Think Puzzle Explore
Surface what's known, what's puzzling, and how to dig in.
Building explanationsWondering & questioningUncovering complexity
What is Think Puzzle Explore?
A starting routine for new topics. Maps what students bring vs. what they need to investigate.
Setup: Name the topic or question.
The prompts
- 1What do you THINK you know about this?Your current understanding, claims, beliefs, prior knowledge.
- 2What questions or PUZZLES do you have?
- 3How might you EXPLORE these puzzles?What would you read, do, ask, or try?
Good moments for Think Puzzle Explore
- Classroom warm-upSurface what students bring before introducing new content.
- After a reading or videoConsolidate big ideas without testing recall.
- Discussion starterResponses become the seed material for the room conversation.
- End-of-session reflectionCapture how thinking changed.
About Visible Thinking
Visible Thinking Routines were developed by Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (Ron Ritchhart, David Perkins). They are short structured protocols for surfacing thinking, not assessments.
Project Zero website