Any parent knows that kids LOVE asking questions! Sometimes it seems that’s all they do. Questions are how children learn and make sense of the world, and inquiry based learning uses that natural curiosity as the basis for students’ learning experience.
We use the inquiry based learning model to encourage our students to ask rich, purposeful questions, to discuss their method of thinking with others, and to follow their curiosity to develop their own learning paths.
How inquiry based learning is taught?
Our class teachers use an inquiry framework to teach Science, Health, History, Geography and Civics and Citizenship. Students are supported in inquiry based learning with specific skills, such as:
We encourage families to become involved in their child’s learning by asking them about the inquiry learning they’re doing at school. Often we find the whole family gets involved and that’s when the best learning happens!
Empowering our students
At St Joseph's Payeham, our students are at the centre of everything we do. We encourage curiosity & a love of learning. We help them develop the skills to overcome challenges and strengthen leadership qualities. We value student voice and assist them to discover their full potential. We support their education by allowing them to discover the very best of who they are in becoming life long, visible learners.
Learning at St Joseph's Payneham
With a strong history of academic success, St Joseph's School and Preschool strives to create a learning environment where our students feel supported, encouraged, challenged, engaged and inspired. We use inquiry based learning to promote curiosity and critical thinking skills empowering our students to become lifelong learners. Our goal is to help our students flourish and become valued members of the community.
A Growth Mindset
We have developed a Growth Mindset culture where we focus on changing our words to change our mindset; “ I can’t do this” becomes “I can’t do this yet.”
In a fixed view, students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that’s that.
With a growth mindset students understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort and persistence. Thy learn about GRIT.
At St Joseph's Payneham, we are encouraging all learners to have a positive Growth Mindset.
Challenge
We believe that challenge and struggle are necessary parts of the learning journey. Great break though and growth come after students tackle The Learning Pit We use this to promote challenge, dialogue and a growth mindset.
