LA-SEP-2.QXD

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 31

The Explorers Club: The Sky Is No Limit for Learning Second language learners enthusiastically pursue their own questions in a journey of inquiry. “You didn’t know a lot, but after ESL you know everything,” exulted Anastasia as she reflected on her experiences as a member of the Explorers Club. Her enthusiasm was palpable, and I felt the same electric charge when I decided to explore inquiry after reading an article by Copenhaver (1993). I had been striving to find a way to reach my thirdand fourth-grade students, and in my years of teaching English as a Second Language I had run the gamut from tedious “drill and skill” worksheets to TPR (Total Physical Response) to self-selected reading. I had even tried to find the optimum way of reaching my students by combining the different modes of teaching. However, none of this prepared me for the generativeness of a curriculum driven by students’ interests and curiosity. Copenhaver (1993) says, “Two people cannot have a dialogue with each other if only one of them is asking the questions and demanding all the answers” (p. 6). She goes on to discuss the Explorers Club she developed with Carolyn Burke and Rise Paynter, where the children are first asked to write down any and every question that comes to their minds. Then they pick the six questions that are the most important to them and give reasons for their choices. After

Copyright © 2002 by the National Council of Teachers of English. All rights reserved.

The Explorers Club

Premlata Mansukhani

31

LA-SEP-2.QXD

32

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 32

The Explorers Club

that the students have a field day going to the library to get books for research. The project ends with evaluations and reflections. Burke and Crafton (1994) clarify, “We contrast inquiry-based classrooms with those whose primary purpose is to transmit knowledge. The delivery system is from expert to novice, and the goal is uniformity” (p. 3). Our inquiries promised to be a far cry from uniformity. Still, I must admit to some doubts. I had initial reservations as the Explorers Club was originally developed within a self-contained classroom full of English-speaking students, and I had ESL students who met only twice a week in a pull-out program. Would my children be able to handle a wide array of reading materials while they were still struggling with English? I knew in my heart I could always try other approaches and reading materials if the Explorers Club didn’t work, so I decided to move ahead. The seemingly simple premise took us on an unforgettable odyssey that whirled through space, explored the furthest depths of the earth and the eras gone by, and made us look at the world around us with question marks in our eyes. Dewey (1963) says, “Education begins with learners’ passions and questions, growing from their current position in the world—what they believe and what

grow our current selves as it went way beyond its original intent.

start?” On and on the questions came for a week.

THE EXPLORERS CLUB

Then I asked the club members to share their queries with the group and decide which were the most important. The children each had between sixteen and twenty-six questions and were asked to select six of these questions to share with the group. They had to explain why the six questions they picked were important to them. I wanted them to share their choices and the thought processes and rationale that went into those selections.

Our first Explorers Club included Antos, a fourth grader from Poland, Joo Hyung, a fourth grader from Korea, Anastasia, a third grader from Russia, fluent in Russian and French, and Edward, a third grader from Korea. The first two children had fairly good English skills, whereas the latter two had been in the United States for barely a year.

Finding Our Questions The Explorers Club began with the children writing every question that came to their minds. They were excited, and the questions came fast and furiously. Some questions, such as “Which is the highest mountain?” and “Who is the tallest man?” needed only brief answers. I gently prodded the students to extend their thinking and to ask questions that required research. I told them that their questions should require a longer response and should involve understanding a concept, a natural phenomenon, or the workings of some object. Gradually they became more skilled in the art of asking open-ended questions. “Why is the moon sometimes big and sometimes small?” asked Edward. Anastasia wanted to know, “How is rain

I gently prodded the students to extend their thinking and to ask questions that required research. I told them that their questions should require a longer response and should involve understanding a concept, a natural phenomenon, or the workings of some object. they value” (p. 3). Teaching is not about filling empty vases but lighting fires. This project ignited a spark that allowed all of us to out-

Language Arts,

Vol. 80

No. 1,

made?” Joo Hyung asked, “When we fall down and blood comes out, what makes it stop?” Antos wanted to know, “How did the Polish war

