🌍 C3 + Diffit Toolkit

Bring the C3 Framework to life with routines that spark inquiry, deepen critical thinking, and promote civic engagement. Diffit makes it easier to differentiate complex texts while ensuring every student can access rich, rigorous content.

The C3 Framework emphasizes inquiry, evaluating sources, and taking informed action. This toolkit pairs C3’s Inquiry Arc with Diffit’s activities so you can scaffold primary and secondary sources, build academic skills, and grow student agency while keeping rigor at the center.

How to Use This Toolkit

Use these strategies to help students access sources, analyze perspectives, and communicate conclusions. Start with one dimension of the C3 Framework, then layer in additional routines as students build confidence. Each activity can be adapted for whole-class, small-group, or independent work.

🔍 Dimension 1: Developing Questions & Planning Inquiries

  • Notice & Wonder – Spark curiosity at the start of a unit or text.
  • K-W-L Chart (via Read and Take Notes) – Help students track what they know, want to know, and learn across lessons.
  • Questions – Generate compelling and supporting questions tied to readings.

📚 Dimension 2: Disciplinary Tools & Concepts

  • Causes and Effects – Show relationships between historical events or concepts.
  • Compare and Contrast – Analyze perspectives across people, places, or time periods.
  • Flow Chart Map – Sequence events or economic processes clearly.

🧠 Dimension 3: Evaluating Sources & Using Evidence

  • CER Open Ended Question or Claims, Evidence, Reasoning – Support evidence-based writing or discussion.
  • HIPP Analysis / HIPPO Analysis – Evaluate historical sources for context and purpose.
  • Answer and Explain – Justify responses to comprehension questions with evidence from the text.

🗣️ Dimension 4: Communicating Conclusions & Taking Informed Action

  • 3-2-1 What I Learned – Summarize and reflect on learning in a quick, structured way.
  • One Thing I Learned – Low-prep formative check on content and big ideas.
  • Social Media Summary – Share key takeaways creatively, using short posts or hashtags.

💡 Tips for Differentiating with Diffit

Practical ways to keep rigor and inquiry intact while supporting diverse learners:

  • Preview simplified versions of texts before moving to grade-level sources.
  • Use vocabulary supports like Frayer Model or Key Vocabulary with Images to build understanding.
  • Pair leveled comprehension questions (Multiple Choice, Short Answer, Open Ended) with C3 inquiries.
  • Highlight a passage and use Read and Annotate to model sourcing and evidence use.
  • Reinforce learning with Reading & Summary or Main Idea (By Paragraph) to check comprehension.