The Inquiry Diary - the power of collaborative documentation

Over the many years I have been involved in the field of inquiry based learning, there are a few ‘tried and true’ strategies that have stood the test of time.   I’m not sure where the idea of a class ‘inquiry diary’ came from. Perhaps it goes back to my early teaching days and what I learned about the power of language experience for teaching beginning readers.  This approach was then in its ‘hey day’ and taught me a lot about the need to give young language learners opportunities to connect the abstract world of print to the concrete world of lived experience. The resulting texts would be returned to over and over again by the children.  Books, wall stories, other shared texts created about our walk to the park, about the day the chick escaped and ended up in the dress up box, about the helicopter that landed on the oval were always the hottest items on the shelf when it came time to choose something to read!  Capturing our shared experiences in writing also gave me a constant source of rich yet familiar language I could harvest for literacy instruction.  We would comb our shared texts for spelling patterns, frequently used words and interesting linguistic structures and features (I only wish I knew then what I know now about word inquiry).  Our shared authorship helped us make meaning of experience AND gave us much fodder for inquiry into language itself. 

 As I became more enamoured with the inquiry approach, it seemed only natural to document our journeys of inquiry in a similar, narrative form. Many inquiries  follow the arc of a narrative – we begin in wonder, not knowing how it will evolve and gradually our understanding  widens and deepens as we find out more.  Our perceptions about what we are investigating may shift dramatically through the inquiry – just as a good story often lands us a surprise or two!  Inquiries include both the predictable and the unpredictable moment  - again, perfect seeds for narrative documentation.*

What is an inquiry diary?

Essentially, it is a large book (or digital equivalent – but more on that later) into which the inquiry is recorded as it unfolds - one of those big, spiral bound sketch books is ideal.  Some teachers construct a diary for each inquiry while others use a single diary for the whole year.  Some teachers reserve the diary for documentation of the unplanned, ‘spontaneous’ investigations that occur throughout the year (such as the sad death of the preying mantis at St. Fidelis Primary early this year!).  Entries can be made  at various times throughout the process - daily, weekly, sporadic or regular.  The teacher often scribes students’ suggestions or invites a small group to work on an entry.    Importantly, the diary gives us an opportunity to reinforce the language of inquiry and the transferable skills and strategies that are being used within it.  They can be as simple or as detailed as suits.  

 

Key features include:

 Documentation of the 'essence' of what the inquiry is about - the big question, understands goals and skills.  

• Use of the meta language of inquiry.  While the contexts themselves will change...children start to recognise similar processes through the repetition of language (eg: we began by tuning in to our thinking….we wondered….we needed to investigate so we….) Each time a new inquiry is documented – it is an opportunity to see both similarities and differences between different types of inquiry.

 

• Inclusion of photos and examples of what students are doing along the way. These photos help anchor children's thinking, provide a prompt for reflection, and are a practical way to hold onto the charts and other artefacts developed during the inquiry when they can't necessarily be kept on the wall.

• Naming of skills and strategies used to pursue the investigation

 

 Inquiry diaries can also become a lovely way to invite parents into finding out more about  this way of learning.  Once it is up and running, the diary can be displayed (eg: on an easel or music stand) near or in the classroom to be look at during drop off or pick up time. Some teachers choose to send the diaries home with each child in turn (a great way to learn about care and responsibility!) so they can share it with their parents - including a comments/feedback page in the back of the diary is a useful addition.

 Of course, this kind of documentation of an inquiry can also be done as a digital text.  Blogging or the use of tools like Weebly or even a simple powerpoint developed over the course of the inquiry  are great ways to share the journey and this also allows for the inclusion of sound and video.  The key to a successful inquiry diary is accessibility.  We need to be able to grab it, refer to it, dip in and out of it. Whether paper based or digital, the diary helps anchor learning and connect the learning moments from day to day. 

 

How do you document and capture your shared inquiry journeys?  

 Just wondering....

* Thanks to Michelle from Mother Teresa Primary School, Jenny and Annette from St Fidelis primary School and Karen Seaton from Castlemaine Nth Primary schools for the examples.  And apologies for my less than crisp photography! 

