In the book Why Don’t Students Like School, cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham says, “To teach well, you should pay careful attention to what an assignment will actually make students think about (not what you hope they will think about), because that is what they will remember.” How can we know what our assignments will make students think about? In this workshop, we will explore answers to that question. Participants will discuss creating writing prompts that will both direct and provide evidence of students’ thinking, as well as how we can use that evidence to adapt and improve our teaching.