Sustaining the Process of Inquiry

The inquiry process is very important to the growth of learning in our classroom. Interestingly, I have been thinking about inquiry in the context of one lesson, but, inquiry is best explored when given a prolonged period of time. We know inquiry is about student centered learning but sometimes the questions students ask are in depth an require investigation that takes place over time. Teachers need to let this happen. Teachers need to stop the mentality of "wrapping up" a lesson in a certain amount of time. As Janice Koch has mentioned in our book teachers feel as if students will loose interest if a lesson is prolonged. However, if the students are searching for the answers to their own questions, they will maintain interest throughout the process. I agree with Janice Koch that much of science needs to be observed and explored over time, for example, the growth of a seed or animal.