Do you know me well enough to teach me?*

A friend of mine called me recently, having returned, rather despondent, from grueling evening of secondary parent-teacher interviews for her eldest son in year 9 (you know the type – 5 minutes with each teacher, frantically rushing from room to room…) This boy is what most teachers would describe as a ‘good student’,  generally conscientious, well behaved  -but inclined to be on the quiet side.  When the time came for the interview with the science teacher,  the first comment the teacher made about him was that he didn't seem to be very interested in the subject and this was clearly a criticism rather than a question.  My friend asked the science teacher to explain what he meant and was told: “He doesn’t seem to be listening, he’s often daydreaming and he never asks any questions or makes a contribution. He needs to be more focused and show more interest”

Turning to her son who was looking rather mortified by this stage, my friend asked how he felt about what had been said (note – it was my friend who asked that  - not the teacher!)

“Um. I suppose I don't really say much but I do find it a bit confusing  - so I don’t really know what to ask sometimes”

The conversation continued rather haltingly.  ‘Average’ test results were reported together with a reminder to the boy to  ‘ask questions’ when he didn't understand and to stay more focused.  As they got up to leave,  the teacher noticed the boy was carrying a guitar case:

“Oh – do you play guitar do you?” he asked (perhaps he was sensing that things had not gone well!)

At this point, my friend said it hit her – he doesn’t know my son at all.  You see, this boy is a gifted musician. He is passionate about music, plays multiple instruments, composes and is heavily involved in the musical life of the school.  She was flabbergasted that the teacher did not know this about him.  It was such a strong part of his identity. She wondered what else he didn't know about her son…

In response, she simply said “yes – music is his passion – along with several other things” and walked out with a lump in her throat.

I asked her what had been so upsetting about this interchange. She said that she could not help but wonder about what effort had been made to connect with her son.  Why did he leave the interview with the burden of responsibility to ask questions when it seemed the teacher  had ever stopped to ask HIM anything about himself? His passions? His learning? It was nearly the end of the year! Shouldn’t this teaching and learning thing be a two way street?

You bet it should.

In order to do the best job we can of engaging students as learners – we need to know who they are as people.   Even a busy secondary teacher with multiple classes to teach, can take a moment to find out the most significant thing in each students’ life – especially those students who appear less connected and less engaged in their classes.   Imagine how much more engaged this boy could be if he were encouraged to enter the world of science through music! And once there – his confidence and curiosity would grow.  We all remember the teachers that made us feel valued – even in the smallest of ways – those that respected and knew us.  Indeed, it was some secondary teachers in my own life with whom I had the very best of relationships and who inspired me to learn (and later to teach) partly because they took time to relate to me as a person first.

 “Do you know me well enough to teach me?” The challenge within this question is profound and goes to the heart of what we do.  While I acknowledge that schools are not always structured in ways that allow for quality relationship building,  it’s too important NOT to give this priority.  Good teachers know that their job is all about relationships.   If we want our kids to ask questions – to show a passion for our subjects, to engage in the concepts we bring to them, we need to do more than simply tell them to ‘pay attention’.  Getting  to know who our students really are as people is surely a responsibility that comes with the privilege we have of teaching them .

What strategies do you use to find out who your students are? Do you know your students well enough to teach them?

…..just wondering….

* the title of this blog post was inspired by Stephen G Peter’s book titled: “Do you know enough about me to teach me?: a student’s perspective ” (2006)

Being the subject of your own inquiry: learning to inquire within

 For many years, the context of my inquiry work with students has been, broadly speaking, the disciplines of science, the humanities, technologies and the physical aspects of health and wellbeing.   When I look back over years of designing rich “units of inquiry”, the big ideas generally encourage students to investigate the social, physical, natural and built landscape.  Our  goals have been framed around concepts that help students understand continuity and change, systems, culture, diversity, cycles and other significant, timeless themes.  So often, these inquiries have engaged students in finding out about something ‘out there’ – something that, while connected or relevant to their lives in some way, still remained at arm’s length from their inner worlds.

 More recently, my interest in reflective thinking and the centrality of ‘learning to learn’ has added a layer of meaning to these inquiries that was missing in my early work.   I now see every journey of inquiry – whatever the question – as an opportunity to inquire into how we learn. By ensuring that students  and teachers bring a reflective lens to all they do, we  gain such powerful insights into the process of inquiry itself and, in Guy Claxton’s terms, we ‘strengthen learning muscle’.

