Depth and Complexity is a powerful set of learning tools—represented by fun visual icons—that helps students dive deeper into any topic and look at ideas from different angles! Instead of just learning basic facts, these icons prompt students to investigate patterns, analyze rules, examine ethical questions, and view challenges through multiple perspectives. In our classroom, using Depth and Complexity is so important because it transforms ordinary lessons into rich, multi-layered discoveries, encouraging kids to think critically rather than just memorize answers. Throughout the year, we will use these icons as "thinking lenses" across all subjects—whether we are decoding invented languages in reading, analyzing M.C. Escher's mathematical artwork, or uncovering historical trends in social studies. By regularly using these tools, your children will build high-level reasoning skills, learn to embrace big ideas, and develop the mindset of real-world experts!
The core Depth and Complexity framework, created by Dr. Sandra Kaplan, includes 11 icons divided into "Depth" and "Complexity" categories.
Elements of Depth
Language of the Discipline: Specialized vocabulary, symbols, jargon, or tools used by experts in a specific field.
Details: Specific parts, attributes, characteristics, or variables that describe a topic.
Patterns: Reoccurring themes, events, shapes, or predictable orders.
Rules: Guidelines, structures, organizational formulas, or laws (explicit or implicit) that govern how something works.
Trends: External forces, influences, or the general direction of change over time (cause and effect).
Unanswered Questions: Ambiguities, unknown information, unsolved mysteries, or gaps in evidence.
Ethics: Moral dilemmas, fairness, biases, values, or conflicting beliefs surrounding a topic.
Big Idea: Overarching generalizations, core principles, overarching theories, or main themes.
Elements of Complexity
Change Over Time: Comparing past, present, and future viewpoints, or tracing how something evolves across time periods.
Multiple Perspectives: Viewing a concept or situation through different roles, eyes, or viewpoints.
Across Disciplines: Finding connections between different subject areas (e.g., linking math to art, or history to science).