Over the last two+ weeks I have been exploring inquiry learning and everything it has to offer. When I first started my exploration I was under the notion that inquiry learning was just questioning. I was blown away when I learned what true inquiry learning consists of (I will further elaborate below). I did a little research on my own and found this great YouTube clip to give you a brief overview.
I stumbled upon a teachers point of view about implementing inquiry:
To summarize my learning, Inquiry learning involves:
- Less teacher focus
- Hands on
- Student centered discovery
- Meaningful questioning
- Real world experiences
- Student driven studies
- Student research
- Activating prior knowledge
- Connecting prior knowledge to new learning
- Collecting data
- Analyzing data
- Conducting observations, interviews, research
- Collaboration
- Making connections
- Thinking critically
- Sharing resources/research/results
- Design/conducting investigations
- Identifying questions that can be answered through investigation
I learned that inquiry learning cannot just begin. Teachers must first establish a community in the classroom to implement inquiry learning. Some ways to help achieve this include:
- Integration
- Language use
- Sharing/collaboration
- Forums for communication
- Setting purposes
- Utilizing a variety of resources
A BIG takeaway for me was that even as a small-group reading specialist, I, too, can utilize inquiry learning in my classroom! I can use inquiry learning through:
- Literature circles
- Discussions
- Connecting through various other contents (math, history, science, etc.)
No burning questions left here- just, CAN AUGUST GET HERE SOON SO I CAN IMPLEMENT INQUIRY LEARNING INTO MY OWN CLASSROOM!?
I will leave you with a quote that really resonated with me as I began my exploration of inquiry:
"Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand."
I feel that inquiry learning is a great way to "involve" students. Would you agree?
- Less teacher focus
- Hands on
- Student centered discovery
- Meaningful questioning
- Real world experiences
- Student driven studies
- Student research
- Activating prior knowledge
- Connecting prior knowledge to new learning
- Collecting data
- Analyzing data
- Conducting observations, interviews, research
- Collaboration
- Making connections
- Thinking critically
- Sharing resources/research/results
- Design/conducting investigations
- Identifying questions that can be answered through investigation
I learned that inquiry learning cannot just begin. Teachers must first establish a community in the classroom to implement inquiry learning. Some ways to help achieve this include:
- Integration
- Language use
- Sharing/collaboration
- Forums for communication
- Setting purposes
- Utilizing a variety of resources
A BIG takeaway for me was that even as a small-group reading specialist, I, too, can utilize inquiry learning in my classroom! I can use inquiry learning through:
- Literature circles
- Discussions
- Connecting through various other contents (math, history, science, etc.)
No burning questions left here- just, CAN AUGUST GET HERE SOON SO I CAN IMPLEMENT INQUIRY LEARNING INTO MY OWN CLASSROOM!?
I will leave you with a quote that really resonated with me as I began my exploration of inquiry:
"Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand."
I feel that inquiry learning is a great way to "involve" students. Would you agree?