QuADS Grids
A question-classification tool where learners sort questions into four categories based on where the answer can be found: in the text, in my head, in another source, or it cannot be answered.
What is quads grids?
- Present learners with a set of questions about a topic or text
- Draw a four-quadrant grid: Question/Answer in the text, Question in the text/Answer in my head, Question in my head/Answer in another source, Question that cannot be answered
- Learners sort each question into the appropriate quadrant
- Discuss what makes each type of question different and which are most valuable
How it works
QuADS (Question and Answer Data Sort) teaches learners to recognise different types of questions. The grid has four quadrants based on where the question comes from and where the answer can be found. This classification helps learners understand that not all questions are equal and that the most interesting questions are often those that require inference, research, or that have no definitive answer.
The first quadrant contains questions where both the question and answer are explicit in the text. These are literal comprehension questions. The second quadrant contains questions prompted by the text but requiring the reader's own knowledge or inference to answer. The third quadrant contains questions that go beyond the text entirely and require external research. The fourth quadrant contains questions that are genuinely unanswerable, either because insufficient evidence exists or because they are matters of opinion.
Sorting questions into these categories develops metacognitive awareness about questioning itself. Learners begin to understand that "What colour is the character's hair?" (quadrant one) requires fundamentally different thinking from "Why did the author choose to set the story in winter?" (quadrant two) or "Is this a fair representation of the time period?" (quadrant four).
QuADS grids work well with reading comprehension, source analysis in Humanities, data interpretation in Science, and any context where learners need to distinguish between recall, inference, research, and evaluation.
Classroom example
A Year 8 Languages, Literacy and Communication class in a Caerphilly school is studying a newspaper article about a local environmental protest. The teacher provides ten questions. Learners sort them: "Where did the protest take place?" goes to quadrant one (answer in the text). "Why might the council have approved the development?" goes to quadrant two (inference required). "What have other communities done in similar situations?" goes to quadrant three (research needed). "Was the protest justified?" goes to quadrant four (cannot be definitively answered). The class realises that the quadrant four question is the most interesting and the hardest.
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QuADS grids develop the "Plan" strand of thinking skills by building learners' ability to analyse and categorise questions, a foundational skill for independent inquiry. They build cross-curricular literacy through reading comprehension and question analysis, and support the Four Purposes by developing learners who can plan their own investigation pathways.
Rainbow Curriculum's Thinking Tools lens helps you plan where question analysis tools are used across your curriculum, developing learners who understand the nature of different question types.
Tips
- Model the sorting process with the first two questions before learners work independently.
- Use questions that genuinely span all four quadrants. If all questions are quadrant one, the grid adds nothing.
- A common pitfall: learners arguing about quadrant boundaries. Some ambiguity is healthy and the discussion about where a question belongs is itself valuable thinking.
- After sorting, ask learners to generate their own questions for each quadrant.
- Combine with learners set questions: learners generate questions first, then sort them using QuADS.
Related tools
Big Questions
Open-ended, thought-provoking questions that push learners beyond simple recall into genuine problem-solving, reasoning and creative thinking.
Collaboration in Formulating Questions
Teachers and learners work together to create high-quality questions, building a shared bank of powerful prompts that deepen thinking across lessons.
KWL/KWHL Grids
A simple grid where learners record what they Know, what they Want to find out, How they will find out, and what they have Learned, structuring inquiry from start to finish.
Learners Set Questions
A strategy where learners generate their own questions about a topic, developing deeper understanding because creating good questions requires more thinking than answering them.
Question Bubbles
A visual scaffold where question stems are displayed in speech bubbles around a central stimulus, prompting learners to generate questions at different cognitive levels.
Source: Adapted from "How to develop thinking and assessment for learning in the classroom", Welsh Assembly Government, Guidance 044/2010.