Inquiry Needs to be Planned & Purposeful

This article begins with the famous conversation between Alice (from Wonderland fame) and the cat. Alice is asking which way she should go, and the cat says that if one doesn’t care where o... See More

This article begins with the famous conversation between Alice (from Wonderland fame) and the cat. Alice is asking which way she should go, and the cat says that if one doesn’t care where one is going, then it shouldn’t matter which way one goes! The gist of the article is that inquiry needs to be purposeful and planned. Teachers have a responsibility to know about the types of inquiry and when and how to use each to facilitate learning in their classrooms. Elementary teachers who are unsure about how to incorporate inquiry into their science lessons will find this editor’s notes very helpful.