Connections to the New BC Curriculum and Core Competencies
How does Inquiry Buddies link to this competency?
During Inquiry Buddies, students are continuously using critical and creative thinking skills throughout the process. We have found that sometimes we need to model and teach these skills directly (ie. developing good questions or how to access information), and sometimes we need to give students freedom to discover things for themselves and be creative. We found it is key to give students time. It takes time to be innovative, reflect, and problem solve.
Summary of skills within this competency:
Connect and engage with others [to share and develop ideas], acquire, interpret, and present information, collaborate to plan, carry out, and review constructions and activities, explain/recount and reflect on experiences and accomplishments How does Inquiry Buddies link to this competency? During Inquiry Buddies students are constantly exchanging information and dialoguing with their inquiry partners around their topic/project. Through this process, students are developing and practising the art of communicating. We have found that good communication also needs scaffolding, and we have used the model of “Accountable Talk” to teach students these skills. We have found that because of the “buddy” element, students are kept accountable to their learning topic and group. At the end of the inquiry project, students show and share their learning with the rest of the school community in an inquiry fair. |
Skills:
Developing positive personal and cultural identity: Influence of relationship and cultural context, personal values and choices, personal strengths and abilities Social Awareness: Self-awareness, self-regulation, developing relationships, developing well-being, solving problems in peaceful ways, social awareness, contributing to the classroom and school community, exercising democratic rights and responsibilities How does Inquiry Buddies link to this competency? During our first year of Inquiry Buddies, the development of deep, meaningful relationships was very evident. Parents also commented that students gained a sense of confidence in themselves as learners through their chosen passion/topic. In addition, we have seen students learn how to problem solve in a group through voting. One girl last year commented that she learned to “go with the flow” and compromise. That was a huge discovery for her. We try hard to facilitate a link between each group and the school or greater community. Some examples are linking a “Pet Abuse” group to LAPS, and a magician presenting at our school spent time with our “magic group” discussing having a greater cause within the show like his on informing people about “Bullying.” We bring in “community experts” for groups when we can. 
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