Since a big emphasis in the class is science inquiry I better give some tips that I have found about how to do it right. Getting students to find out science for themselves can be extremely enriching for a classroom, but with those benefits there comes some risk with it. In order to maximize student learning using inquiry it is important to do some of these things.
Meet students half way
Students aren't going to get everything, you have to scaffold students sometimes.
Invest time in the activity design and questions
This can be said when doing any lesson I suppose,you should always think about the unique aspects of your class and problems that may arise.
Try your own experiment
Just because something looks easy doesn't mean it will be. Try it out and work out any kinks or misconceptions you have.
Be safe and think cheap
If you can use a similar material or idea save yourself some money, but don't do anything that would endanger students. A little obvious but sometimes the most mundane things can be a safety issue.
Find the positives in failure
Every now and then something might go wrong and a lesson or group will fail, always look at the positives and things that students can learn from the experience.
Looking at these tips maybe make inquiry seem a little scary, but you can find a lot of areas to be aware of any lesson. I have seen the great gains that inquiry can bring and it obvious that the strengths outweigh the negatives.
I totaly agree with you! Finding the positives in failure is a huge part of science. When we get something wrong we figure out what we need to do better for next time.
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