As ELA teachers, we ask questions all day long.
We ask questions during read-alouds, class discussions, small groups, exit tickets, writing conferences, novel studies, test prep, and pretty much every lesson in between. But not all questions require the same level of thinking.
Some questions ask students to find an answer.
Others ask students to think about an answer.
And the strongest questions ask students to analyze, justify, and support an answer.
That is where Depth of Knowledge, or DOK, becomes so helpful.
DOK levels can help teachers move students beyond basic recall and into deeper thinking. For middle school ELA, the goal is not to make every question difficult. The goal is to create questions that ask students to use the right kind of thinking for the skill you are teaching.
Today, we are focusing on how to create DOK 2 and DOK 3 questions for ELA.
What Is DOK?
Depth of Knowledge describes the level of thinking students need in order to answer a question or complete a task.
A common mistake is thinking DOK is about difficulty. It is not.
A question can be easy but still require deeper thinking. A question can also be difficult but only require memorization.
For example:
DOK 1 Question:
Who is the main character?
DOK 2 Question:
How do the main character’s actions reveal a character trait?
DOK 3 Question:
How does the main character’s decision change the theme of the story? Use evidence to support your answer.
Each question moves students a little deeper.
The first question asks students to identify information.
The second question asks students to explain a relationship.
The third question asks students to analyze and justify their thinking using evidence.
DOK 2 Questions: Skills and Concepts
DOK 2 questions require students to do more than recall information. Students usually need to apply a skill, explain a relationship, compare ideas, make an inference, or use text evidence.
DOK 2 is where students begin moving from “I found the answer” to “I can explain my thinking.”
What DOK 2 Questions Usually Ask Students to Do
DOK 2 questions often ask students to:
- Explain how or why something happens
- Compare and contrast characters, ideas, events, or texts
- Make a basic inference
- Identify cause and effect
- Summarize key ideas
- Explain how details support a central idea
- Use evidence from the text
- Describe relationships between story elements
- Explain how word choice affects meaning or tone
DOK 2 Question Stems for ELA
Here are some simple DOK 2 question stems you can use in reading, writing, and discussion.
Reading Literature
- How does the character change from the beginning to the end?
- How does the setting affect the plot?
- How does the conflict move the story forward?
- How do the character’s actions reveal a trait?
- How does the author create suspense in this scene?
- What can you infer about the character based on the evidence?
- How does the point of view affect what the reader knows?
- How does the dialogue reveal the relationship between characters?
Informational Text
- How does the author support the central idea?
- Which details are most important to understanding the topic?
- How does the text structure help the reader understand the information?
- How do two details work together to develop the author’s point?
- What is the relationship between the problem and solution?
- How does the author organize the information in this section?
- How does the evidence support the claim?
- What can you infer from the information in the passage?
Poetry
- How does the speaker’s point of view affect the poem?
- How does the poet’s word choice affect the tone?
- How does the repeated phrase contribute to the meaning?
- What does the symbol suggest in the poem?
- How does the structure of the poem help develop its message?
- How does figurative language help the reader understand the speaker’s feelings?
Example: Turning a DOK 1 Question into DOK 2
Let’s say students are reading a short story.
DOK 1 Question:
What problem does the main character face?
This question is not bad. Students need to know the basic problem before they can analyze the story.
But to move it to DOK 2, ask students to explain a relationship.
DOK 2 Question:
How does the main character’s problem affect the choices they make?
Now students have to connect two story elements: the problem and the character’s actions.
You can increase the quality of the response by adding evidence.
Stronger DOK 2 Question:
How does the main character’s problem affect the choices they make? Use one detail from the text to support your answer.
That simple addition makes the question more useful for ELA instruction.
DOK 3 Questions: Strategic Thinking
DOK 3 questions require students to think more deeply. These questions usually do not have one quick answer. Students must analyze, evaluate, justify, defend, or explain their reasoning with evidence.
DOK 3 questions are especially useful for:
- Class discussions
- Written responses
- Literary analysis
- Argument writing
- Test prep
- Socratic seminars
- Constructed response practice
- Comparing texts
- Theme analysis
- Author’s craft lessons
DOK 3 questions push students to answer the most important ELA question:
How do you know?
What DOK 3 Questions Usually Ask Students to Do
DOK 3 questions often ask students to:
- Analyze how an author develops a theme or central idea
- Evaluate the strength of evidence
- Justify an interpretation
- Defend a claim using text evidence
- Explain how multiple elements work together
- Analyze the impact of structure, point of view, or word choice
- Compare themes or ideas across texts
- Make a judgment and support it
- Explain why one piece of evidence is stronger than another
DOK 3 Question Stems for ELA
Reading Literature
- How does the author develop the theme throughout the text?
