
org.html
More “Cue Tips”
Cues should be explicit and focus on what is
important.
Higher-level questions produce deeper
learning than lower-level questions. Keep
“Cue Sticks” close by when teaching or writing
up lesson plans.
Waiting at least three seconds before
accepting responses from students increases
the depth of answers.
Use collaborative groups to encourage
thinking and sharing prior knowledge. Sharing
personal knowledge and experiences promote
interest in the content of upcoming lessons.