Broadening Narrow Questions

This worksheet is designed for students in Grades 5-7 to strengthen questioning, critical thinking, and communication skills by learning how to expand overly narrow prompts into open-ended, thoughtful questions. Students analyze examples that are too limited-such as questions with strict word counts or overly specific constraints-and revise them to allow for deeper explanation, exploration, and discussion.

Learning Goals

• Developing Open-Ended Questions (Grades 5-7) – Rewrite narrow prompts to invite fuller, more detailed responses.
• Critical Thinking & Inquiry Scope – Understand how adjusting question scope changes the depth of thinking required.
• Research & Exploration Skills – Formulate questions that encourage investigation, explanation, and analysis.
• Purposeful Communication – Learn how wording influences the quality and usefulness of responses.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed by educators to align with middle-grade ELA and inquiry standards.
• Clear Comparison Examples – Side-by-side “too narrow” and improved questions make learning concrete.
• Encourages Discussion – Supports classroom conversations and deeper analysis of topics.
• Flexible Use – Ideal for writing workshops, research lessons, digital literacy units, or homework.

This printable worksheet helps students become more flexible and intentional question writers by teaching them how to broaden prompts when deeper thinking is needed. By expanding narrow questions, learners strengthen critical reasoning, communication skills, and inquiry development. Suitable for classroom or homeschool use, this no-prep activity supports meaningful questioning that leads to richer learning and more thoughtful responses.

This worksheet is part of our Fixing Bad AI Prompts collection.