Teachers can use the Open-ended enquiry-technique throughout different subjects in the following ways:
- Introduce a broad topic: Choose a topic that matches their interests, such as nature, technology or everyday life. For example, “How does a rainbow work?”, “Why do some objects float?” or “What can you do with different blocks of wood?
- Encourage questioning: Let the children think of questions about the topic. Use prompts such as
- ‘What do you want to know about this?
- ‘What do you think would happen if…?
- What can you do with it?
- Make a choice: Help the children to choose a research question that is feasible and concrete, for example:
- ‘How can we make a rainbow?
- Which materials sink in water, and which don’t?
- How can we build something?
- Planning the research
- Let the children work out for themselves how to answer their question:
- For younger children: Give simple choices (experiment, observe, draw).
- For older children: Encourage their own experiments or data collection.
- Experiment and discover: Let the children carry out their plans. Examples:
- Make a rainbow with a glass of water and a mirror.
- Test different objects in water to see what floats.
- Build a tower with different types of blocks and on different surfaces.
Reflect and share: Let the children share their findings:
- Draw pictures, make diagrams or give oral presentations.
- Discuss what they have learned and how they know, using pictures or designs they have made.