MBS Inquiry Tree

As teachers, and learners we believe we need to create conditions to promote and enhance learning for everyone in our school community. We need to use a toolbox of teaching and learning strategies that will include a variety of teaching & learning methods and appeal to all learning styles.

 At MBS we use the Pohutukawa tree (which is displayed in every classroom) as an image to guide students through the inquiry process. Each part of the tree represents a stage of the inquiry.

The Roots - Immersion
Immerse yourself into the subject by:
Talking/brainstorming
Reading books/encyclopaedias
Watching videos
Going on a trip
Reading or looking on the Internet

The Trunk - Deciding
What do I know already? 
What do I need to find out?
Can I plan a pathfinder to guide my research?
What is the big question?

The Branches 
Finding
Where will I find the sort of information I need?
Can I find the resources I need?
Using
Does my information tell me what I need to know?
Have I got the skills to extract the information?
Can I analyse and interpret what I see/hear/read?
Recording
Use your target questions and keywords to help focus your notes.
Record only what you need to know.

The Flowers
Presenting
How am I going to pull all this information together and present it so that the main
points come across clearly?
What do you want to say?
Who is your audience?
How are you going to say it?
Evaluating 
How did I go?
Am I satisfied with the result?
Am I happy with the way I got there?
Do I need better skills to make it easier next time?