PD Notes for Teachers

Several professional development resources are available on this site to help you—Implementation workshops, Talk Science Pathway, the scientist cases and the Child and Scientist essays.

You’ll find it helpful to participate in an implementation workshop before teaching the Inquiry Curriculum for the first time. If a district-organized workshop is not available, use the implementation workshop guide to help you become familiar with the core concepts, to peruse the curriculum resources, and to review the collection of the investigations for your grade. The more familiar you are with how learning progresses across the grade 3-5 units, the more productive the science experiences will be for you and your students.

In parallel with teaching the Inquiry Curriculum, follow the Talk Science Pathway. Begin the PD Pathway (Steps 1-3) at the beginning of a school year or 3 to 6 weeks prior to teaching the curriculum and then continue (Steps 4-8) as you teach the unit. The Pathway will help you to lead more productive science discussions.

Studying the scientist cases, and the Child and Scientist Essays found at the beginning of each section of the curriculum to deepen your understanding of the science and how children think about it. These resources will help you to anticipate what your students may say and help you to make the learning experience more productive for them.

We wish you a successful learning experience. Feel free to contact us if you have questions or need help: inquiryproject@terc.edu