Module 1
My inquiry based activity would be – Where would an alien like to live ?
I taught a similar lesson before and this module helped me to reflect on this and how I could broaden the lesson and make it more inquiry based.
I had a little alien sensory teddy filled with flour. I integrated this with literacy and art. We read a story about different types of aliens and predicted where they might like to live based on their different characteristics. In art the children drew and painted their own aliens and using a variety of construction materials they designed spaceships and alien homes for their aliens.
I think talk and discussion plays a pivotal role in inquiry based learning. With everyone adapting and changing their opinions as we learn from each and gain more information. I think this would lead to exploration of the habitats, climates and living conditions of different planets. There is plenty of scope for the development of SPHE themes about feeling different/the same, celebrating uniqueness and developing inclusivity. I work in a Junior school so I think this would be a good starting point for some simple project work. The children could be put into teams and given a planet each to research. They could make a pros and cons list for each planet before conducting a graph or chart about where the aliens might like to live – this would link nicely with the strand of Data in Maths.
Using themes and topics like this makes learning fun for everyone and sparks curiosity in the children. It is a great motivational tool.