Welcome
This site is aimed to inform and explain Tony Ryan's 20 thinking keys. We aim to unpack the different keys and look at the importance behind them, why they were created and how they can be used across different curriculum areas and in and outside of the classroom.
"Thinking is a core skill and needs to be explicitly taught"
First things first, who is Tony Ryan?
Tony Ryan has many notable achievements, mentioned here are a few of the things Tony has done. Tony Ryan was a teacher for 12 years and has worked in many different countries. His work in these countries has involved being a consultant with 10 different universities and over 800 schools! He has been a key note speaker at over 50 major conferences and is also the author of 8 books on innovative thinking and lifelong learning.
What do the thinkers keys do?
Tony is passionate about learning and helping others think in critical and creative ways to make learning as authentic and meaningful as possible. Tony introduced the thinking keys in the 1980s. These 20 keys are cleverly designed to motivate learners in many different contexts to help deepen their thinking and encourage students to think outside the box.
Thinkers keys can be used in many ways and situations, they are a really powerful tool that can be used to help unlock critical and creative thinking abilities that ALL learners have.
Watch this video to find out more about why the keys have been created:
Tony Ryan has many notable achievements, mentioned here are a few of the things Tony has done. Tony Ryan was a teacher for 12 years and has worked in many different countries. His work in these countries has involved being a consultant with 10 different universities and over 800 schools! He has been a key note speaker at over 50 major conferences and is also the author of 8 books on innovative thinking and lifelong learning.
What do the thinkers keys do?
Tony is passionate about learning and helping others think in critical and creative ways to make learning as authentic and meaningful as possible. Tony introduced the thinking keys in the 1980s. These 20 keys are cleverly designed to motivate learners in many different contexts to help deepen their thinking and encourage students to think outside the box.
Thinkers keys can be used in many ways and situations, they are a really powerful tool that can be used to help unlock critical and creative thinking abilities that ALL learners have.
Watch this video to find out more about why the keys have been created:
Key points from the Video
10 purple keys (critical thinking)
10 orange keys (creative thinking)
3 important points
1. Thinking is not an optional extra in learning
2. The teaching of thinking skills must be delivered in context
3. The secret to using the 20 thinkers keys is to place them into sequences most thinking and learning experiences will require a sequence of purple and orange thinking in different orders.
So what are the 20 different thinkers keys?
10 orange keys (creative thinking)
3 important points
1. Thinking is not an optional extra in learning
2. The teaching of thinking skills must be delivered in context
3. The secret to using the 20 thinkers keys is to place them into sequences most thinking and learning experiences will require a sequence of purple and orange thinking in different orders.
So what are the 20 different thinkers keys?
1. The Reverse- Challenges Children to think of the never, cannot
2. The What If- A what if question, come up with solutions
3. The Disadvantages- List disadvantages and Improvements
4. The Combination- List attributes of both, then combine
5. The Alphabet- Come up with something for each letter of the Alphabet
6. The B A R- Bigger, Add, Replace acronym. Come up with a solution for each.
7. The Variations- How many ways can you…
8. The Picture- Draw a picture/diagram
9. The Prediction- Make a prediction
10. The Different Uses- Find 10 different uses for…
11. The Ridiculous- Try to justify a ridiculous statement
12. The Commonality- Find common points between…
13. The Question- Come up with 5 questions for…
14. The Brainstorming- Brainstorm solutions for…
15. The Inventions- Design a …
16. The Brick Wall- Consider alternatives to…
17. The Construction- Construct a… Materials…
18. The Forced Relationships- Come up with a solution to a problem involving two dissimilar objects
19. The Alternative- Work out 3 ways to…
20. The Interpretations- Give 3 possible explanations for…
"I wanted to teach the world to think as effectively as possible"
"If you want the learning to be effective then you must encourage students to think"