Inquiring Minds Need To Know

By MaryAnn DeMaria, Grade 7 Science Teacher
Millbury Memorial  Junior-Senior High School in Millbury, MA 
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While doing the science fair project, you can work with someone and you have to work together to reach a common goal. If you make a mistake, you go back and rework it and try again. If you work with a partner, you learn to work in unison with others and you just might become a little bit closer with them.... It's a great experience and u get to learn everything about your topic."      -- Grade 7 Student

This I Believe: Inquiry

My inspired learning experience began as a result of wanting to give my students “voice and choice” by giving them the opportunity to ask their own questions that required using the scientific inquiry or engineering design process to obtain an answer. ​I believe in teaching content through inquiry because while engaged in inquiry, students are active participants in their own learning rather than passive recipients of information.  In science, inquiry means asking questions, doing research to develop a hypothesis, designing an experiment to test the hypothesis, doing more research if the hypothesis or procedure need revision, collecting data, organizing and analyzing data and drawing conclusions.  Inquiry may also mean following the engineering design process to solve a problem.  My students have many experiences in the classroom where they  use the inquiry/engineering design process to get answers to those questions.  

​The reason why I love the science project is that after having many inquiry-driven experiences with me in the classroom, students are now ready to investigate  their own questions.  They can choose any topic they want and I encourage them to follow their passions.  I tell my students that choosing a topic is the most important step of the entire project because people always do their best work and have the most fun when they are working on a project that is close to their own heart.

Tapping into Interests

I have my students follow three steps to help them discover topics that interest them.  They start by looking for three articles that interest them on the Science News for Students website.  They take notes on these articles and cite the sources in their project notebook.  I feel these articles get the students thinking about their own interests and  after reading these articles, students get an idea of the types of questions scientists ask and the process used to get an answer to these questions.  

​Next, my students  brainstorm a list of ten topics that interest them.  These topics can range from hobbies to current events to sports.  Narrowing down these topics and developing questions within these topics is the next step.  Students already have a frame of reference from the Science News articles, so they know what types of questions they should be asking, but they still need a lot of help and I encourage them to meet with me one-on-one to help them develop questions.  

Finally, I have all of my students browse the Science Buddies website.  This website has hundreds of projects along with specific background research and procedures for each project.  If students are really struggling coming up with their own ideas, this website is a great last resort.

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Trusting the Process

After students develop a question they continue with the research process to collect information on their independent and dependent variables.  During this step I sit down with every student to develop a keyword list in their project notebooks.  Students need to be explicitly taught how to conduct research for this type of project and when I sit down with students, I ask the questions that force students to come up with their own list of keywords.  This may sound overwhelming to some teachers new to the process, but after a year or two it becomes much easier.  This is the first time many of my students are developing their own keyword list and  finding their own sources of information, so they need one-on-one guidance.   

​Students then develop a hypothesis based on the research, and then design an experiment to test the hypothesis.  This is a pivotal point in the project because I will either approve or reject the experimental design.  If approved, students are able to go on and collect data but most of the time, experimental designs are rejected because of safety issues or lack of specific details.  Students then need to meet with me where again I ask questions and students realize why their design was rejected and how to revise the design to collect reliable data.  Students are given two weeks to collect data but during this time, many students come to see me because they have hit roadblocks or feel like the data does not make sense. It is at this point when students really begin to take over the project and start to self-assess on their own.  They no longer need me to tell them they have errors or flaws, they begin to identify these errors and flaws themselves.  

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Going Public

​After data collection, students need to decide how to organize and analyze the data in tables and graphs.  This is another opportunity for one-on-one meetings.   Many students end up with hundreds of measurements but they don’t know what to do with all of the numbers.  I encourage students to go back and think about the question they are asking: which data and what type of graph would best answer the question?   

​Finally, students communicate all of their research and results through a written report, display board, and oral presentation.  Every student is also given the authentic experience of presenting their work at the school science fair and some students go on to the regional and state science fairs.  Students that participate in the regional and state fairs get the additional benefit of an authentic scientific “poster session” where they discuss their project with five different highly qualified  judges.  These experiences are less about the competition and more about getting feedback from experts in their field.  Students have told me that speaking with the judges, and getting positive feedback as well as suggestions for improvement, was their favorite part of the entire experience.

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​My role in this process is  to guide and help them throughout their entire journey. I love having one on one conversations with my students where I can see them thinking and trying to help them think through  solutions to their problems.  I may nudge them in a direction, but I never give them the answers.  I take great satisfaction when I see the look of pride in their faces when they solve the difficult problems."-  MaryAnn DeMaria

The Greater Purpose

 Because of our earlier inquiry projects in the classroom, my students have the research skills and science inquiry skills needed to be successful with this type of project.  Additionally, the science project provides students with the opportunity to continue to develop their critical thinking and problem solving skills as they move through the inquiry/engineering design process.  What  I most love about this project, however, is that students must constantly be evaluating and assessing their own work, and making revisions if necessary.  Of all the skills being developed in this project, I feel the ability of students to reflect on their own work and self-assess is the most important skill because if they are able to do this, they become in charge of their own learning.  They no longer need to rely on an outside person to determine whether their work is up to the standards, they begin to make this determination themselves.  The science project forces students into the role of self-assessor because they “own” the entire project.  They choose the topic, they choose the sources, they design the procedure, they choose how to organize and analyze data, etc.  Each of these decisions requires the use of critical thinking skills but after each decision is made and the work is done, problems always arise.  It is at this point when students must reflect on their earlier decisions and make some changes.