 But I think I need to take it even further.  Alongside my growing interest in inquiring into learning itself, I have been strongly drawn to the concept of mindfulness and the increasing importance of helping students to  ‘notice themselves’ as they learn.   

Towards the end of term – just before I was to board a plane to do some exciting work overseas for 10 days,  I spent a morning with some teachers planning a unique inquiry into the concept of resilience.   We were interested in seeing what we could do to take this concept and work with it as inquiry teachers: to try to avoid the kind of well-meaning but essentially activity based approach that had been used in the past.  It was such a fascinating and powerful planning meeting.  Essentially, this is an inquiry that will encourage the students to ‘inquire within’.   Sure – we will share stories of people who have successfully faced challenges and the students  will interview others about challenges in their lives – but the most important source of ‘data’  will be the students themselves. 

 My hope is that throughout this inquiry, the students (through journals, circle time, simulations, video play-backs and other routines) will ‘notice’ themselves more.   I want the students to sit on their own shoulders – watch themselves, notice their responses and listen to their self-talk.  I want them to slow down, press the pause button and review their actions. I want them to ask: “what am I noticing about myself in this?”  “What did I just do/say?” “What is this telling me about myself?” “What could I do differently?” I want them to bring an inquiry stance to learning about themselves as people  and I want them to carry that disposition into the rest of their lives.

 Ah, the irony.  At the end of that week, health issues (not life-threatening ones) forced me to postpone travel and cancel my overseas workshops.  I found myself doing my own inquiry into resilience!    Like so many teachers, my life is tightly scheduled, the work is intense and I love it with a passion.   To be suddenly unable to travel and in a state of uncertainty has been enormously unsettling.   I can't make plans, I can’t see what’s ahead – I have to wait and allow things to unfold.  Ironically – the challenge of not knowing; of being  ‘in the fog’ and waiting for it to lift; of expecting the unexpected….these are phrases I say every other day in relation to what it means to be an inquiry teacher!!    

Despite the enormous frustration and the horrible experience of letting people down, the week HAS been an opportunity to be reflective and to inquire into my own way of being.  I’ve been the subject of my own inquiry and – like all challenging events in one’s life – I’ve noticed and learned some interesting things about myself.  The concept of perspective keeps emerging again and again as my most valued ally.  Perspective builds resilience but perspective (for me) takes enormous discipline. I’m working on it.

One of the PYP’s overarching themes is, of course, ‘who we are’.  I know I will now bring a fresh mindset to inquiries planned within this theme in PYP schools -  here is where we can really put the spotlight on learning about ourselves.   But we can also encourage a more mindful disposition simply through the questions we ask across the day and the self talk we model.  Inquiry learners ‘notice’ – the world around and within them.  Noticing yields insight and insight helps regulate our responses to life’s disappointments and opportunities.   Having an inquiring disposition  - when directed inward – helps us know who we are and, even more importantly, who we can become.  As we teach our students to be inquirers,  let’s not inadvertently send the message that the skills they are gaining apply only to what’s ‘out there.’

 Do you encourage your students to inquire within?

Just wondering…

Sometimes we DO have to reinvent the wheel...

My work takes me into all kinds of schools with all kinds of curriculum frameworks designed to support inquiry learning.   Some frameworks allow teachers a great deal of latitude when it comes to selecting and planning contexts for inquiry and others provide pre-determined contexts for inquiry that may be repeated from year to year as part of a broad, more structured curriculum map.   Some schools expect a high degree of accountability to system curriculum standards while others approach the links to curriculum more loosely.  Whether a context for inquiry is fully emergent, negotiated or more tightly predetermined does not, in itself, make it more or less worthy.   It is, of course, what teachers and students do with these context that counts.    And what teachers and students do is, in turn, connected to the quality of the conversations had around the planning table. 

For me, the most potent element of the planning process for inquiry is the conversation about conceptual understanding.   Regardless of whether a school's framework already identifies a ‘central idea’ , an ‘enduring understanding’, ‘lines of inquiry’ or ‘essential questions’ …we are never ‘off the hook’  about the bigger picture.   Every journey of inquiry is a new one.   The simple question, “what is it that we hope students will come to understand more deeply?” has to be asked EACH TIME an inquiry is developed….even if this context for inquiry has been explored before.    Similarly, the questions “How is this inquiry relevant/important  to this group of students, this year?”  and  “Why does this matter?” helps us keep the teaching and learning fresh, authentic and purposeful.   Of course, the conversation at the planning table will always be fresh and relevant to students’ interests and needs if we are careful to invite their voices in.

