I thought I had finally nailed it. I restructured my entire unit around the essential question, “What does it mean to be free?” I introduced multimedia texts, built discussion protocols, and crafted a summative project rooted in student voice. But halfway through, students started asking, “Is this on the test?”
That’s when I realized: I had designed the unit around my question—not theirs. The content was strong, the structure was sound, but student ownership was missing. So the next time around, I carved out time for students to co-create the driving questions. Their version? “Who decides who gets to be free?” That question opened doors I never could have predicted. It changed not just the inquiry, but the direction of the entire unit.
Inquiry isn’t just about essential questions—it’s about whose questions are driving the learning. When we invite students into the process, they bring curiosity, perspective, and purpose.
InquireEd studio 