What is Inquiry?

The next article I read was "What is Inquiry?" written by Kayoe Stewart.  This article delves into the definition of inquiry.  Like the author, I believe we are all born with inquiry.  This is what propels babies to explore the world in which they live.  Young children possess an inordinate amount of wonder.  They love to poke and prod and explore!  I went through more than one video player when my children were young thanks to their explorations!

When students get to school this sense of inquiry may be encouraged during the early elementary years.  However, by the time children reach the 4th or 5th grade science becomes a set of rules, formulas, and standards and is no longer considered "fun." 

When my sons were young I, as a parent, loathed science fair time.  It was not fun in my opinion.  Getting them to set up the project and come up with a project were very tedious affairs.  There was also little inquiry involved, since they usually just found a project on the internet and followed the instructions. 

Last year, I was a graduate intern at Little Britain Elementary school in New Windsor.  One of the 4th grade teachers was able to really engage her students by purchasing some science kits from Lego.  The students worked in groups to assemble robots.  They then conducted experiments with the robots.  I really found this to be "fun."  The students enjoyed the activity and were excited to participate.  I hope when I have my own students, I will be able to make science fun and engaging for them in the same way.  I do not believe we need to spend a lot of money to engage students.  In fact the 5th graders at Little Britain last year were able to observe bald eagles right outside their classroom! 

I hope those students will continue to build on the experiences they had last school year and remain engaged and inquisitive.  This is what inquiry is to me.