September 2002

Edward wanted to know how money is made because he wanted to “make fake money like real money and be rich.” Anastasia wanted to know where space ends because “I am learning about it and wonder at night about it.” Antos, who goes mushroom picking with his father, wanted to know which mushrooms were poisonous and which were edible. “It is important because I don’t want to get sick or die.” Joo wanted to know about life on earth before the dinosaurs because “I like dinosaurs and I thought that dinosaurs were the first on earth.” I was as excited as the children by their questions. Many were connected to their personal experiences, and I noticed that the questions spanned the curriculum, including some about math through those about money and the eras before the dinosaurs. Art would be easily incorporated as the children illustrated their journals and used sketches to record their research. Short, Kauffman, and Kahn (2000) reminded me that I wanted to use a range of sign systems as tools in my students’ inquiry. I heard the little boy in Kauffman’s class wail, “Oh, I just need to draw.” That line had stuck in my brain since I first read about sign systems as a variety of ways to share and make meaning.

LA-SEP-2.QXD

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 33

I was tired of following someone else’s ideas about what my students needed to learn. I wanted to use their experiences, their knowledge, their interests, and, above all, their needs to guide them to what they wanted to know. Soon the children had written their six most meaningful questions in their journals and stated why they were so important.

filled in all the necessary information. Then, as I looked more closely, I noticed potential teaching opportunities. Math led the way, followed closely by social studies and language arts. Kevin, a recent arrival from China and the newest addition to our Explorers Club, showed his weight as 44. As he is no lightweight, I knew he had written his weight in kilograms. So, we learned that in the United States weight is written in pounds, and we figured out how to convert kilograms into pounds. I was relieved that I am from India where kilograms are used, and I knew the conversion. Anastasia showed her height as 20 inches. Well, of course, out came the ruler, and we measured off 20 inches on the desk. Amid a burst of good-natured hilarity we walked to the wall, where I marked off her height for her to measure. Then we learned how to convert inches into feet and use the abbreviations for feet and inches. One of the children was not sure of his address, a second did not know

Making ID Cards As students worked on their journals, Edward came up with the idea of having ID cards for the club members. He fished out his ID card for a Korean club to which he belongs and shared it with the group. Wanting to encourage his involvement, I agreed, little realizing the wealth of learning this suggestion would generate. We brainstormed the information that could go on the cards and examined my driver’s license for more ideas. I gave students some heavy-weight paper and told them to complete the cards at home by using their parents’ drivers’ licenses as templates. The results were gratifying. Students glued their small school pictures in the corner of their ID cards and

Figure 1. Edward’s ID Card.

her zip code, and yet another had not capitalized the name of his street. I got out the address list of the children, and we pored over it, making the necessary corrections on the ID cards. Vocabulary was also enhanced because nobody knew the meaning of an issue date. Antos was assigned to call the driver’s license bureau to investigate. I beamed with delight. I knew that all my prepackaged lesson plans would not have taught them as much as this one half hour. The children created the lesson, and I let myself go with the flow, an enthusiastic and eager participant. Visovatti (1994) puts it succinctly when she says “We are creating the curriculum rather than covering it” (p. 8), and this act of creation put our imaginations in high gear.

Researching Our Questions When the children left my room, I went down to the library to talk to Mrs. Perritt, our school librarian. I explained what we were doing

33

The Explorers Club

Language was one way of expression, but art, music, mathematics, drama, and movement offered other potentials for meaning making. These sign systems were not incorporated just as activities but as tools students used in their inquiry projects. Students didn’t merely translate or transliterate meaning from one sign system to another but transmediated meaning to create and re-create different perspectives. The more I delved into sign systems, the more I saw their possibilities for my ESL students, with their limited English skills and their unlimited thinking skills. I resolved not to shackle them within the confines of language.

