𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐲 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐈 𝐇𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐈 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞)
Over the years, my approach to inquiry has evolved, mainly by reflection, collaboration, and many trial-and-error cycles. Some of the hardest lessons didn’t come from what I didn’t know… but from what I didn’t realize I was missing.
🧭 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 #𝟏: 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧
No guiding questions, just engaging activities. Without that structure, I couldn’t scaffold thinking or even tell if students were on the path I hoped they’d be on. I was unsure, and they were unsure.
🧠 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 #𝟐: 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐮𝐱𝐮𝐫𝐲
We always ran out of time, and when we didn’t, reflection was rushed. I didn’t yet realize how much sense-making happens through reflection. Without regular opportunties to pause and synthesize, learning stayed surface-level longer than it needed to.
👀 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 #𝟑: 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐝𝐨, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐈 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧:
Teachers assess prior knowledge… but don’t really look at it. Or they do, but move forward anyway. It becomes a routine step, not a tool to shape what’s next. Slowing down to analyze what students know, understand and can do, and adjusting accordingly, can make all the difference.
Looking to go deeper with this in your school? I offer coaching and workshops for teams and curriculum leaders. [Learn more here.]
The Organized Chaos In The PYP Classroom 
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