The idea for this inquiry stems from the memory of a project I had done with gifted students near the beginning of my career, they had taken part in a global voting campaign for choosing the New 7 Wonders of the World. I remember the challenges, discoveries, discussions and fun we had and I wanted to bring a sense of that to this new group, grade 4/5 gifted group I am working with. This unit will allow students to explore landmarks around the world, make connections to what they know locally, and hopefully bring questions out in terms of our responsibility as travelers and adventure seekers.
My Challenge (gifted) students are very bright, curious and enjoy different approaches to learning. They are not, as a group, very loquacious and they gravitate towards working alone or at most, in partners. I am hoping to draw them out and have more active group discussions and peer collaboration. As my students are still young and inquiry will be new to them, I would like to use the Guided inquiry approach whereby I will provide the materials and problem to investigate but it will be up to the students to devise their own procedures (outcome) to the solution (Colburn, 2000).
My students are coming to me from different classes. I meet with them weekly and present learning to extend what they do in the classroom. Their classroom teachers will have had varying degrees of technology use and most will not have had much collaboration with me. However, during our period of remote learning, I have had the opportunity to connect with teachers to help build virtual learning spaces together and I believe more of my colleagues have gained an understanding of what I offer and may be more willing to join me in future undertakings. I hope to have more insight and discussions with them about the themes covered in the classrooms as the projects I undertake in Challenge generally seek to enhance classroom learning and provide cross-curricular tie-ins. In the case of this inquiry activity, I am the teacher for this group. The students I am working with will have had exposure to the library catalogue and databases and will be familiar enough to start off investigation online with some modeling by me.
Curriculum goals (cross-curricular) | Art: Big Idea Works of art influence and are influenced by the world around us. (Gr. 5) Exploring works of art exposes us to diverse values, knowledge, and perspectives. (Gr. 4)
Science: Big Idea All living things sense and respond to their environment. (Gr. 4) Content - biomes (Gr. 4) - First Peoples concept of interconnectedness in the environment (Gr. 5) - First Peoples knowledge of sustainable practices (Gr. 5)
Social Studies: Big Idea Interactions between First Peoples and Europeans lead to conflict and cooperation, which continues to shape Canada’s identity. (Gr. 4) Content - impact of colonization on First Peoples societies in BC and Canada - history of the local community and of the local First Peoples community
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Essential questions for consideration | TRAVEL · Why do people travel? · Where do people travel to? · What is the role of a traveller? · How does travel affect you? · How does travel affect the places you visit?
LANDMARKS · What are some of the most significant landmarks/places around the world? · How have structures from the past influenced the buildings of today? · What makes a landmark/place significant? · Should places of significance be preserved/conserved?
LOCAL · How can we protect structures of historical or cultural value in our community? · Are there natural ecosystems at risk in our community?
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Desired understandings | · We are active participants in the experiences we encounter. · We can have positive and negative effects on people and places. · Experiences exposes us to diverse values, knowledge, and perspectives. |
Key knowledge and skills students will acquire as a result of this unit | · To recognize our impact on others (people/places) and their impact on us. · To be able to use/find reliable resources online. · To be active contributors to class discussions. |
Learning Plan
Inquiry Stage | Learning Activities | Tools | Assessment |
Week 1 | |||
Connect and Wonder | - Teacher asks Travel EQs - Students share their experience with travel and places they have been (accessing prior knowledge) - Teacher provides information on various landmarks around the world (New7Wonders lists, virtual tour, show a Patrimonito video)
| - Group brainstorm - Prior knowledge (photos, passport, personal annecdotes) - Whole class discussion - New7Wonders lists, Virtual tour(s) and Patrimonito video (from resources curated for this inquiry project) - KWL chart (exit slip) on Padlet | - Active discussions - Use of visual organizers - Learning Log
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Week 2 | |||
Connect and Wonder/Investigate | - Teacher shares experience of personal visit to Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park, a recently designated UNESCO site (photos, maps; see below) and promotes discussion of preservation, conservation and travel choices (Geotourism, Indigenous Tourism) - Students voice opinions, observations as we go through photos and presentation - Teacher presents Landmarks and Local EQs for student discussion - Students investigate Destiny Collection resources | - Whole class discussion - Note-taking - Evaluation of resources - Laptops and iPads - Personal photos - Resources curated for this inquiry project - Q&A forum on Padlet (peer/teacher check-ins) | - Learning Log - Observation |