LA-SEP-2.QXD

34

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 34

The Explorers Club

and informed her that we would come the following week to do our research work. She volunteered to have the books ready for the children, but I suggested instead that she take them to the appropriate area, so they could find the books themselves. She got interested and involved, and when the children came the following week, they found several books in their reading range. They were delighted. Then Mrs. Perritt sat down with us and helped the children peruse the books. Their smiles widened when she broke the rule of two books per child

I wanted them to find their personal voice, their very own way of expressing themselves. and let them take more. They felt special and important. The children had books related to their first questions, and they couldn’t wait to get back to the classroom to begin their explorations. In ten minutes, it was noon, and the buzzer on Edward’s watch went off. Lunch is his favorite time of day, and he doesn’t like to be late. He slammed the alarm off, said, “Oh, shut up!” and kept reading. I looked up, amazed, and burst into laughter. Was this the sweet, quiet, soft-spoken Edward that I knew? The children took the books home to read and enjoy. Not a one complained about the homework, and not a one told me how busy they were—not even Anastasia who has music, art, and gymnastics after school. Something was going right. I couldn’t wait to see what

Language Arts,

Vol. 80

No. 1,

happened next. The lines from Keats’s ode echoed in my ear: Then felt I like some watcher of the skies When a new planet swims into his ken.

When the children returned after the weekend, they had read their books and were ready to share. Antos told me he and his father could not put down the book about poisonous mushrooms. They had pored over it nonstop from start to finish. This was the same child whose father had told me, “Antos won’t read at home,” and who, whenever I suggested he take out a book from the class library, always told me very politely, “I have many books at home.” Edward, who had been reading about the phases of the moon, told me excitedly about the experiment he and his sister had done with a lamp (sun) and a basketball (moon) in a darkened room at home. All the children were eager to write, and they started quickly. They consulted their books like scholars, and I resolved to bring my camera along the next time to document the children’s high level of engagement. The reports of their research turned out well—both the artwork and the writing. They all wanted to share, and they were also interested in their classmates’ projects. We evaluated the projects using three pluses and a wish (Copenhaver, 1993). The children had to write the three things they liked best about their own and their peers’ research, followed by a wish, or suggestion of how to improve it. The educational significance of explorations of inquiry was readily apparent. Richgels and Wold (1998) state that social constructivist learning theory stresses that learning is both social and personal. Personal interests are the very cornerstone, the foundation, and the framework of inquiry-based learning. Kilpatrick

September 2002

(1925) says that we learn better when we have a personal use for what we learn, and that explorations based on curiosity have a high success rate. My students’ enthusiasm was testimony to that.

Taking the Next Step After our first exploration, we moved into a class study of Columbus, where students researched and wrote about the Columbus event from the perspective of American Indians. Now that the children had written two papers, I felt it was time to give them even more freedom. I could see they had so much more to say but were stymied by their lack of English. Sometimes they were copying chunks out of the reference book and were not always understanding what they were writing. I wanted them to find their personal voice, their very own way of expressing themselves. I was reminded of my earlier resolve to let them use the sign system of their choice. After a discussion on multiple ways of presenting their research, I told them they could respond to their next question any way they chose— just so long as the rest of us got the message, and they understood what they had learned. Three of the children took an informational approach to reporting on their inquiries, while one child presented her inquiry creatively. Antos enumerated the theories behind the extinction of the dinosaurs and illustrated them appropriately. Edward made a diagram about how a camera works and wrote in the appropriate labels and explanations. Joo did the same with his question about how a person stops bleeding. Anastasia started to write a puppet show but switched midstream to a play about her Beanie Babies, Winky and Binky, who go on a spaceship to discover why Saturn

LA-SEP-2.QXD

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 35

Figure 2. Joo’s Journal Entry

has rings. Anastasia enjoyed writing and was soon caught up in the excitement of whirling through space. She asked for more time to finish her project because she had so much to say and a telescope to make. The children’s excitement was infectious, and I found a renewed joy in teaching. I couldn’t wait to see what the next day brought. In the meantime, I decided to sit down and evaluate the effectiveness of the Explorers Club. I wanted to be sure I was on the right track and was not being carried away on a wave of my own enthusiasm.