- Which character change is most important to the meaning of the story? Explain.
- How does the conflict help reveal the theme?
- How does the author use point of view to shape the reader’s understanding?
- Which event has the greatest impact on the character’s development? Justify your answer.
- How does the ending change or deepen the meaning of the story?
- How do the setting, conflict, and character choices work together to develop the theme?
- What message does the author reveal through the character’s decisions? Use evidence.
Informational Text
- How does the author use evidence to develop the central idea?
- Which piece of evidence best supports the author’s claim? Explain why.
- How effective is the author’s argument? Use evidence to support your answer.
- How does the author’s structure help develop the purpose of the text?
- What is the author’s perspective, and how is it developed throughout the passage?
- Which detail is most important to the author’s argument? Defend your choice.
- How do two sections of the text work together to develop the central idea?
- How does the author use language to influence the reader’s thinking?
Poetry
- How does the structure of the poem contribute to its meaning?
- How does the poet use figurative language to develop the theme?
- How does the speaker’s perspective shape the message of the poem?
- Which word or phrase has the strongest impact on the tone? Justify your answer.
- How do imagery and structure work together to create meaning?
- How does the poet’s use of repetition affect the reader’s understanding?
- What message does the poem communicate, and how does the poet develop it?
- How does the title connect to the deeper meaning of the poem?
How to Write Better DOK 2 and DOK 3 Questions
Creating stronger questions does not have to be complicated. A few small changes can make a big difference.
Step 1: Start with the Skill
Before writing the question, ask yourself:
What do I want students to practice?
For example, are students working on:
- Theme?
- Central idea?
- Characterization?
- Text evidence?
- Point of view?
- Text structure?
- Author’s purpose?
- Figurative language?
- Argument writing?
- Comparing texts?
Once you know the skill, you can write a question that targets that thinking.
Instead of asking a general question like:
What happened in the story?
Try connecting it to the skill:
How does this event help develop the theme?
Step 2: Add a Thinking Verb
DOK 2 and DOK 3 questions often use verbs that require students to explain their reasoning.
Helpful verbs include:
| DOK 2 Verbs | DOK 3 Verbs |
|---|---|
| Explain | Analyze |
| Compare | Evaluate |
| Summarize | Justify |
| Infer | Defend |
| Organize | Critique |
| Describe | Prove |
| Classify | Determine |
| Show | Support |
A thinking verb helps students understand what kind of response is expected.
Step 3: Ask Students to Make a Connection
Many strong ELA questions ask students to connect two things.
For example:
- Character actions and theme
- Word choice and tone
- Structure and meaning
- Evidence and claim
- Setting and conflict
- Point of view and reader understanding
- Text features and central idea
Here are a few examples:
DOK 2:
How does the setting affect the conflict?
DOK 3:
How does the author use the setting to develop the theme? Use evidence to justify your answer.
Step 4: Require Text Evidence
Text evidence is one of the easiest ways to strengthen a question.
You can add phrases like:
- Use evidence from the text.
- Support your answer with two details.
- Explain how the evidence supports your thinking.
- Cite one sentence that supports your response.
- Justify your answer using specific details.
For example:
Basic Question:
Why is the character upset?
DOK 2 Question:
What can you infer about the character’s feelings? Use one detail from the text.
DOK 3 Question:
How does the author reveal the character’s feelings throughout the scene? Use evidence to support your analysis.
Step 5: Ask Students to Justify Their Thinking
DOK 3 questions usually require students to defend or justify an answer.
Try adding:
- Why?
- How do you know?
- Which evidence best supports your answer?
- Defend your choice.
- Justify your response.
- Explain your reasoning.
For example:
DOK 2:
How does the author support the claim?
DOK 3:
Which piece of evidence most strongly supports the author’s claim? Justify your answer.
The DOK 3 version requires students to make a judgment and explain why their evidence is the strongest.
DOK 2 vs. DOK 3: What’s the Difference?
Sometimes DOK 2 and DOK 3 questions can look similar. The difference usually comes down to the amount of reasoning required.
| DOK 2 | DOK 3 |
|---|---|
| Students explain a relationship. | Students analyze and justify a relationship. |
| Students use evidence. | Students choose, evaluate, and defend evidence. |
| Students make an inference. | Students support a deeper interpretation. |
| Students compare ideas. | Students explain why the comparison matters. |
| Students explain how something works. | Students explain how something affects the meaning of the whole text. |
Here is a simple way to think about it:
DOK 2 asks: What does this mean, and how do you know?
DOK 3 asks: Why does this matter, and can you justify your interpretation?
Easy Examples for Middle School ELA
Example 1: Characterization
DOK 1:
What does the character do?
