“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” – Albert Einstein

The investigation stage of the ISY Learning Cycle provides opportunities for students to ask questions that spark curiosity about a provocation that leads to future learning. Inquiry expert Kath Murdoch describes this phase as “tuning in” and a time for “reconnaissance.”  

A student’s ability to ask questions has been an emphasis with many of the new academic standards in recent years.

In the last post, we examined how we can activate students’ prior knowledge and curiosity through making observations. Building upon that knowledge, this post will provide steps that teachers can take to activate students’ curiosity by engaging them in asking appropriate questions that will guide their learning. 

We also discussed students making observations on the scientific phenomena of Mouth Clouds. After a round of making observations and extracting our prior knowledge, students may not have mentioned the main concept of condensation or the water cycle of the standard, so Mrs. Williams will open up a round of questioning but will not answer the students’ questions of the phenomena. Simply, once they know the answer, students will usually shut down and their curiosity diminishes greatly. As Paul Andersen would say, “Don’t Kill the Wonder!”

Mrs. Williams decides to do this live during a synchronous lesson.  She asks students to watch the Mouth Cloud phenomena again and then spend 5 minutes writing down as many questions they have on a piece of paper. After a quick check to ensure they all have questions written, she asks for students to say their questions to the group. Again, she does not answer any questions; and if a student asks an off topic question, she redirects them patiently. She also asks students to listen and not repeat other students’ questions. 

Additionally, Mrs. Williams is looking for students’ abilities to ask questions involving three criteria:

Because she has predetermined student success criteria she wants to see through questioning, each time students are presented with a phenomena, they will improve this important skill.  The teacher also now has a better understanding of how to best guide the students through the Prepare, Act, and Demonstrate stages of the Learning Cycle that will ultimately lead them to the performance expectation of developing a model.  

Having students ask questions to guide them through the investigation stage of the Learning Cycle provides students with a way to stay curious about the content and links directly to the purpose(s) of the unit. It also fosters a growth mindset by empowering students to take chances they might not normally under a more question-answer format. The teacher has to balance to find the “sweet spot.” 

While this is a science example I learned from Paul Andersen, this method of observation and questioning can be applied to any subject in any grade level. Additionally, the Question Formulation Technique is a wonderful interdisciplinary approach to getting students to ask better questions.  If you would like to discuss ways in which you can engage your students through making observations and questioning, please reach out to me, and I would love to learn with you how we can provide a meaningful learning experience with your students. In our next post, we will move to the next leg of the stool and discuss student relationships and make connections to the Learning Cycle.