When we take time to discuss the ‘understanding goals’ of any inquiry, we clarify our own thinking. When we have clarity – we ask better questions of our students and are better able to see opportunities to take their thinking further and deeper.   Establishing conceptual (rather than knowledge-level) goals further enriches the quality of this professional conversation.  As soon as the inquiry is more concept-driven, the conversation is energized - and the possibilities for transfer and connection present themselves more clearly.   As well as giving the team greater clarity and intention, this conversation nurtures ownership.  Nothing kills collaborative planning (and indeed inquiry itself) more quickly than the feeling that the plan is a ‘done deal’.  For teachers new to the team, in particular,  participation in developing the plan from ‘bottom up’  - with each other and with students - is critical. 

How do you ensure your inquiry journeys remain fresh and relevant to the current group of students? 

Just wondering...

Reflections on 'i-time'

One of the most interesting projects I have been involved in this year, is the introduction of personal inquiry routines into several of my partner schools.  We’ve been keen to look at ways to open up more opportunities for regular inquiry into personal passions.  Most of the teachers who have implemented some form of personal inquiry time already use a model that allows for ‘student led’ inquiry but this has tended to be within the scope of the ‘big idea’ the class is investigating.  While maintaining this, we have also been keen to explore the benefits of investigations that cater more specifically for the particular interests, ways of thinking, ideas, passions and curiosities. We have not been alone in this venture!  Increasing reference is made worldwide to such approaches –20% time, innovations days, passion projects, oasis time, genius hour – whatever we choose to call it, the intention is similar.  The term ‘I-time’ (which I first heard used by some teachers in the Sandhurst Diocese of Victoria, Melbourne) appealed to me – the letter ‘I” turned out to have a lot of potential being the initial letter for many of our favourite words...inquiry, independence, investigations, inspiration, initiative...as well as the obvious digital reference. itime wordle

Providing opportunities for personal inquiry has been an instructive experience for us all and has required teachers to have a strong inquiry mindset as we reflect on and strengthen the structures and strategies to ensure learning is rigorous and purposeful as well as truly owned by the students.  Students’ feedback and reflections have been the most useful source of learning for teachers. 

Recently, Michele Martin  - Inquiry learning leader and year 3 teacher at Elsternwick Primary school,  asked her students to reflect on how their views of ‘itime’ had changed since the beginning of the year.  Their honest and thoughtful comments show a growing insight into the nature of quality inquiry itself.  It reminded me of just how powerful learning can be when we allow time and space to ‘re-think’ and when we give them opportunities to express their thinking about the process learning itself.

Here's what some of them had to say... 

I used to think………..	Now I think …………..
You had to make stuff for every “I” – time                                                               Oliver S.	I know I have a big choice and even though I like making, it’s much more challenging if I ask questions and do research.
That you already had to know the information and that you couldn’t research it.                                       Also, I wasn’t very organised and forgot to bring things in to help me!                                                   Elinor W.	You can research, so that lets you choose anything at all so you try new things! I now ask for help getting resources (like I asked MM to bring in some of her cook books) and I remember to bring my own when I can.
I thought that you could just choose a random thing to learn about.                                                           Lucy O.	You should choose something that you want to learn about!
I thought that you needed to do something really simple and you only needed one question.                                                         Bethany	You need to choose something that challenges your learning. You need more than one question to challenge yourself. You need to ask yourself ‘open’ questions, not yes/no questions.
I didn’t really get why you needed a question.                                                               Will	Questions help you learn!
I thought you could just get other people’s words from the computer or books and cut them up and paste them on.                                                   Liam and Lucy D.	That when I summarise what I have read, by writing my own words, it helps me understand and it helps my audience when they read my thinking and learning.
That to find information you must use a computer.    Alice	You can use people (experts / primary sources) and books.
Only I had to understand what I had found out.   Sequoia	It’s good if other people can understand your information.
I thought I was so smart because I did easy things that I sort of knew about.                                                            Oliver L.	I’m challenging my learning and it’s harder to find the information, but I’m not giving up. I’m persisting!
It’s just writing some simple information (a tiny bit!).                                                                        Chloe	Finding more complicated and detailed information challenges me to learn more
11% of the time I focused. Most of the time I just wandered around. I wanted to do things but I got distracted.                                                       Spencer	70% I am totally focused and it’s increasing! I think about what I need to do, like going to the library or bringing something from home to help me.

