Essential Questions• How can I motivate

students?• Can students have fun, find

meaning, and still do well on standardized tests?

• How can I rekindle my passion for teaching?

• Does what I teach matter? Will it equip students with necessary real world skills?

CELL PHONES FOR SOLDIERS TO PROVIDE 750,000 FREE COMMUNICATION TOOLS IN 2011Inquiry Project by 13 year old as part of inquiry project—one that has been adopted by cell phone companies now!

SHIFT your teaching?

The 3 S’s and 6 M’s of Inquiry

GO TOP DOWN!!

No one gets excited about a letter, a sentence, a molecule, practicing stance, or a verb, a date in history all by itself.

Start with the BIG issues, questions, and problems that drive your content area. Than they will want to find out how those little things impact the bigger thing they really care about.

Discussion Points

• To what extent do your students understand what they need to learn in your class?

• How do you know?• How do you share

learning goals with your students?

Stepping Stone Question Samples

Stepping-Stone Question Samples

Essential Questions: The Paradigm Shift

Working Definition of EQ

• Two minutes• Define Essential Question

• Is there anything you want to add to your definition after viewing the video?

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

Each student brings…

Kid-Friendly Edit

EQs

• Which President of the United States has had the most disappointing legacy?

• To what extent are science and common sense related?

• What do you suppose would happen if we took away all television?

• How can our nation best handle the influx of immigrants?

Revised EQs• Who were the real winners and

losers of the Civil War?• Are Toad and Frog really friends?• Why should you evaluate web

sites?• Why was the Declaration of

Independence important?• How do insects survive so well?• Why do you suppose the

character in the story decided to abandon his friend?

• What are communities?• Why are rules important?• Why are there patterns in

numbers?

• Who are the real winners and losers in war?

• Who is a true friend? How will you know?

• How can you create a tool to teach kids to evaluate web sites?

• What qualities guarantee that a political document endures over time?

• In nature, do only the strong survive? What is “survival strength”?

• Why do some friendships end?• What makes kids break rules?• How do patterns make life easier?• How does nature use patterns?

Essential Question Samples

Essential Question Samples

Presentation to

Students

• Important that EQs are posted for students to access, ponder and begin formulating responses.

Writing Essential Questions