Generating Inquiry Questions


ELAR-Grade-7 Inquiry & Research Generating Inquiry Questions
Students learn strategies to generate useful questions and work in groups to generate questions in support of a research project. Then, they learn to clarify their questions to accurately tailor the results they seek. They differentiate between informal inquiries, designed to answer questions, and formal inquiries, designed for research and writing projects.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the complete lesson, sign up for an exploros account.

1:1 Devices
Teacher Pack

The Pack contains associated resources for the learning experience, typically in the form of articles and videos. There is a teacher Pack (with only teacher information) and a student Pack (which contains only student information). As a teacher, you can toggle between both to see everything.

Here are the teacher pack items for Generating Inquiry Questions:

Preview - Scene 1
Exploros Learnign Experience Scene Navigation


Engage


Overview

In this experience, students learn strategies to generate useful questions and work in groups to generate questions in support of a research project. Then, they learn to clarify their questions to accurately tailor the results they seek. They differentiate between informal inquiries, designed to answer questions, and formal inquiries, designed for research and writing projects.

Students will collaborate in small groups in Scenes 2 and 3.

Note that in this experience, “Generating Inquiry Questions,” students write questions that could serve for formal and informal inquiries based on passages containing information about Helen Keller. In the complementary experience, “Finding Reliable Information,” students conduct research to answer questions about that same subject. Each experience can stand alone, but they are designed to work together.

Objectives

  • Distinguish between formal and informal inquiry.
  • Ask and clarify questions for inquiry.

Duration

One class period.


Have you ever sat at the dinner table and asked, “Can you please pass the salt?” Only to have the person answer, “Yes, I can,” but not move to reach for the saltshaker? You were asking, “Will you please pass the salt?” but the person was answering the question, “Are you capable of passing the salt?” When conducting inquiry, it is important to ask questions that are as specific as possible. In this experience, you will learn how to generate inquiry questions that will help you find relevant information.

Objectives

  • Distinguish between formal and informal inquiry.
  • Ask and clarify questions for inquiry.


You may project the video for the entire class, or have students divide into groups to watch it together. A transcript of the video clip is available in the Student Pack.


Watch this short video clip of Helen Keller with her teacher, Anne Sullivan, in 1930. As you watch, think about what questions it raises for you.



What question would you like to ask about Helen Keller?

Post your answer

Briefly discuss student questions. Point out simple factual questions that can be answered with a quick Internet search versus deeper questions that would require significant research in order to answer them.


When you wrote your question, did you think about the type of answer the question would generate? In this experience, you will examine how to write questions to get the answers you are looking for.


Divide students into small groups for the next two scenes. When everyone is ready to continue, unlock the next scene.

End of Preview
The Complete List of Learning Experiences in Inquiry & Research Unit.
Would you like to preview the rest of this learning experience, and get access to the entire functioning ELAR Grade 7 course for your classroom? Sign up using your school email address below.
Back to top