Engaging with inquiry in the social studies classroom can feel like stepping onto a tightrope—balancing time, standards, and student needs all at once. But here’s the thing: you don’t have to dive headfirst into a full-scale investigation to get students curious and thinking critically. Small, manageable inquiry moments can transform your lessons, building student confidence and sparking their love for exploring big questions.
Start with Smaller Inquiries
One effective way to introduce inquiry is by using smaller inquiries (Focused or Building Block), where students investigate a single compelling question or explore a specific source. For example, a lesson could begin with a photograph or political cartoon, asking students to infer the creator’s perspective and connect it to a historical event. This small-scale inquiry aligns with the IDM’s emphasis on focusing questions and gathering evidence, helping students build the foundational skills needed to engage with more extensive investigations.
Embed Inquiry into Everyday
Lessons Inquiry doesn’t have to be an entirely separate endeavor. Teachers can embed inquiry-based practices into routine lessons. For instance, when looking at the causes of the American Revolution, instead of asking students to work with a series of causes at once, start by providing them with a chance to evaluate the impact of one possible cause as you move through the unit. Designing an inquiry around a smaller topic or single source can help build students’ capabilities to analyze sources and use them as evidence to answer a smaller compelling question. After students have had the opportunity to take several laps around a smaller inquiry, a teacher might choose to combine sources for this unit (Stamp Act, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, etc.) and have students evaluate which had the biggest impact on the American Revolution. Lighter more frequent reps can build inquiry muscles.
Collaborate around Curiosity
Social studies inquiry thrives when collaboration is part of the process–even more so when it sparks curiosity in students. Students can work in pairs or small groups to tackle questions. Again, the key is to start small. Give students one engaging source set that sparks curiosity or lightens the cognitive load by having students do an image sort where they highlight their opinions on a topic such as, “Which symbol best represents the United States?” or “What map tells the best story of __?” By scaffolding these tasks—starting with simpler questions before tackling larger, more abstract ideas—students gradually build their inquiry capacity.
Build Inquiry Bridges with Looping
These small steps also align with the C3 Framework’s inquiry arc, particularly its emphasis on questioning, applying disciplinary tools, and communicating conclusions. Over time, teachers can build on these small inquiries, creating “loops” that connect themes across grade levels or units. For instance, a unit on westward expansion could culminate in a student-led debate around the compelling question: “Did Manifest Destiny help or hurt the United States?” That inquiry could inspire additional inquiries around the same frame: “Did _ help or hurt the United States?” (the Monroe Doctrine, Industrial Revolution, Internet Revolution). Looping provides ways for even veteran inquiry teachers to flex their muscles and grow their practices while allowing students to circle a big idea multiple times across the course of the year.
By starting small and embedding inquiry into daily practices, teachers can create a classroom culture that values curiosity and critical thinking. These small steps are rooted in the principles of the C3 Framework and IDM and empower students to become confident inquirers who are ready to tackle the complex questions that shape our world.