Evaluating Our Learning I did not want to evaluate the work of the members of the Explorers Club through scores, ratings, ranks, and tests. How could I possibly plunk an A, B, C, or incomplete on their explorations and reduce a joyous experience to a letter grade? I

knew I must never compare them to an arbitrary or numerical yardstick. Linek (1991) argues, “No comparison is made to any standard or any other student. Present performance is compared to previous performance” (p. 126). I knew I needed to explore qualitative evaluation. Burke and Crafton (1994) say, “Evaluation continues the spirit of inquiry by providing one more chance to ask questions and one more opportunity to learn. Evaluations occur as learners take reflective stances in relation to their work and then invite others in to have reflective conversations about it” (p. 5). I knew I had to keep in mind that I was assessing students with varying levels of English proficiency, and I had to keep tabs not only on the finished product but also on the processes involved as well. I gathered my information on an ongoing basis through personal observations

Another type of evaluation was collected via a self-evaluation sheet, again using three pluses and a wish. Joo’s assessment of himself mentioned good drawings, useful facts, and good detail. A wish for himself was that he had more writing in the first paragraph. Edward’s three pluses for his camera project listed good words to learn, interesting facts, and good pictures. He also wished that his project was neater. The process of self-evaluation enabled the students to look at their own work critically and develop strategies for improvement and for becoming self-directed learners. They were internalizing their learning and looking for ways to improve. Anastasia’s project was a roaring success. She spent four hours over the weekend completing her play. She enacted it for us, using her Beanie Babies with their “doggie accents.” The setting was a large shoe-box spaceship that she had papered with dalmatian wallpaper. The spaceship was outfitted with a telescope, a bed, food, plates, mini cans of cola, and even a small broom for cleanups. Her

35

The Explorers Club

of student involvement and interest, the quality of the products, and peer, self, and parental evaluations. These evaluations were presented via the strategy of three pluses and a wish. As the children proudly shared their research, the others jotted down brief points to jog their memory. Later, they shared three pluses (things they appreciated about the project) and then a wish. The three pluses included points such as “lots of details,” “good sentences,” “I learned new facts,” “great words,” “nice pictures.” The wishes included “I wish you had written a title” and “I wish you had explained the hard words like gibbous moon.”

LA-SEP-2.QXD

36

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 36

The Explorers Club

self-evaluation pluses were good spaceship, cute dogs, and wallpaper with dogs. Her wish was that she had explained the hard words. My pluses for her project were that it was humorous, artistic, creative, imaginative, and informative. I couldn’t think of a wish, but Edward stated, “I wish your spaceship had a roof, so everything won’t fly off!” We had reached the midpoint of our project, and it was also time for parent-teacher conferences. After sharing the children’s work with the parents, I asked them to fill out a similar evaluation sheet of three pluses and a wish. Antos’s father, who was back from Poland, wrote, “I do like your subjects, I do like your pictures, and I like your work in this classroom.” Kevin’s father wrote, “Good for learning English naturally, a lot of knowledge Kevin can learn, and lets Kevin think something.” Anastasia’s father wrote, “Nice pictures, wide range of stories, and paid attention to important details (especially in Saturn’s story).” Joo’s mother wrote, “Nice thinking of questions, good drawing, and good writing.” The wishes of several parents were that their children had better handwriting, one wished his son would read more, and Kevin’s father was so pleased with his son’s work that his wish was to “Continue the learning.” Anastasia’s father requested that he take the form home so he could respond to it with his daughter. He wanted her to know that he cared about her work. He shared this insight: “Anastasia works hard sometimes to do her best in her projects. She is trying to find nontraditional ways to tell the story, and sometimes we do it together, but all these are her ideas and fantasies.” Appended to his wish for her to have better hand-