 We should regularly check in with students about how their views of themselves and their learning is growing and changing.  And what better context for exploring the self as learner then open, personal inquiry!  Do your students have a similar opportunity? Do they have the time and permission to change their thinking?

 Just wondering….

The question of learning intentions

One of the most significant changes in our practice as teachers in recent years has been a move towards greater transparency in relation to our objectives.   Once,  what we wanted students to learn was ‘secret teachers’ business’ ,  now we are much more aware of the power of sharing our intentions.    One of the most popular vehicles for sharing learning intentions is through the use of “WALTs”   (‘We Are Learning To) statements. The full blown version of this approach includes TIB (This Is Because) and WILF (What I am Looking For).   A colleague in New Zealand wryly observed to me the other day that she felt kids were in danger of ‘death by a thousand intentions’ as she noticed the explosion of WALTS crowding the classroom walls. I’ve never been a huge fan of WiLF , in particular .   The suggestion that I am the one looking for the learning rather than the students themselves has never sat right with me -  although I played with it for a while.   More recently, I have been feeling similarly uneasy about the subtext of the phrase “We are Learning To”.    Announcing what we will be learning to do/understand is uncomfortably declarative and certain whereas inquiry treats learning as more complex and emergent.

Don’t get me wrong, I am all for sharing learning intentions.  I like the word ‘intention’ as it signals a general desire or expectation but falls short of being an absolute.  Our intentions help us set the scene, give us direction and sets us on a path.   In an inquiring classroom, teachers are highly intentional  - they are guided by clear principles, they avoid time wasting activities and are driven by a powerful sense of real purpose.

But I’m re-thinking my even sparing use of ‘WALTS'.  When we announce to students what they WILL be learning – are we not, even subtly, reigning in the potential for discovery?  If inquiry teaching is about giving students agency and helping them construct and create understanding - then I think need to be cautious about such declarations.

A practice that sits much better with my inquiry principles is to share intentions in the form of questions rather than statements.  I want our learning experiences to remain intentional and transparent – but it feels better when I articulate this in question form.  For example, I might once have said to students that, as self managers, they would be “learning to devise an effective action plan to meet a goal”.  Now, I pose a question: “How can we devise effective action plans to help us meet our goals?”   As with ‘WALTS’ these intentions-as-questions may be lesson-long or may run through the course of an inquiry.

When I pose this question, I immediately invite my students to be researchers.  As they go about the task of designing and working with their action plans, we all try to notice what we are learning about the process.  If an intention is framed as a question, we naturally gather data, share and reflect.   We can create dot points that easily become success criteria.   And it’s not about getting the right answer (ie  - the teacher creates a kind of ‘sham’ question with pre conceived answers) - when we set intentions as questions, there is more room for discovery, for the unexpected and for debate between students and that makes for a much more satisfying learning experience all round.

Clarifying our intentions through questions does not have to be teacher-led.  Why not ask students what THEY think the question/s might be that drive a particular learning experience?:  “What questions might we carry into this?”  “What might this help us learn more about?”  Establishing intentions as a conversation between teachers and learners again sees a better ‘fit’ with the core principles of the inquiry classroom.

Generic skills and dispositions within the areas of thinking, communicating, researching, self managing and collaborating provide fertile ground for intentions-as-questions.   Here are some examples:

How can we record our observations accurately?

What roles can help a team function smoothly?

How can we show someone we are really listening?

What strategies help us manage our time more effectively?

What helps me stay more focused on a task?

How can we edit our own writing more effectively?

How can we determine the most relevant parts of a text?

How can props be used to power up a presentation?

How can we use creative thinking to help us problem solve?

How can we give each other useful feedback when working in a team?

What are some efficient methods to take notes when viewing clips for information?

The examples here still express a learning intention - but they invite the learner to investigate and construct their own ideas in response.

The tension between what we hope students will come to learn and our openness to the unexpected and unplanned is what makes inquiry teaching so intriguing and satisfying.  A question  rather than statement can help us stay in that lovely, intriguing space – and doesn’t make us any less intentional.

How do you share or construct intentions with your students?

 Just wondering…..