The Curious Classroom: 10 Structures for Teaching with Student-Directed Inquiry

This is one of the most well-written books on the inquiry-based learning approach that I have read. First and foremost, this book INSPIRES. It starts out giving a brief introduction to inquiry-based learning and some of the most current research findings that support the benefits of this learning approach. Most teachers want to have a classroom where students are engaged, curious, and inspired self-motivated learners. This book gives 10 different structures to help build student-directed inquiry into your classroom. What makes this book a step above other books I have read on the topic is that the author understands the difficulty of completely changing your classroom in one big swoop. This book gives idea that start small (5-10 minutes a day) to begin your journey into inquiry-based learning and builds up to "bigger" ways to implement it in the classroom. The book gives real-world examples of how teachers are using these strategies in their own classrooms. I love that the examples come from many different classrooms so you can see many different ways the same big ideas are implemented. I also loved the photographs and web extras that gave visuals of some of the ideas. Another aspect of the book I loved is that the ideas complement other classroom management ideas (such as Responsive Classroom) rather than working in opposition to other plans. I have been a teacher for over 16 years and have used an inquiry-based approach to learning for many years and I still learned many great ideas for my classroom from this book. Highly recommend!

After 18 years of teaching I needed this! Using the soft start with my 2nd graders and loving it!

All of Harvey Daniels' books are fantastic and this one does not disappoint. I can't wait to try out soft starts in my classroom this year. I also love the chapters on news feeds, inviting experts into the classroom, and the chapter on investigating ourselves. As with all of Daniels' books, the layout is beautiful. The book is colorful, well-organized, easy to navigate, and the information is rich and riveting. If you want to find ways to inspire your teaching and inspire your students, this book will definitely give you thoughtful ways to do both.

A great mix of stories and practice to help you get started bringing child centered inquiry into your classroom. Smokey Daniels brings great, useable, ideas to life along with the research behind the ideas. We all want our classrooms to be places where kids grow and love to learn. The Curious Classroom can help you make that a reality.

This book is amazing! I love how it is set up with easy to more complex implementation of inquiry in your classroom. I was able to quickly implement pieces from the book into my classroom in the last month of school and quickly saw a shift in student buy-in.

Amazing Book.

I love the practical, yet inspiring ideas and realistic advice about potential bumps in the road. It's like a hand on your shoulder reminding you to trust the process, the kiddos and yourself.

Some good ideas

love this book - great for those wanting to introduce inquiry based learning