Skip to main content

First Day Detectives: Document-Based Inquiry

When I first started teaching, I would be hoarse after the first few days of school. I spent so much time talking about myself, talking about the rules, talking about procedures. I hate to think of all those sleepy-eyed kids who were trying in earnest to listen. They had to be so bored out of their gourds.

But at the same time, there is so much information to relay during the first days of school. Every year I try to rethink how I can best deliver that information. One of the questions I try to ask myself is, "How can I talk less?"

Document-based inquiry (DBI) was an epiphany for me. The first time I encountered DBI was when I was searching for a new way to introduce a novel. Some novels have a lot of cultural and historical context for students to discover, and I found DBI an intriguing way to do that. 

What is DBI? My friend, Dennis, further introduced me to this strategy when he demonstrated it at the Boise State Writing Project. DBI starts with an essential question, then turns into an investigation where students use source material to discover the answer. The source material can be texts, video clips, photos, music, or any item that would help students discover the answer to the essential question. DBI is a great way to help students practice inference in a way that piques their curiosity. 

I suddenly realized that DBI would be a great way to get all that information across in the first days. I also thought it would get my students thinking critically on day one. So, sometime during the first week, I hand students envelopes with pictures of me, my family, the classroom, and former students. I also print out parts of the syllabus, procedures, and former student work samples. There's also a video of a classroom activity from the previous year. Our essential questions are, "Who is Mrs. Williams?" and "What is this class going to be like?" As they look at all these documents in small groups, they record "I wonder" and "I think" statements. 

At the end, they synthesize the information by answering questions that require them to use the evidence. For example, one of the questions is "Based on the evidence, what do you think this class will be like? Name the specific piece[s] of evidence that made you decide that." As a teacher, it is beyond fascinating to hear how they interpret the evidence. You get to hear their preconceived notions, but also their hopes about school. I also get to walk the room and get to know students through observing how they collaborate and think through the activity.

When they are done, they share out their inferences, predictions, and questions, and I spend some time clarifying their misinterpretations or praising their correct deductions. This year, I'm looking for more opportunities to use DBI. There are so many possibilities in all content areas.

Below, you will find the document students use to record their thinking for our DBI. You will also see some examples of the types of evidence the students get to see. Finally, check out the Idaho Coaching Network for more information on DBI and see some exemplary lessons from Idaho teachers. 


Sample pieces of evidence


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Perception vs. Reality

Before I became a "real" teacher, my perception of teaching English was that I would be blowing kids' minds with classic literature and handing out grammar worksheets.  Needless to say, that hasn't happened...yet. Instead, I was surprised to find that I loved teaching about writing. In particular, I found a love of teaching argumentation and persuasion. The seventh graders are gearing up for argumentative writing. We begin by talking about the concepts of perception and reality and how those two things influence our views of the world and all its issues. I have them make a poster that's based off a popular meme to help ground those concepts. It hardly seems like work, and it's one of the few assignments we do where I get to hear things like, "Can I finish this at home?" or "Can I do another one?" The task is to make a perception and reality poster. I start by showing them an example for a teacher, like this one . This makes for a great
Post a Comment
Read more

First Week is in the Books!

In 7th grade English, we did some activities to help get students get acquainted with their new lives in junior high. On the first day, I challenged the students to work together.  We did this activity.  It was great to observe how each student approached the challenge and helped their team out.  My favorite part of class this week was talking about the Genius Hour project. I didn't have a much time to talk about it as I would have liked, but we were able to brainstorm a few ideas to think about over the weekend. Genius Hour brainstorming "Seventh Grade" activity Most of the students I have in Public Speaking had not previously had a class with me, so I think we got to know each other a little better this week.  We did a speaking and listening activity where one student had to describe a picture while the other student listened and tried to draw it. Students also worked in small groups to brainstorm all the different ways we communicate and wrote definitions of
1 comment
Read more

Tongue Twisters, Growth Mindset, and Self-Portraits

To celebrate the beginning of fall (or to mourn the end of summer), here is a lovely picture of a sunflower in my yard. Here’s what we were up to this week! The seventh graders continued their exploration on narratives this week.   We practiced summary writing and writing about theme.   We also talked about how setting can influence the events of a story.   We used close reading strategies using the Collections Close Reader .   To put all this practice together, my students have some interesting short stories of their own in the works.   I can’t wait to read them! I’m really kicking myself for not getting any pictures of the demonstration speeches we did in second hour this week.   I’ll leave it up to you to picture my students teaching the class how to make cheesecake, wash a dog, tie a bowtie, ride motorcycles, and make lava lamps.   It was a diverse set of topics to say the least. Friday, we relaxed a bit from the stress of speech delivering and had a Tongue Twister Battle.
Post a Comment
Read more