The Tree of Reasoning

Most students fail at reasoning because they don't see how arguments are built. They stack evidence like bricks without mortar, jump from point to point without connection, and leave the analysis work to the reader.

This pathway solves that—by teaching reasoning visually before asking students to write it.

Two activities, two essential skills:

 🌳 The Tree of Reasoning teaches how reasoning fits together—giving students a visual blueprint of the entire argument structure (from context to conclusion). They map their reasoning like a tree: roots = context, trunk = thesis, branches = reasons, leaves = evidence, sunbeams = analysis, birds = counterarguments, sunshine = insight. Suddenly, students can see the architecture of an argument—and replicate it in their writing.

What students walk away with:

• A mental model for how arguments are structured (not just what goes in them)
• The ability to connect evidence to claims explicitly (no more "this quote shows...")
• Stronger body paragraphs that develop ideas instead of listing facts

What's included:

• Full teaching guides for both strategies
• Student-facing templates, examples, and sentence banks
• Scaffolded practice that moves from visual reasoning to written reasoning

Reasoning isn't abstract anymore. It's something students can see, build, and transfer.