By using the question-answer model I've been able to take the time to think deeply about the questions while preparing my answers. I agree with the "light bulb moments" being useful in leading me into reflecting on my current knowledge and skills and helping to redefine my understanding. I realize that I have a lot more to learn and through practice I will gain more understanding of the process.

Collaboration is vital and I've had luck with one teacher which when we can show the importance of the work hopefully will encourage others to get on board.

I agree with those above that it doesn't necessarily change it as broadens how I now look at my role. I was also very oriented on the result as is most of my colleagues at work. Now I see that it's more about the journey since I started learning about FOSIL and that the journey isn't only about how we get there but how we feel and reflect. That broadens my role as librarian considerably.

@Elizabeth I'm hoping so too Elizabeth. Which is why I'm so eager to learn the process so that I can hopefully be able to inject what I can when I can.

Time will definitely hamper my chances of being able to negate any cognitive or affective overload during my library sessions. I have 45 minute sessions planned in for every class one time per week. With 30 minutes on average needed to circulate books, this doesn't present enough time to work on Inquiry learning projects. I have added extra research times to my schedule but no one really uses it. In our school we have research in the IPC units but the books are usually selected by the teacher and brought to the class where the information is found and a report is written. The full focus is on the result not on the journey to learning the skills necessary to get to the result.

Here is my comparison of the Alberta Focus on Learning method to IPC.

It's wonderful to have examples but I don't feel like I'm informed enough and I'm definitely not confident enough to share yet anything, Sorry. I will work on it and hopefully I'll be able to share something soon.

The library can offer a well catalogued list of resources to assist the teachers in ensuring there are enough book options for their topic and if not, assist in finding more or digital options. The library can assist in reinforcing Inquiry model skills during library sessions. Lastly, the library can be an excellent repository for their shared knowledge.

I believe the greatest obstacle is consistency across the school in ensuring that the inquiry skills are taught/utilized across the whole school to enable the skills to be embedded in the children's future learning. If there is no formal inquiry model accepted and practiced within the school there will be a conflict of skills leading to no consistency meaning each year the children will need to learn new skills depending on which model the teacher is using.

Children ask questions all the time. I believe there is no greater way for them to learn than to help them find answers to those questions. IPC starts by asking what do the children think they know/what do they know for certain and what do they want to learn (Knowledge Harvest) per topic. The subjects (Science, Geography, etc) per topic will answer many of the questions the children raise. When I went to school we didn't use IPC so I wasn't familiar with it but I'm always astonished at how excited the children get with each new topic. An advantage of IPC topics are that they are circular in nature and each related topic builds on knowledge from the previous years related topic (Live and Let Live-mp1/Footprints from the past-mp2/Out of Africa-mp3).

See my answer for question 4.

@Elizabeth We use the International Primary Curriculum at our school which incorporates many aspects of the Model for Inquiry however it doesn't reinforce the model in a manner to ingrain the model for future learning I believe. • Scaffold for instruction - it's differentiated • Gauge for feelings - has student rubricks for reflection • Common language for teachers and students - set vocabulary per topic revealed during Big Picture • Guide for students - the learning route is visually portrated on the wall • Guide for monitoring - has teacher rubricks for assessment Though these aspects are available in IPC they do not model the process in a systematic way specific to creating an inqury model that they are able to generalize to future learning. I will be doing a research project this year to incorporate inquiry learning in a more systematic manner in the library for IPC topics.

I think metacognitive skills are overlooked and that often those skills which help our students to become truly independent and good at inquiry are less refined and practised. It's not about posing a question, giving the student a book and asking them to find the answer. That doesn't increase their motivation if they don't understand why they are doing it and see how the skills they are learning can be transferrable nor does it promote the value of the skills. The excitement and the quest for information should be just as important as the answer otherwise we are missing a crucial ingredient in inquiry and that's inquisitiveness. Inquisitiveness comes from the desire to learn more and that is a very important aspect of inquiry.

For me, the definition of Inquiry means to systematically and actively answer a question regarding a topic that you have posed. It's not only about asking but also discovery and by doing so learning not only the information but honing valuable skills to support your next inquiry. Inquiry is so much more than just asking, it's more visceral, as one pushes up their sleeves and gets into seeking the answer. I can't help but think of 42 when I think of inquiry. It's about life, the universe and everything once you know the secret to inquiry you can answer almost anything given enough time and resources.