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Research & Inquiry

Research & Inquiry

Welcome to the Research & Inquiry topic page. These resources are designed to spark deeper dialogue around teaching research and inquiry across the curriculum. Explore how to support learners in growing from mere consumers of information to independent thinkers and investigators, and receive regular inspiration on ways we can collaborate to create a culture of inquiry in our schools.

Questioning

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Typically, our students begin their school careers as preschoolers or kindergartners brimming with questions that overflow into every interaction. Sadly, somewhere along the way they lose that zest for wanting to know...everything. The constant questioning dwindles to a trickle until getting students to ask questions feels like shouting into the void. While I find that trend to be disheartening on many levels, it is especially difficult when approaching inquiry. Questions are the heart and soul of inquiry. Without questions, our inquiry has no purpose, no direction. It is easy to supply students with ready-made questions for the sources we provide them, but this does not encourage ownership or engagement. To develop a culture of inquiry, students need encouragement not only on the asking of questions, but also on the how of asking and using questions effectively. Read More >>

Classroom & Library

Finding Your Research Topic

Academic Skills

Finding Your Research Topic

In this lesson, students will differentiate between open and closed questions and use an iterative questioning process to generate a focused research topic.

The Art of Asking Questions

The Art of Asking Questions

Questions are the heart and soul of inquiry. Students of all ages benefit from repeated opportunities to practice the art of asking questions, as well as a roadmap for how to develop the complexity of their questioning over time. Spark new ideas about how to approach questioning with your students in this webinar

A Librarian Asks,

A Librarian Asks, "What Is the QFT and How Does It Fit the Library?"

The Question Formulation Technique (QFT) is a procedure for deepening student learning through question generation, analysis, and reflection.

Classroom & Library

Bridging Time with Primary Sources

Bridging Time with Primary Sources

Many primary sources were not designed to be published or shared, but years later they provide a peek into the mind of their creator allowing us to consider an event or time period from a unique point of view.

Classroom & Library

Crime Scene Connections

Crime Scene Connections

Who doesn't love a good crime scene? Why not incorporate one into library programs? The number one way to quickly solve a crime is also the foundation of research: asking questions. All good research starts with asking questions.

Classroom & Library

Adding Friction. How Do I Teach Students to Write a Researchable Inquiry Question?

Adding Friction. How Do I Teach Students to Write a Researchable Inquiry Question?

It's easier than you think to create that well-crafted inquiry question that is at the heart of learning, analyzing, evaluating, and reflecting.

Classroom & Library

Asking Strong Research Questions Using Primary Sources

Asking Strong Research Questions Using Primary Sources

Learn strategies and tips to effectively utilize primary sources at the question-forming stage of research. See how students asking their own research questions based on their interactions with items from history can increase engagement and purpose as well as positively impact this critical point in the research process.

Classroom & Library

Using Sources to Guide Questioning

Using Sources to Guide Questioning

In this lesson, secondary students will create questions about a specific topic based on background knowledge from analyzing a variety of sources.

Classroom & Library

Question Starters

Question Starters

Share this list of question stems with your students to help them harness their curiosity and form questions of varing levels of complexity as they interact with sources.

Classroom & Library

From Curiosity to the Research Question [17:12]

From Curiosity to the Research Question [17:12]

Want to help students learn to pose compelling questions? Watch this video with Curriculum Specialist Pam Renfrow to explore how your ABC-CLIO resources such as Primary Source Analysis, Key Questions, Inquiry Activities, and Topic Libraries can ignite curiosity and lead students to ask better questions. Check here for upcoming free database trainings