Although inquiry is more engaging and results in more meaningful learning (Minner, Levy, and Century 2010) than traditional science classroom instruction, actually involving students in the process is difficult. Furthermore, many students have misconceptions about Earth's seasons, which are supported by students' prior knowledge of heat sources.…

In traditional classroom discourse, the teacher controls the discussion, asking most of the questions and calling on students to respond. This model does not work well for the inquiry-based classroom, which depends on engagement, peer interaction, and student ownership of learning. In this article, the authors present an alternative framework for…

If we want our students to become capable practitioners of scientific inquiry, we should not stop at providing opportunities to do inquiry. We need to be intentional about assessing and teaching the competencies necessary for inquiry. However, the ability to conduct scientific inquiry can be difficult to assess. Therefore, the author created The…

One of the largest challenges of teaching astronomy is bringing the infinite scale of the universe into the four walls of a classroom. However, concepts of astronomy are often the most interesting to students. This article focuses on an alternative method for learning about stars by exploring visible characteristics of the constellation Orion and…

To give students a tangible model of an ecosystem and have them experience what could happen if a component of that ecosystem were removed; the authors developed a hands-on, inquiry-based activity that visually demonstrates the concept of a delicately balanced ecosystem through a modification of the popular game Jenga. This activity can be…

Water is an essential resource for all living things. How we live on our watershed can impact water quantity and quality. It is important to recognize how humans alter watershed dynamics, but students often find it challenging to visualize watershed processes and understand how decisions that they make as individuals and together as a community…

Presents a science activity on modeling a bridge to teach about the forces of tension versus compression. The activity is designed for middle school students. (YDS)

Presents an activity that is part of a unit on topography and land masses in the earth science curriculum. Involves students learning about scientific inquiry, comparing a model with what it represents, making and interpreting scale drawings, learning how to use new instruments, and learning about computation and estimation. (JRH)

A little more than one hundred years ago, Wilbur and Orville Wright began building models of airfoils and testing them in wind tunnels in their search for an efficient wing. Models continue to be used today by aerospace engineers to prove concepts and launch dreams. To celebrate the centennial of the Wright brothers' historic flight, the authors…

Inquiry. It's a word that every teacher has heard repeatedly since the publication of the National Science Education Standards. Given the challenges of teaching core content, preparing students for inquiry may seem like a daunting task. Yet there are many different approaches to inquiry. Examining the nature of the scientific method and reducing…

Vertical connections, constructed using inquiry, give students the skills to reach new heights in both their academic and local communities. In this article, the authors present inquiry projects, developed by middle level teachers, to ensure that students use higher-level thinking skills to improve the community. Each project is connected to the…