DOK 2:
How do the character’s actions reveal a trait?
DOK 3:
How does the character’s development help reveal the theme of the story? Use evidence to support your answer.
Example 2: Theme
DOK 1:
What is the theme?
DOK 2:
How does one event help develop the theme?
DOK 3:
How does the author develop the theme throughout the story? Use multiple pieces of evidence to justify your answer.
Example 3: Text Evidence
DOK 1:
Find a sentence that supports the answer.
DOK 2:
How does this sentence support the answer?
DOK 3:
Which piece of evidence best supports the claim? Explain why it is stronger than another possible piece of evidence.
Example 4: Author’s Craft
DOK 1:
What word does the author use to describe the setting?
DOK 2:
How does the author’s word choice affect the mood?
DOK 3:
How does the author use word choice throughout the passage to create mood and develop meaning?
Example 5: Informational Text
DOK 1:
What is the topic of the article?
DOK 2:
How does the author develop the central idea?
DOK 3:
How effective is the author’s argument? Use evidence from the text to support your evaluation.
Common Mistakes When Creating DOK Questions
Mistake 1: Making the Question Longer but Not Deeper
A long question is not automatically a higher-level question.
For example:
Long but still DOK 1:
After reading the passage carefully, identify the name of the main character and write it in a complete sentence.
The question is longer, but students are still just identifying information.
Mistake 2: Using a Higher-Level Verb Without Higher-Level Thinking
A question can use the word “analyze” and still not truly require analysis.
For example:
Weak Question:
Analyze who the main character is.
That is still basically asking students to identify the character.
A stronger version would be:
Better Question:
Analyze how the main character’s choices reveal the theme of the story.
Now students have to connect character choices to theme.
Mistake 3: Asking DOK 3 Questions Before Students Understand the Text
Students need basic comprehension before they can analyze.
It is okay to begin with DOK 1.
In fact, students often need DOK 1 questions first so they can gather the information they will use for DOK 2 and DOK 3 thinking.
A strong lesson might move like this:
- DOK 1: What happens in this scene?
- DOK 2: How does this scene affect the character?
- DOK 3: How does this scene help develop the theme of the story?
That progression helps students build confidence and depth.
A Simple Formula for Creating DOK 2 Questions
Use this formula:
How does [text element] affect or develop [another text element]?
Examples:
- How does the setting affect the conflict?
- How does the dialogue reveal character traits?
- How does the author’s evidence support the claim?
- How does the text structure help develop the central idea?
- How does the speaker’s word choice affect the tone?
This is a great starting point for middle school ELA because it helps students explain relationships in a text.
A Simple Formula for Creating DOK 3 Questions
Use this formula:
How does the author use [text element] to develop [larger meaning], and what evidence best supports your answer?
Examples:
- How does the author use conflict to develop the theme?
- How does the poet use structure to create meaning?
- How does the author use evidence to strengthen the argument?
- How does point of view shape the reader’s understanding of the character?
- How does the author’s word choice develop tone and purpose?
This formula pushes students beyond identifying a skill. It asks them to analyze how that skill affects the meaning of the whole text.
Quick Question Stem Bank
DOK 2 Question Stems
- How does ___ affect ___?
- How does the author develop ___?
- What can you infer about ___?
- How do two details work together to show ___?
- How does the character’s action reveal ___?
- How does the text structure help explain ___?
- How does the author support the central idea?
- How does word choice affect the tone?
- How does the setting influence the plot?
- How does this evidence support the answer?
DOK 3 Question Stems
- How does the author use ___ to develop the theme?
- Which evidence best supports ___? Justify your answer.
- How effective is the author’s argument? Explain.
- How does ___ contribute to the overall meaning of the text?
- What is the strongest interpretation of ___? Defend your answer.
- How does the author’s craft affect the reader’s understanding?
- How do multiple elements work together to develop meaning?
- How does the structure of the text shape its message?
- Which detail is most important to the author’s purpose? Explain why.
- How does the text support a deeper message about ___?
Final Thoughts
Creating DOK 2 and DOK 3 questions does not mean every question has to be complicated. It simply means we are giving students opportunities to explain, analyze, justify, and support their thinking.
For middle school ELA, strong questions help students move from basic comprehension to deeper reading and writing skills.
A good DOK 2 question helps students explain relationships in a text.
A good DOK 3 question helps students analyze meaning and defend their thinking with evidence.
When students practice these kinds of questions regularly, they become stronger readers, stronger writers, and more confident thinkers.
Where to find a resource with planning material
We currently offer a great resource for creating DOK 1, 2, and 3 level questions with planning sheets and cards for use with students. You’ll find it in our TPT store: ELA Depth of Knowledge Question Stem Bank
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