What are Big Questions and Why Do They Matter in Early Childhood Education?
What are Big Questions and Why Do They Matter in Early Childhood Education?
In the hustle and bustle of a preschool classroom, it’s easy to fall into a routine of quick directions and surface-level questions such as, “What color is that?” “Can you find the triangle?” “Who had it first?”. Do you ever wonder if the children in your class are looking at you, wondering why you don't know the answer? They sure know it!
These types of interactions have their place, but they often stop children short of deeper thinking, richer conversations, and meaningful learning. These close-ended questions are a one-and-done scenario. It's almost an assembly line of questioning. You ask Sam, then you ask Molly, and then you repeat it all day! That’s where the Interactions using Big Questions book study comes in handy!
As part of our Improving Interactions with Big Questions book study, we’re inviting early childhood educators to rethink the kinds of questions they ask during play, exploration, and everyday routines. At the heart of this four-part professional development series is a powerful shift: from asking questions that check knowledge to those that expand thinking and nurture curiosity.
What are High Quality Questions?
High-quality questions are those that are open-ended, thoughtful prompts that spark children's thinking and stretch their language. They often start with “why,” “how,” or “what if,” and they align with Bloom’s Taxonomy—a framework that helps educators move beyond simple recall and into higher-order thinking. Check out the link for another explanation of Bloom's for teachers.
For example:
Instead of: “What do you see in the picture?”
Try: “Why do you think the boy is feeling sad?”
Instead of: “How many blocks do you have?”
Try: “What could you build if you added more blocks?”
These questions invite children to analyze, predict, explain, and create—all critical thinking skills that build a strong foundation for lifelong learning.
Why Do They Matter for Quality Interactions?
Research proves over and over, that the quality of teacher-child interactions is one of the strongest predictors of positive child outcomes. High-quality questions naturally support those high-quality interactions by: encouraging back-and-forth conversations, honoring children’s ideas and perspectives, extending the length and depth of engagement during play, and developing connections between the teacher and child to progress learning.
When educators ask meaningful questions and genuinely listen to children’s responses, they’re not just promoting language development—they’re building trust, curiosity, and confidence.
Laying the Groundwork for School Readiness:
School readiness is about more than ABCs and 123s. It’s also about thinking flexibly, expressing ideas, solving problems, and engaging in sustained attention.
High-quality interactions help foster all of these. By promoting critical thinking and deeper conversations, educators are helping preschoolers build the cognitive and language skills they’ll need to thrive in kindergarten and beyond.
And the best part? This approach doesn’t require a new curriculum or expensive materials. It starts with intentional, thoughtful interactions during moments that are already happening—during play, snack time, cleanup, and transitions.
In our book study we explored how to intentionally embed these powerful prompts into everyday teaching through hands-on activities, discussion, and reflection, educators build confidence in using Bloom’s Taxonomy as a tool for guiding interactions that matter.
This shift is simple—but transformative. When we ask better questions, we unlock children’s potential in big ways.