Guided Discovery

GUIDED DISCOVERY

“The guided discoveries generate interest and creativity, establish a shared classroom vocabulary, and teach children how to care for materials.”

Paula Denton and Roxann Kriete, authors of The First Six Weeks of School

Guided Discovery is a focused, purposeful, yet playful technique teachers use to introduce materials, areas or activities to students.

Purpose

• to excite and motivate children by exploring possibilities
• to stretch individual students toward involvement in new areas of learning
• to guide or deepen the understanding of materials and activities
• to encourage the sharing of ideas among children for how a material or area might be used
• to establish a common language and vocabulary
• to generate rules and procedures for the care of materials and spaces
• to teach or reinforce guidelines for working cooperatively

Introducing with Students

1. Introduction--naming
2. Generating ideas
3. Children Explore
4. Sharing
5. Clean-up and care of material or area
6. Extensions

Example from the Classroom….

Introducing pattern blocks to first graders

Step 1. "What do you think I have in this box?"

"Rocks? crayons? blocks?"

"I do have blocks in here, but now can you guess more about them?"

"Is there a yellow one? a square one?

The teacher brings out each block as it is guessed until all blocks are revealed.

"What do you notice about these blocks?"

"different colors...different shapes...some are bigger..."

Step 2. "What can we do with these?"

"Build something."

"Okay." (Teacher demonstrates making a design with blocks). "What do you notice?"

"It stands up. It looks like..."

"What else can we do with these?"

"Make a pattern, building, tower..."

Step 3. "You may take two of each shape of block and make a beautiful design."

After 5 minutes, "Let's share."

"Make another design. Make something flat, something that has open spaces, an animal..."

Step 4. "Tell one thing you like about what you made," or "What was one thing that was tricky?"

"Tell one thing you like about Nancy's design."

“I like the way she made the windows with hexagons."

Step 5. "Who can show us a careful and safe way to put all the blocks away in their container?"

"What's another way we can put away the pattern blocks when a lot of people are using them?"

“Where is a good place for you to display your finished work?"

For more information and ideas: 

The First Six Weeks of School by Paula Denton and Roxann Kriete

Teaching Children to Care by Ruth Charney