Language Arts,

Vol. 80

No. 1,

writing, he had written, “I love you very much.” Edward’s father also took the form home. For his three pluses he wrote, “Very surprised how it works well, exciting to know kid’s thought, and interesting the process.” His wish was, “Give more chances to explore.” He shared this thought: “I used to encourage my kid: The more you experience, the more you can get wisdom. I like ‘learning by doing’ approach. Thanks.” However, the most compelling evaluation of the Explorers Club came from an unexpected source. Kevin, who had recently arrived from China, was a beginner in English and worked with me at a different time than the other children. Since he came to the same room, he couldn’t help but see the ID cards, the booklets, and the projects going up on the wall I had captioned Explorers Club. Each day he would look at them with growing interest. I began by letting him make an ID card. Once I saw how interested he was, I thought I would see if he could generate a few questions. After a shaky start, and after some handholding and refining, his questions got underway. The most important to him were:

September 2002

Why is the Japanese flag white with a red circle? How hot is the sun? If the world is round how come we don’t fall off? Why is Antarctica cold? How are rockets and missiles different? Why tornadoes are like a funnel?

On and on the questions came, with one thoughtful question after another. He was able to ask the questions with the help of phrases, pictures, and gestures, which I helped him articulate. I recalled the importance of sign systems and so encouraged him to use art as he worked on choosing his six most important questions. Surprisingly, Kevin understood enough to tell me why they were important to him. His responses were the evidence I needed to persuade me of the success of the Explorers Club. Kevin’s reactions reminded me of Richard-Amato. In her book Making it Happen (1996), she firmly believes that a student who is engrossed in interesting ideas will be apt to have less anxiety than one who is focused mainly on form. She believes that the best input is so interesting and relevant that the acquirer may even “forget” that the message is encoded in a foreign language. This

Figure 3. Kevin’s Journal Entry

LA-SEP-2.QXD

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 37

happened with Kevin. In fact, Richard-Amato even starts her book with a Chinese proverb from the fourth century B.C.: Not to let a word get in the way Of its sentence Nor to let a sentence get in the way Of its intention But to send your mind out to meet the Intention As a guest; That is understanding.

Reflecting on the Explorers Club After the children had completed their six research questions, I gave them an opportunity to reflect on the Explorers Club, including responding to three questions from Copenhaver (1993). One question, What surprised you as you look back on your experiences? elicited the following responses: • Kevin was surprised that he got so much information, thought that it would be hard, and was surprised that he did it! • Joo was surprised by the fun he had and that it was easy for him. • Edward was surprised by the fact that each question had so many facts he didn’t know! • Anastasia was surprised, and I think secretly proud, that “Nobody, and no book could answer one of my questions!” • Antos had graduated from ESL during the year, so he didn’t write down his reflections. The next question asked how the Explorers Club was different from the students’ regular social studies class. Anastasia wrote, “You had to choose your own work. You would

Figure 4. Anastasia’s Explorers Club Reflections.

feel excited, and make it more creative.” She added, “You would learn more and get more creative than your classmates, you get to know the unknown, and your mind would get bigger and you will know more. You didn’t know a lot, but after ESL you know everything.” Edward wrote, “We got to learn hard things, I learned that researching was fun, and it could help you in fourth grade.” After some prompting, he dutifully added, “and always in your lifetime.” All the children echoed the same sentiment in one form or another. Kevin put it succinctly when he wrote, using his developing English language and spelling, “You do Social Studies you only learn this but in Explorers Club you can quastion anything and you can learn that.” Instinctively, he reached the crux of inquiry. Whitin and Whitin (1996) support Kevin’s instincts when they say, “authentic problem solving does not take place behind artificially contrived experiences of a science or mathematics textbook; rather, problem solving occurs with real people looking at real issues in real contexts” (p. 6). Short and Burke (1996) also contend, “Inquiry involves immersing one’s self in a topic and having time to explore that topic in

order to find questions that are significant to the learner and systematically investigating those questions” (pp. 99–100). The final question, What would you do differently next time? brought the following responses: “Look in other places, not just books for answers,” “Next time my friend do my questions and I do my friend’s,” “Ask different questions,” and, “Look more carefully in the books. I would also write better when I have to write a paragraph, and give more facts about the question.” I also asked myself the same question because I knew I wanted to continue using the Explorers Club in my teaching. First, I would try harder to group the questions by themes, such as weather, space, and plants. This would cut down on the time expended in the book management process. With five children, six questions apiece, and several reference books per question, finding books on an assortment of subjects became time consuming. In addition I would have the children access information from multiple sources, such as newspapers, magazines, and the Internet. Also one of my lingering fears was that we were not in sync with what was going on in the classroom, so

The Explorers Club

I have this motto framed in my classroom to remind myself always to focus first on the content and then, later, on the form.

