What: The Inquiry Chart (I-Chart) is a strategy that helps students to gather information about a topic by reading or listening to several sources. The teacher designs the I-chart around several questions about a topic. Students examine sources on the topic and record answers to the questions within the I-chart; they create a summary in the final row.

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Who: I-charts are best used individually, with small groups, or as a whole class.

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When: I-charts are best used during reading.

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Why: Inquiry charts strengthen critical thinking and reading skills by teaching young students to generate questions about a topic and organize their writing. Students build on prior knowledge or thoughts about the topic by sharing interesting facts. They can also be used as an evaluation tool to show how much students have learned about a topic.

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How: The teacher provides each students with a blank I-chart. The students collaborate to form questions about the topic, then place the questions at the top of each column. The rows are for recording any information students already know and the key ideas pulled from sources. The last row is for compiling thoughts together as a summary. Teachers should ask students to check out and resolve conflicting or incomplete information.

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The planning phase includes:

1. Identifying the topic

2. Forming questions

3. Constructing the I-chart

4. Collecting materials.

 

The next step is to engage students in the interacting phase which involves:

1. Exploring prior knowledge

2. Sharing of interesting facts

3. Reading and rereading.

 

Finally, the teacher guides students through the evaluation phase by:

1. Summarizing

2. Comparing

3. Researching

4. Reporting.

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