I had a problem with curiosity in my classrooms.

Observations find that I wasn't the only one. Entire classes of kids ask essentially zero curious questions at school. And it starts in kindergarten.

In fact, an individual student may go an entire year without asking a curious question.

Why?

As a teacher, I wanted to blame my curriculum, the other students, time constraints, etc.

But, friends, as a teacher, I was the biggest barrier to student curiosity. I made asking questions seem scary and dangerous. I said things like:

1. We don’t have time for questions, Denise
2. Oh, that’s a silly question, Ralph
3. That question is off-topic, Pat
4. I’m not there yet. Hold onto your questions, Juan.
5. I already answered that! Weren’t you listening, Liz?

These statements kill curiosity. The whole class clams up. Asking a question becomes perilous when the teacher has a negative reaction to every question.

And it doesn't matter if you say it nicely! "Oh honey bunny, we just don't have time for those silly, off-topic questions you sweet potato pie!" still gets the message across: ask a question and you'll get shut down in front of everyone.

Create A Curious Culture

So, with the puzzlements mailer, we’re looking to establish four things (this comes from Susan Engel’s work. Read it! Or at least watch this clip of her talk.):

1. Safety: Students know they can ask a question without being hushed or sidelined or mocked by the teacher. Set the expectations early: "Class I will not say things like 'we don't have time' or 'that's a silly question'."
2. Opportunity: Use the mailer at the same time every week. Establish a curiosity routine. If you skip it, kids should call you out. They should come to expect this opportunity.
3. Encouragement: This is a chance for you to praise your students for being curious. "Wow what an interesting question!" is so much more fun to say than "No no, that's off-topic!"
4. Modeling: Most importantly, YOU must wonder along with your class. You MUST show what it's like to be curious and excited and willing to wonder. Kids need to see curious adults in action.

So, What Do I Do With This?

All you need to do: decide which links to use, show them to your students, and then periodically stop and ask:

1. “What did/do you notice?” Don’t skip this step. In fact, spend a long time here. Silence is to be expected. That means they're thinking. So let your students sit and spot things, make connections, and simply think.
2. Once your students have noticed, they're ready for: “What do you wonder?” Note the wording. “Wonder” is important. It's not "What questions do you have?" And you’d better be ready to wonder yourself! Modeling curiosity is key.

That’s it! No homework; no assignment; no prep (other than selecting an appropriate puzzlement). You’ll find that, over time, students will bring in their own ideas. They'll create their own versions of videos. They'll spend their weekend investigating a video.

All because you changed the culture of the classroom!

This will probably take time. Your students are not used to being curious at school. Give them three or four weeks to build trust in you. They'll slowly learn that it really is ok to wonder.

A Few Tips

Try to leave the puzzlements as mysterious as possible. Hide the title. Don't let kids know what they're seeing. Let them figure it out. Give room for curiosity to build. Try to say as little as possible.

Often it's best to watch a video out of order. Sometimes the middle is the best place to start. Sometimes you'll want to hide parts of an image and reveal it later.

But Don't…

Try to avoid turning this into a guessing game, where students prematurely shout out hypothesis because they want to be "first to get it." Make them notice details. Make them wonder. Don't allow them to yell, "I think it's a…!" as soon as the video starts.

And, of course, do not assign homework or create classwork out of these questions or you’ll quench the fire.