37

LA-SEP-2.QXD

38

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 38

The Explorers Club

whenever possible, I would try to time the themes with future topics in the students’ classrooms. This would allow the children to acquire some knowledge on the subject before it was taught in their homerooms. Needless to say, one theme would be “miscellaneous,” for all the questions that defied convenient categorization. In the last analysis, the choice of questions would always be the individual student’s because that is what inquiry learning is about. Most of all, I would encourage the use of more sign systems so that children could use their multiple talents and intelligences to the utmost. I can visualize Joo, covered in clay, sculpting the extinction of the dinosaurs and Antos bringing samples of various kinds of mushrooms after foraging in the forest preserves, and talking to the class about them.

Connecting the Explorers Club to English Language Learning I believe inquiry-based learning is the route to take for any student, but especially for students who come from around the world, with different languages and with varying levels of English proficiency. Children work at their own pace and level of English while they access multiple books at their personal levels of reading. My students were not bound by the science and social studies textbooks for their grade level, which often left them floundering helplessly. They were not asked to memorize and regurgitate material that was meaningless to them. In their own way, and at their own rate, they delved into the core curriculum. Short and Burke (1996) claim, “When our question changed from, ‘How do we teach students to read and make sure they comprehend?’ to, ‘How does literacy function as an inquiry tool in our lives?’ . . . We could no longer separate

Language Arts,

Vol. 80

No. 1,

learning to read from reading to learn” (p. 98). In the same article they explore the question “How can we support the authoring process in classrooms so writing becomes a tool for thinking and communicating?” Here, too, they conclude that inquiry is the route to take. Through the Explorers Club, English as a Second Language was taught through challenging academic content, and manifold opportunities opened up for students to process complex thoughts. They learned what Cummins (1984) called CALPS (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency Skills), which occur in context-reduced academic situations, and not merely the BICS (Basic

Children work at their own pace and level of English while they access multiple books at their personal levels of reading. Interpersonal Communicative Skills), which occur in everyday social interactions where there are face-toface encounters replete with gestures and other context-embedded supports. Children relatively new to a language can often be seen chatting away with friends on the playground, in the lunchroom, and on the bus. This gives the erroneous impression that the children have mastered English. Actually these same children are struggling in the classroom because they have not yet acquired CALPS, the deeper language skills needed to handle the academics of the classroom. Shuy (1981) uses a “dual iceberg” metaphor to contrast the surface aspects of language with the invisible and unquantifiable mass pulsating below. The CALPS are connected at

September 2002

a deeper level in both languages because if you can add in Chinese, you can add in English. True to form, the children transferred their knowledge from one language to another and found the words and ways to express their explorations. It was almost as if they “forgot” they were researching and writing in a new language. The multiple forms of evaluation generated many avenues of meaningful communication. The children’s second language grew rapidly and easily along with their cognitive skills. Their engaged responses and eagerness to participate were a clear indication that the Explorers Club immersed them in meaningful learning. Dulay and Burt (1977) proposed an Affective Filter that helps or hinders language development. They say that the filter is composed of affective factors such as attitudes toward language, motivation, self-confidence, and anxiety. Thus, they argue, learners with favorable attitudes and selfconfidence have a “low filter” with consequently efficient secondlanguage learning. Those with unfavorable attitudes or high anxiety have “high filters,” and so the input of the second language may be blocked or impeded. The children learned in a nonthreatening environment, where their affective filter was notably down, and where the subject was of such compelling interest that they were so absorbed by the content that they were not bound by the form. I did not burden them with the interminable rules and endless exceptions of the English language. They learned language in a natural way, the same way children learn their first language, propelled by their own needs and interest. These children blossomed. Anastasia and Edward progressed so rapidly that I exited them from the ESL program at the end of the year, in