Week 3-4 | |||
Investigate/ Construct | - Students continue independent exploration - Students determine “How can I demonstrate what I have learned into a learning challenge?” (can apply to science and technology, art, natural/historical conservation) - Students to complete a simplified ILP -Teacher provides guidance to help formulate student ILP towards their goal | - Idea diagrams - Inquiry Learning Plan (simplified) - Resources curated for this inquiry project | - Anecdotal observations - Conferences - Checklists - Learning Logs |
Week 5 | |||
Express | - Students to showcase their projects to their peers | - Models - Action project - Essays - Pamphlet/travel guide - Campaigns | - Checklists - Peer assessment - Group developed rubric |
Week 6 | |||
Reflect | - Students given opportunity to reflect verbally or in journal format of their learning | - Journal using Reflections Stems (Murdoch, 2015) | - Learning Logs - Teacher and peer feedback |
Inquiry Plan summary
Timeline | ~ 6 weeks/weekly class blocks (80 mins each) |
Student Products | · Models · Action projects/campaigns · Pamphlet/travel guide · Visual presentation |
Resources | Teacher/TL will create a list of student appropriate print and digital resources (Destiny Collection) and will model how to access and use district databases. (Resource list from Assignment 2) |
Assessment | · Mini-conferences · Learning logs · Inquiry Learning Plan · Reflection journal · Checklists, student self-assessment · Group developed rubric |
Responsibilities | Teacher/Teacher-Librarian · Curation of resources for students · Digital literacy support · Active student support through inquiry · Formative and summative assessment of project Students · Learning effective research skills · Actively participate in class discussions · Participate in online Padlet forum |
It was serendipitous that I recently visited Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park in Alberta as it was just inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site last summer. I would love to present my experience visiting the site, show pictures and give the students a concrete example to reflect upon the EQs being asked.
· Where do people travel to?
· What is the role of a traveller?
· How does travel affect the places you visit?
· What makes a landmark/place significant?
· Should places of significance be preserved/conserved?
Figure 1 UNESCO plaque showing inscription as World Heritage Site (picture by author)
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Figures 2, 3 and 4 Vast landscape with waterway and vegetation (picture by author)
Figure 5 Description of rock art in Visitor Centre (picture by author)
Figures 6 and 7 Bison and shield (picture by author)
Figure 8 and 9 Battle Scene (picture by author)
Figure 10 Example of graffiti and vandalism (picture by author)
This showcase would also provide a good segue into the topics of:
Indigenous Tourism: Tourism activity in which Indigenous people are directly involved either through control and/or by having their culture serve as the essence of the attraction. (UNBC, 2020)
Geotourism: Sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place - its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents. (National Geographic Society, 2018)
From there, students can draw on what they discover while exploring the curated resources, their own travel experiences and what they know of our local community and produce an artifact to demonstrate their understanding of our impact on others (people/places) and their impact on us.
As described in Assignment 2, I have taken many of the diverse interests and needs of my students into consideration with a variety of literacies targeted in curated resources I am offering in my Destiny Collection: Investigating Historical Landmarks; there are print and flip books, videos, virtual tours, and interactive websites. In addition, the format with which students choose to showcase their learning is very open. For example, a hands-on learner is welcome to build a model to show the influence of past architectural styles on the structures of today; a visual learner is welcome to compile a curation of images to show the environmental impact of humans on the sites we visit; presentations are welcomed to be presented orally perhaps as a campaign to bring awareness of a historical/cultural site in our community; or, there could be a mixed media presentation showing the importance of new tourism sectors such as geotourism and Indigenous tourism.
Transliteracy skills (Mod6) will be introduced to students as they will be encouraged to post thoughts and questions after each week on a collaborative Padlet. This forum is easy to use and accessible for all formats of media. Students can share resources they find (websites, videos, images) as well as add their thoughts on topics that come up during our investigation. My Challenge students fared quite well during remote learning and many had been keen to share with each other to some degree in MS Teams where we were meeting; Padlet will be provide an easier format for this endeavor. Access to devices will be provided during school time - students should be able to complete their work within the allocated time but if they choose to work from home and do not have devices, I will troubleshoot to make sure they do.
