Inquiry Based Learning
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Inquiry based learning is a form of active learning, where students develop problem solving, analytical, and experimental skills. Students are assessed on the development of these skills, rather than how much information they retain.
This practice enriches the curriculum and goes beyond the given expectations. Knowledge in my classroom is dynamic, and does not stem from a single book or teacher, but is collectively constructed from a diverse group of sources.
Most classrooms contain a diverse group of students in terms of culture, ethnicity, gender, native language, intellectual ability, religion, mental and physical health, and socio-economic status. Students must see themselves reflected within the material taught and their environment. Inquiry Based Learning and Experimental Learning reflects the lives of the students as it allows the real life experiences and questions of students to be turned into curriculum material. When the students are the center of their own learning, the knowledge and experiences are lasting and more meaningful.
This practice enriches the curriculum and goes beyond the given expectations. Knowledge in my classroom is dynamic, and does not stem from a single book or teacher, but is collectively constructed from a diverse group of sources.
Most classrooms contain a diverse group of students in terms of culture, ethnicity, gender, native language, intellectual ability, religion, mental and physical health, and socio-economic status. Students must see themselves reflected within the material taught and their environment. Inquiry Based Learning and Experimental Learning reflects the lives of the students as it allows the real life experiences and questions of students to be turned into curriculum material. When the students are the center of their own learning, the knowledge and experiences are lasting and more meaningful.
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The Knowledge Building Circle is an inquiry based learning practice I use regularly in the classroom. In this practice we all gather on the carpet in a circle and participate in class discussions on various topics.
Benefits of the Knowledge Building Circle:
-The circle is inclusive, without hierarchy and where everyone's contributions are valued.
-It promotes a classroom community and collaborative learning where ides are openly discussed.
-The circle allows for diverse ideas and perspectives to be shared, and allows students and teachers to learn from each other as Knowledge Building Discourse exposes students to diverse perspectives
-The circle allows all students to participate, take risks, and allows for attentive listening and communication .
Benefits of the Knowledge Building Circle:
-The circle is inclusive, without hierarchy and where everyone's contributions are valued.
-It promotes a classroom community and collaborative learning where ides are openly discussed.
-The circle allows for diverse ideas and perspectives to be shared, and allows students and teachers to learn from each other as Knowledge Building Discourse exposes students to diverse perspectives
-The circle allows all students to participate, take risks, and allows for attentive listening and communication .
Inquiry based learning is particularly useful when studying science. Open learning is used where the individual is manipulating material and forming meaning from this. In traditional classroom experiments, the teacher tells students the outcome of an experiment and students are expected to confirm this by following a given procedure. In inquiry based teaching, students have to discover the result of an experiment themselves, with the teacher only guiding them. There are no wrong answers in these types of experiments. Students learn because they actually have to think about the results and what it means.
Inquiry based learning emphasizes constructivist concepts where teachers are now guiding students by asking them critical questions that allow them to think and experience knowledge first hand. Children learn from personal experience with the physical world and from interaction with the social world.
Inquiry based learning emphasizes constructivist concepts where teachers are now guiding students by asking them critical questions that allow them to think and experience knowledge first hand. Children learn from personal experience with the physical world and from interaction with the social world.
Click on the link below to find the Natural Curiosity Book designed at the Laboratory School at the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study in Toronto. This book goes into further detail in explaining inquiry based learning.
Parents, if you go to page 103 you will find an experiment called the “Inquiry of Decomposition”. This is an example of an experiment I will be carrying out in class shortly after Halloween, making our class pumpkins one of the decomposition subjects.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/105985199/Natural-Curiosity-Manual
Parents, if you go to page 103 you will find an experiment called the “Inquiry of Decomposition”. This is an example of an experiment I will be carrying out in class shortly after Halloween, making our class pumpkins one of the decomposition subjects.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/105985199/Natural-Curiosity-Manual