Welcome! This page introduces THICK questions—open-ended reading prompts that help students in Grades 3–5 think critically, discuss ideas, and support answers with evidence. You’ll find guidance for using THICK questions with both fiction and nonfiction texts, including examples for before, during, and after reading. These strategies enhance comprehension, critical thinking, and student engagement.
Table of Contents
- What Are “THICK” Questions?
- Open Response THICK Questions for Fiction (Grades 3–5)
- Open Response THICK Questions for Nonfiction (Grades 3–5)
- Optional Editable Version
- Related Resources
What Are “THICK” Questions?
THICK questions are open-ended reading comprehension prompts that encourage students to think critically, explain reasoning, and cite evidence from the text. These questions promote higher-order thinking, discussion, and written responses.
Examples of THICK questions include:
- What if…?
- How did…?
- Why did…?
- What would happen if…?
- What caused…?
- What might…?
- How would you feel…?
- What character traits describe…?
- Why do you think…?
- Why is…?
Open Response THICK Questions for Fiction (Grades 3–5)
Before Reading
Guide students to preview the title, illustrations, and book jacket. Ask them to think about the story and make predictions.
- Write what you already know about this topic, setting, or situation.
- Make a prediction. What clues helped you?
- Read the first page. Do you need to revise your prediction? Why?
- Write questions you have about this text.
- Do you think this story will be funny, sad, scary, or something else? Explain.
- Does the author make you want to keep reading? Why or why not?
- Could this story happen in real life? Why or why not?
- Where does the story take place? What clues helped you decide?
- Who do you think the main character is? How do you know?
- Do you have any connections to the author, illustrator, or topic?
During Reading
- What questions do you have so far? Have any been answered?
- Describe what you visualize about the character or setting. Which words helped?
- What connections are you making?
- Which words were challenging? How did you determine their meanings?
- What do you predict will happen next? Why?
- Who is your favorite character so far? Explain.
- Who is telling the story? What details support your answer?
- How is the main character feeling? What clues show this?
- What problem is emerging in the story?
- Summarize what has happened so far.
- How does the story make you feel? Why?
After Reading
- Describe the main character using one strong character trait. Support with evidence.
- What lesson or message do you think the author wanted readers to learn?
- Would you recommend this book? To whom? Why?
- What questions do you still have?
- How did the character solve the problem?
- How did the character change from beginning to end?
- What was the climax of the story?
- Was this realistic fiction or fantasy? How do you know?
- What connections did you make?
- What scene would make a strong movie trailer? Why?
- If you were the main character, what would you have done differently?
Open Response THICK Questions for Nonfiction (Grades 3–5)
Before Reading
- What do you think you will learn from this text?
- How will the pictures, captions, and text features help you?
- What prior knowledge do you already have about this topic?
- What questions do you hope this book will answer?
- Why do you think the author wrote this text?
- What do you visualize when you think about this topic?
During Reading
- What words are challenging? How can you determine their meanings?
- How does this information connect to what you already know?
- What questions have been answered? What questions remain?
- Identify two key vocabulary words and explain why they are important.
- Write three important facts you have learned so far.
- What surprised you about this information?
- Describe what you visualized while reading.
After Reading
- What was the most important information you learned? Why?
- Did this text change your perspective on the topic?
- How do you know this text is nonfiction?
- What was the author’s purpose?
- Should others read this text? Explain.
- How can you use what you learned?
- What cause-and-effect relationships were explained?
- Do you notice any bias? Why or why not?
- How did reading nonfiction differ from reading fiction?
Optional Editable Version
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Related Resources
Reading Comprehension Strategies: A Complete Instructional Guide
This page was last updated on January 3, 2026.