Over the past two weeks, my knowledge of inquiry based learning has grown even more. Just when I wonder to myself, "How am I going to write an entire blog entry explaining what I've learned?" it hits me that there are new concepts and aspects of inquiry based learning introduced each week. I never realized there were so many facets to this type of learning and teaching!
The main concept that I took away from the past two units was the different types of questions. Investigable questions invite students to find answers through hands-on demonstrations, labs, and activities. Non-investigable questions can be answered through research or a student's prior knowledge. Both types of questions are important and can utilize higher order thinking skills; however, when it comes to implementing inquiry based learning in my own 6th grade science class, I like the idea of trying to incorporate as many investigable questions as I can. Scientific concepts can be difficult for students to fathom without seeing them in action, so I welcome the opportunity for students to demonstrate scientific principles and see the results firsthand.
One question that I have at this point is how to develop more investigable questions for my solar system unit. Since many of the concepts and facts students will learn in this unit are related to gravity and planetary conditions, they would be difficult to simulate in the classroom. How can my students learn more about the solar system in a hands-on manner?
No comments:
Post a Comment