The majority of drag-and-drop questions in LessonUp are combination questions, where there are as many drag targets as there are drag-and-drop elements. For students, it's very straightforward: they need to place all drag-and-drop elements in the right place.

This type of drag-and-drop question can be made more challenging by adding one or more extra drag-and-drop elements. Since these additional elements are incorrect, they are not connected to any drag targets.

Introducing multiple drag targets as distractors adds a variation to this assessment feature. By including multiple drag targets but only a single drag-and-drop element, you create an alternative to a quiz question, requiring students to be a bit more active.

Making drag targets invisible enhances the challenge. To explain this step-by-step, let's use an example from the math channel To the Power of W.

In this engaging task, students first solve the equations and then place the results at the correct spot on a measuring tape. There's one distractor in this task: the drag-and-drop element '10x10.'

It is clear for the students where the elements need to be dragged, although they still need to double check the sums.

Now, let's make the drag targets invisible. To do this, go to the settings of the drag target. Click on the cogwheel and pencil icon, then navigate to the Drag and drop question tab. Remove the checkmark in Show the drag target icon and red border.

The drag targets are now invisible for the students.

However, a student doesn't need to be very resourceful to conclude that they can keep dragging the drag-and-drop elements until they automatically 'fall' somewhere. To avoid this, you can also remove the other checkbox in the drag and drop question tab:

It can become even more challenging. By default, a drag-and-drop element that is not placed in a drag target returns to the starting position. This consciously or unconsciously provides the following feedback to the student: try again. If you wish to eliminate this, go to the settings of the drag and drop element. Using the cogwheel and pencil icon, select the drag and drop question tab. In this tab, uncheck the box Snap back to start position when not dragged on drag target.

The above differentiation options can, of course, be expanded by using combinations of text, images, hotspots, and audio fragments. In LessonUp, all these components can be used as drag-and-drop elements in drag-and-drop questions.

We posted a demo lesson with various drag-and-drop questions in the LessonUp Community. All the mentioned variations are featured in this demo.