In this module, you will learn more about how to facilitate students in learning how to make observations and generate questions. Students will then dig deeper into their questions as your class focuses on determining your driving question. They will also learn more about how researchers at the student farm generate their own scientific questions and determine the best ways to investigate.

Your students asked great questions. Now what?

After generating questions based on their Notice and Wonder recordings, students then learn to expand and/or modify their questions. While the expansion step may not be necessary with every session on generating questions, teaching students two write high quality investigatable questions is an important step. Once the questions are recorded, the next step is for students to sort them based on how they will be answered. Do they need to look back at historical research, read more, conduct more observations, etc. The steps outlined in this module allow students to deepen their questioning, and then determine which questions you are going to tackle first.

There is no right or wrong order in this steps that students take to answer their own questions. Often it may depend on the urgency which a particular question holds or selecting a question that, when answered, you know will inspire further questioning that will lead in the direction you intend to lead your class.

When sorting questions under “research” students are often surprised at the limitations of an internet search. Step one is gain enough information about the phenomena to allow students to even begin an Internet search. After walking through a few more of our “Google-able” questions, teachers might then ask the class to ponder which of our questions could be investigated by making their own observations. Which questions did we have the capabilities to observe and collect data on? After pondering the questions they began with, you can then use those to develop a driving question.

Ex: “Which birds visit our playground?”

This type of question allows the class to then look back, now more critically, at which questions would assist in developing a protocol for an investigation. Which questions should be answered before beginning? Which questions may be answered as the investigation progresses? Questions that were still interesting, but may not lead to information that would assist in answering the driving question can be placed into a “personal research pile”. Often students may become curious about one segment of the research, a particular animal, event, phenomena, etc. This way students can have time and space within the project to follow their curiosities as far as they can. That ability to research is also valued as an important skills set and addition to the project.

With the driving question identified, and Google-able/research questions either answered or otherwise acknowledged (remember, it is ok to reflect on those questions that may remain unanswered) as the class begins to plan their investigation.