​Revisions and iterations  do not come naturally to seventh graders.  In fact, they often hate feeling like they are “going backwards.”  However, it’s truly rewarding  when students come to the realization that sometimes a step backwards is necessary in order to go forward. Usually, every project runs into a problem somewhere in the process.  A specific example is when a student was investigating the effect of the type of nut on the amount of heat energy released and transferred to water.  The student collected hundreds of measurements but most of the measurements were exactly the same.  All of the nuts caused the water to only increase 1º C.  Initially, this student felt like they were done, but after some discussion focusing on the experimental design, they realized they had a flaw in their procedure.  The nuts were not allowed to burn to completion, instead the student stopped measuring the temperature of the water after a certain time and as a result, the water only increased 1º C for every trial.  Convincing this student to go back and collect more measurements was not difficult because we sat down together to solve this problem.  I ask students questions to get them to figure out where the errors were made, and then I ask more questions to help them figure out a solution.  These one-on-one discussions are essential for students to feel positive about “going backward” because after these discussions, students usually have figured out the problem and have a plan for a solution.  Students sometimes need to be explicitly taught how to reflect and self-assess, and these one-on-one discussions give me the opportunity to teach each student individually.

Learning that Lasts a Lifetime

The learning that will stay with my students long after they leave the class is that science is not just a collection of facts to memorize, rather science is an active and systematic process that needs people who are creative and willing to accept challenges in order to gain new knowledge.

I have many favorite and memorable projects from my 17 years of experience, but one of my favorites was a project where a student wanted to observe the effect of number of coils on the sound produced by a crystal radio.  This student was inspired to pursue this project because his grandfather was a WWII veteran.  After reading about WWII, this student learned how soldiers in foxholes during WWII built their own crystal radios to maintain communication with the outside world.  This student had to overcome many obstacles including obtaining the materials to build three different radios, finding a way to measure the amount of sound produced and finding a location for the antenna.  While this student did not go on to participate in the Worcester Regional Science & Engineering Fair at WPI, this student followed his passion and used this project to connect more closely with his grandfather.  

Another one of my favorite projects was when a student wanted to do a project where she tried to convert sound energy into electrical energy.  This student was inspired by the Pixar movie, Monsters, Inc. and she was also a violin player, so she loved music.  She was also a member of “Take it Apart Club” and wanted to use some of these components in her project.  This student did go on to participate in the Worcester Regional Science & Engineering Fair at WPI and the Massachusetts State Science & Engineering Fair at Worcester Technical High School.

Inspired Learning: Its Impact on Me

Over the years, I have found myself heavily invested in certain projects.  It took me a while to figure out what attracted me to these projects, but I finally put my finger on what they all had in common.  Every year, there are a few students who blindside me with their passion for this project and their ability to think creatively.  The students who are most successful with this type of project are not always the students you expect to be most successful.  Sometimes it is that student who does not really do well in the traditional classroom, but when given the opportunity to pursue their own interests, they put in maximum effort and simply come alive.  I have had students tell me that their experience with this project changed their view of science and their view of themselves as scientists.  I can think of no better justification for this project. 

Bumps Along the Way

Some of the challenges that I encountered over the years of doing this project include obtaining the resources for students who have limited budgets, finding the time to work one on one with all of my students, and managing the amount of physical materials (display boards...) in the classroom.  During my third or fourth year of doing this project, I created “science projects in a box” for those students who needed more financial or creative support with this project.  Some students really struggle with choosing their own topics because they may not really be passionate about science.  To these students, they really don’t have any preference as to what project they do, they just want to “get it done.”  I have learned that this situation can be okay, as long as the students still have to think critically and solve problems.  I put together plastic containers with some traditional science projects to help these students, as well as the students who could use financial support.  Some of my boxes include investigating the effect of temperature on rate of Alka-Seltzer reaction,  the effect of drop height on crater diameter, and the effect of color on heat absorption.  All of these projects require minimal supplies and can be reused year after year, if needed.  At my current school, we start our day with common directed study.  I use this time to meet one-on-one with students but honestly, most of the one-on-one meetings take place after school.  I can do this now because I am an older teacher without many responsibilities at home. I also make time in class to meet with students.  I plan specific lessons where students are required to work independently to give me the time to meet with individual students.  After 17 years of managing this project, I have yet to find a solution to the space issue.  Display boards take up space and there is no way around this issue.  I do have a prep room where I can store display boards, but I like to keep this room available for student use rather than just storage.  During science project time, my classroom is less organized than I would like it to be, but that is just something I have learned to live with because it is worth it in the end.

Resources

I created a research/inquiry guide for seventh grade students 17 years ago and have revised it many times over the years.  I have broken down the project into 10 homework assignments and we try to adhere to a strict timeline.  I purchase some of the display boards from Michaels, but many students purchase their own boards ($5.49 each).  Students also keep a record of their project in a bound project notebook.  We have used composition books (2/$1.00 at Walmart) for the project notebooks but my students have also used blue book type notebooks.  I have many photos of students with their display boards to use as examples of boards.

MaryAnn's Research Guide for Students