If I could go back to my first years as teacher, I’d ask more cool (two-footed) questions and tell far fewer boring facts. How so?
Let’s say the lesson was CLOUD FORMATION. I’d skip listing of cloud formations in favor of asking a curiosity builder such as: if you were a cloud – how would you impact nature?
Or to launch a lesson on the CIVIL WAR, I’d leapfrog beyond memorized dates, battles and bad boys – to ask instead, If you had been in charge of leading the civil war, what would you have done differently?
Let’s say the lesson covered CHANGE FROM HUNTING TO FARMING. I’d challenge students with the prompt: If you were a hunter, what advantages would you find in farming?
A science class on DISTANCE, SPEED and NATURE might start with a questions such as, What dance would best illustrate distance, speed and nature’s interaction?
Over forty years as learner and leader, I watched deeper understanding amp up for most students when cool questions appealed to their interests and abilities. I call these two footed questions because students spring forward with delight in response!
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