09/16/2026
Want a More Inquiry-Based Classroom?
Try these 4 simple shifts:
1. Start with a phenomenon, not the answer.
Give students something interesting to observe before explaining the science.
2. Ask, “What do you notice?” and “What do you wonder?”
Let student thinking drive the conversation.
3. Answer questions with questions.
Instead of immediately giving the answer, ask, “What evidence could help us figure that out?”
4. Give students time to make sense of it.
Inquiry can feel messy. That’s often where the learning is happening.
Making your classroom more inquiry-based does not mean throwing out your lessons and starting over.
Sometimes, it just means changing who does the thinking first.
Instead of beginning with vocabulary, definitions, or an explanation, begin with something students can observe.
Show them an image. Demonstrate something unexpected. Present a real-world problem. Let them notice patterns, ask questions, make predictions, and talk through their ideas before you step in with the science content.
One of the easiest shifts you can make is replacing:
“Here’s what you need to know…”
with
“What do you think is happening here?”
That small change can completely change the tone of a lesson.
Inquiry is not about the teacher having less of a role. It is about creating opportunities for students to do more of the noticing, questioning, reasoning, and sensemaking.
What is one way you get students asking more questions in your classroom?