Murdoch’s chapter on assessment in The Power of Inquiry (2015) has given me much food for thought when it comes to assessment. The group of students I work with will continually need to advocate for their needs during their education and I want to ensure they have a say in this activity as well. I think it will be crucial to invite them to take part in the development of the criteria by which they will be assessed. I propose during the Investigate/Construct stage, after most of the essential parts of the project has been presented and when students are working to solidify their vision of an end-goal, to group together and develop a checklist of what they should all have in place to show successful understanding. The Inquiry Learning Plan (ILP) presented by Donhauser, et al, 2014) is intrinsic for my students to be able to plan and follow their learning goals. I recognize that many of my students will be easily distracted or side-tracked if there is no plan in place so some time will be taken in the Week 3 to go over and construct ILPs together.
My goal with this inquiry activity is to do my assessment as the students are building their projects. To provide a number of checkpoints or mini-conferences to keep students on track and to ensure they are understanding content and making progress (Fontichiaro, 2015). There are several tasks suggested by Murdoch (2015) that stood out to me that I would like to include as a part of our weekly Padlet posts or in-class checks, they include: 1st/2nd/3rd thinking, CSI, Ticket of Leave, Rocket Writes, Six-word stories, ABC summary. The highlighted tasks, I feel, will especially appeal to this group’s creative personalities. While there will be a summative assessment at the end, the larger part of my assessing will be formative as I believe that will provide my students with the help where and when they need it most.
I am confident that this will be a good learning experience for both myself and my students and with their feedback, I look forward to improving and guiding more inquiry throughout the year.
Works cited
Colburn, A. (2000). An inquiry primer. Science Scope, 23(6), 42-44.
Donhauser, M., Hersey, H., Stutzman, C. & Zane, M. (2014). From lesson plan to learning plan: An introduction to the inquiry learning plan. School Library Monthly, 31(1), 11-13.
Ekdahl, M., Farquharson M., Robinson, J., & Turner, L. (2010). The points of inquiry: a framework for information literacy and the 21st century learner. Vancouver, BC: British Columbia Teacher-Librarians’ Association.
Fontichiaro, K. (2015). What’s inquiry? Well, I know it when I see it. School Library Monthly, 31(4): 49-51.
Murdoch, K. (2015). Chapter 8: staying accountable: what does assessment look like in the inquiry classroom? The Power of Inquiry (pp.133-159).
National Geographic Society. (2018). Crown of the Continent: Geotourism map & guide, Alberta, British Columbia, Montana [map]. 1:500,000. Washington, DC: National Geographic.
National Geographic Society. Geotourism. Retrieved 8 August 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/maps/geotourism/
Province of British Columbia. (2020). Arts Education 4 | Building Student Success - BC's New Curriculum. Retrieved 2 August 2020, from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/arts-education/4
Province of British Columbia. (2020). Arts Education 5 | Building Student Success - BC's New Curriculum. Retrieved 2 August 2020, from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/arts-education/5
Province of British Columbia. (2020). Science 4 | Building Student Success - BC's New Curriculum. Retrieved 2 August 2020, from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/science/4
Province of British Columbia. (2020). Science 5 | Building Student Success - BC's New Curriculum. Retrieved 2 August 2020, from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/science/5
Province of British Columbia. (2020). Social Studies 4 | Building Student Success - BC's New Curriculum. Retrieved 2 August 2020, from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/social-studies/4
University of Northern British Columbia. (2020). “What is Indigenous Tourism?”. Retrieved from: https://www.unbc.ca/outdoor-recreation-tourism-management/indigenous-tourism-about
Writing-on-Stone PP - Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park | Alberta Parks. Retrieved 10 August 2020, from https://www.albertaparks.ca/parks/south/writing-on-stone-pp/
Tools
Padlet: A digital bulletin board app where students can collaborate, reflect, share resources and check-in with each other. Link to one created for this project for student sharing and weekly prompts.
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