Hutchinson: Who are we? Where are we starting?

Welcome to the beginning of our Inquiry Notebooking project.  Since teachers from Van Arsdale and Hutchinson will be working on this project and sharing ideas throughout the year, it makes sense that you should know each other and each other's work.

Hutchinson 5th grade Team
Sue Whitney (Left: Science)
Jann Emrick (Right: Social Studies)

The Hutchinson 5th grade team departmentalizes for Science and Social Studies. Jann has explored notebooks in science and is wondering how notebooking will play out in Social Studies using inquiry. Sue is looking forward to incorporating essential questions as a foundation in planning. At this time, this is their schedule:

9:05 - 9:55        Soft Start/Word Work
9:10 - 10:00      Reading
10:00 - 10:45    Art, Music, P.E.
10:45 - 11:05    Reading cont.
11:05 - 12:05    Writing
12:05 - 12:50    Recess/Lunch
12:50 - 2:00      Math
2:00 - 2:45        Science/Social Studies
2:45 - 3:30        Science/Social Studies
3:30 - 3:35        Planners and Dismissal

Focus for Inquiry Cycle One

At the beginning of the year, Sue and Jann are taking a big picture approach to this learning. They are going to look at the relationship between 1) essential questions, 2) resources/lessons and 3) how that will play out within the notebook.

Chalk Talk: "Why use notebooks?"

As we begin this year's project (Inquiry Notebooking in Science and Social Studies), we're starting to explore the tool that will be used to capture thinking and work of students.  The tool (the notebook) can be used in a variety of ways to support student learning.  Consider taking a look at the charts created during Van Arsdale's chalk talk. It reveals their thinking about the question, "Why use notebooks?"  Feel free to add additional thoughts, now and in the future, in the comment space below this blog post.  Let's see how our understanding and ideas grow throughout the year as we examine the notebook as a tool for learning.