USC

1
USCs i-Coach Middle School Summer Institute

• Day 1 What is Inquiry?

2
Welcome

• Introductions of Staff
• Notebooks (will go over more at lunch)
• Index
• Room assignments
• Schedule
• Morning Session in Section 1

3
Room Assignments

• Model Teaching/Content at 930 Report to
  Content rooms
• 6th Simple Machines Room 201
• 7th Genetics Room 203
• 8th Geology Room 205
• 6th Data Analysis Room 208
• 7th Geometry Room 207
• 8th Algebra Room 209
• Science teachers will be split into two groups to
  watch the model teaching from 930-1055 then go
  to content
• Math teachersgo to content first and then
  observe model teaching from 11-1230

4
What is Inquiry Teaching?

• Brainstorm with your table group, the question
  What is inquiry teaching? (Directions also in
  Section 1)
• On your large paper, record your groups ideas.
  What are the essential elements? In deciding on
  your essential elements, think about what the
  teacher and students are doing during an inquiry
  lesson.
• You will share your paper with other groups in
  about 5 minutes.
• When prompted, meet with one other table group
  and share your postersadd any new findings to
  your own poster

5
MM laboratory

• Inquiry Lesson
• Prediction What will happen when an MM is
  placed in water?
• Observe Complete the experiment and write down
  observations.
• Explain Describe what happened and why.
• With your table partners think about other
  questions you might have that you could test
  given some the following materials.
• Materials MMs, plastic bowl with flat bottom,
  salt, hot plates, beakers, ice, sugar, water,
  oil, food coloring, ruler, markers

6
Design Perform Experiment

• Each table group should design and perform one
  experiment with a control to answer their
  question. As with the first experiment, make a
  prediction about what you expect will happen
  before you perform your experiment.
• Do the experiment and try to explain your
  results. Share your explanation and experiment
  with your table group.

7
Essential Features

• Using the Essential Features of Classroom Inquiry
  handout (in notebook-Section 1 pg 2), evaluate
  the MM laboratory. Determine where on the
  continuum the activity lies for each of the 5
  essential features.
• Compare your initial poster to the 5 Essential
  Features list and the math principals list (pg
  3). Discuss with your table partners the
  differences and similarities between the two.