Engaging Youth in Science Inquiry

Engage youth to: Ask questions Plan & conduct investigations Use appropriate tools & techniques to gather data Think critically about relationships between evidence & explanations Communicate and share what they learn Inquiry-based Science Learning

Types of Inquiry Structured Youth are given a problem to solve, a method for solving the problem, and necessary materials, but not the expected outcomes. Guided Youth figure out a method for solving a given problem. Open Youth find a problem (or question) and figure out a method to investigate solutions.

Inquiry Steps Be observant Ask questions – how, which, or what Design your investigation Gather and analyze data Interpret your evidence Share your findings

Be observant Example: Butterflies start laying eggs in spring when the weather gets warm. I have observed Black Swallowtails laying eggs on several different plants (parsley, fennel and dill). Ask questions I wonder if the butterflies prefer one plant species? What materials will I need to find out if they prefer a plant species? How will I know when eggs are laid on a plant? Guided Inquiry Example

Materials I will need: 3 large pots or planters & potting soil (or garden space) Black Swallowtail host plants (dill, parsley & fennel) 3 Nectar plants of the same Gardening tools Watering can or hose My Setup: Plant dill and nectar plant in one pot Plant parsley and nectar plant in another pot Plant fennel and nectar plant in the third pot Guided Inquiry Example

Design your investigation I observed more caterpillars on the dill plant at school. Therefore, I think Black Swallowtails will lay more eggs on dill plant than on the other plants in my garden. I plan to examine the leaves of the three host plants (parsley, fennel and dill) in my garden every afternoon for two months to see when eggs are laid on the plants and if one plant has more eggs than the others. I will check that there are no eggs on the plants when I start, then I will count and record the number of new eggs I see each day. Guided Inquiry Example

Gather and analyze data I recorded the number of eggs laid each day for two months. I counted 12 eggs on the dill plant on day 9 of my study. On day 11, I counted 5 more eggs on the dill and 4 eggs on the fennel. On day 17, I counted 8 more eggs on the fennel and 14 eggs on the parsley. On day 27, I counted 7 eggs on the dill plant even though there were very few leaves left. Interpret your evidence Based upon what I observed, I think that Black Swallowtails prefer dill as a larval host plant. Guided Inquiry Example

Share your findings I plan to design a poster that explains my investigation and results and share it: with my science class at school at this years science fair at school with my 4-H group with my boy/girl scout troop with my family I could talk about my project with my class and then show them my photographs and drawings that demonstrate the Black Swallowtail life cycle. Guided Inquiry Example