Considers how if students' curiosity is dismissed, children can develop passivity and grow into unquestioning adults, the opposite of most educators' goal of helping children develop into lifelong learners. Claims that inquiry: flourishes in highly structured classrooms; involves building personal background knowledge and using materials wisely;…

Considers how due to the emphasis of reading, writing, and math, low-performing students are pulled from their regular classes for one-on-one tutorial sessions, restricting their exposure to group discussions and activities that encourage higher-order thinking skills. Suggests a reshaping of remedial curricula based on six guidelines. (SG)

An ethnographic study examined the engagement and learning of five students with learning disabilities participating in Guided Inquiry supporting Multiple Literacies (GisML). A case study illustrates how GisML helped one 4th grader achieve positive outcomes, how GisML also revealed his learning problems, and how contextual features served both to…

Describes the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) and explains the reasons for a curriculum change. Introduces CAPT-style labs which require students to identify a problem, ask questions, develop a hypothesis, design and conduct an experiment, analyze data, and draw conclusions. (YDS)

Describes how a teacher's stance of wonder, curiosity, and exploration during use of hypothetical inquiry situations served as a way for the teacher to address goals for students to be more vocal members of the learning community, encourage critical and creative thinking students, and provide them with meaningful context-rich opportunities for…

Discusses using web sites to develop active inquiry lessons that mimic some of the tasks and thought processes scientists use everyday. The exercises available at the web sites are designed to develop science process skills and convey basic course content. Exercises stress the interactions between the ocean and the atmosphere. (Author/SAH)

Presents an exercise that provides students with opportunities to experience scientific inquiry skills. (ASK)

Introduces a cytology laboratory course consisting of experimental design, laboratory preparation, laboratory implementation, and scientific write-up. (Contains 11 references.) (YDS)

Introduces the peanut observation activity to teach about the pros and cons of dissection. As an inquiry-based approach, dissection is one way to teach process skills. Lists the progression of the activity as observation, questioning and finding the answer, challenge, discussion, and further examination. (Contains 12 references.) (YDS)

Explains how a teacher came to develop her own version of the whole language approach through her experimentation with remedial students in the 1970s. Makes a case for student research and inquiry into issues that matter to them personally, in lieu of traditional research of classic writers. (TB)

Explores three social-studies teachers' conceptions of classroom discussion, focusing on discussion's defining characteristics and purpose and influences on usage. Data included interview and think-aloud responses and classroom observations. Teachers view discussion as recitation, teacher-directed conversation, open-ended exploration, a…

Describes a process for assessing children's reading that involves observations, interpretations, forming hypotheses, making curricular decisions, and going through the process again. Describes how this process, called "Hypothesis Test," has proved useful to a number of teachers with whom the author has worked. (SR)

Explains the importance of an integrated science class setting in students' ability to engage in decision making and develop skills required to design investigations. Presents an example of a science classroom in which students participate in a guided inquiry activity and design an investigation. Points to the potential of group projects in…

Presents a science experiment in which students test the buffering capacity of household products such as shampoo, hand lotion, fizzies candy, and cola. Lists the standards addressed in this experiment and gives an example of a student lab write-up. (YDS)

Presents activities on insects for second grade students. In the first activity, students build a butterfly garden. In the second activity, students observe stimuli reactions with mealworms in the larval stage. Describes the assessment process and discusses the effects of pollution on living things. (YDS)