LA-SEP-2.QXD

7/23/2002 8:11 AM

Page 39

a remarkably brief time. They didn’t just learn the language; they acquired it subconsciously while involved in activities of their choice. Krashen (1981) makes a distinction between second language learning

required in language teaching. What could be more natural than having children lead classroom learning with their interests? Wolk (1994) says, “When children are free to choose their own projects, integrat-

and second language acquisition. Acquisition is a subconscious process that results from informal and natural communication between people, where language is a means and not a focus or end in itself. Conscious thinking about language rules is said to occur in second language learning. Children accessed language through their interests, mini-lessons that were a natural offshoot of the learning process, and changes in their use of English that were relevant because they occurred in the context of their writing, and not on isolated drill sheets.

ing knowledge as the need arises, motivation and success follow naturally. They have a real stake in what goes on because much of it is their own creation” (p. 77). Whitin and Whitin (1996) say, “Inquiry learning is born in wonder and sustained in wonder . . . inquiry generates an endless spiral of questions to pursue” (p. 87). I, too, found when children are on an odyssey of their own choice, there is no stopping them. The destination doesn’t seem to be all that important. They are too busy enjoying the journey.

Inquiry and the Explorers Club made up an approach to learning that the children embraced wholeheartedly. They reveled in the process and maintained their enthusiasm. Motivation was intrinsic, and the peer, self, and parental evaluations provided added impetus. The project went beyond its original framework and took on a life of its own.

References

A lot of learning took place because the children generated questions that mattered most to them, and because the quest was meaningful to them. Krashen and Terrell (1983) suggest that a “natural approach” is

Burke, C., & Crafton, L. K. (1994). Inquiry based evaluation: Teachers and students reflecting together. Primary Voices K–6, 2 (2), 2–7. Copenhaver, J. (1993). Instances of inquiry. Primary Voices K–6, 1(1), 6–12. Cummins, J. (1984). Language proficiency and academic achievement. Clevedon, North Somerset, UK: Multilingual Matters. Dewey, J. (1963). Experience and education. New York: Macmillan. Dulay, H. C., & Burt, M. K. (1977). Remarks on creativity in language acquisition. Viewpoints on English as a Second Language. New York: Regents.

Krashen, S. (1981). Second language acquisition and second language learning. Oxford: Pergamon. Krashen, S., & Terrell, T. (1983). The natural approach: Language acquisition in the classroom. Oxford: Pergamon. Linek, W. M. (1991). Grading and evaluation techniques for whole language teachers. Language Arts, 68, 125–131. Richgels, D. J., & Wold, L. S. (1998). Literacy in the road: Backpacking partnerships between school and home. The Reading Teacher, 52(1), 18–29. Richard-Amato, P. (1996). Making it happen in the second language classroom. White Plains, NY: Addison-Wesley. Short, K., & Burke, C. (1996). Examining our beliefs and practices through inquiry. Language Arts, 73(2), 97–104. Short, K., Kauffman, G., & Kahn, L. H. (2000). Responding to literature across multiple sign systems. The Reading Teacher, 54(2), 160–171. Shuy, R. (1981). A holistic view of language. Research in the Teaching of English, 15(2), 101–111. Visovatti, K. (1994). Developing primary voices. Primary Voices K–6, 2(2), 8–19. Whitin, D., & Whitin, P. (1996). Inquiry at the window: The year of the birds. Language Arts, 73(2), 82–87. Wolk, S. (1994). Project-based learning: Pursuits with a purpose. Educational Leadership, 52(3), 42–45.

Author Biography Premlata Mansukhani teaches English as a Second Language at Sprague School and Half Day School in Lincolnshire, Illinois.

39

The Explorers Club

Children accessed language through their interests, mini-lessons that were a natural offshoot of the learning process, and changes in their use of English that were relevant because they occurred in the context of their writing, and not on isolated drill sheets.

Kilpatrick, W. H. (1925). Foundations of method: Informal talks on teaching. New York: Macmillan.