Inquiry Unit Template*
Curricular Topic or Text:
Essential Questions:
Enduring Understandings:
(What you want students to come to
understand and transfer to new
situations)
I want the students to understand. . .
Conceptual Knowledge:
(What you want the students to
know)
I want the students to know and
be able to name. . .
Procedural Knowledge/Skills (see Common Core State
Standards):
(What you want the students to do)
I want students to develop the ability to. . .
Culminating Project/Composing Task:
Project Description:
Skills and Understandings
Necessary for Completing
Task:
Summative Assessment/Proof Positive of Learning
(Including UNDERSTANDING and PERFORMANCE criteria)
Understanding
A student who really understands will be able to offer proof positive of. . .
*Modified from Inquiry Template Created by Jeffrey Wilhelm
Ideas for Sequencing From Wilhelm, 2007 and Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Understanding and Assessing from Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Inquiry Square Elements from Wilhelm, Baker and Hackett, 2001
Performance
In the final product I want to see. . .
Frontloading Activities to activate prior knowledge, and prepare
students for success with the new challenges:
*Modified from Inquiry Template Created by Jeffrey Wilhelm
Ideas for Sequencing From Wilhelm, 2007 and Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Understanding and Assessing from Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Inquiry Square Elements from Wilhelm, Baker and Hackett, 2001
Scaffold of Activities: For exploring and practicing concepts
- leading to capacity to
complete culminating project - demonstration of developed understandings
PRINCIPLES OF SEQUENCING
o Close to home→ Far From Home
o Current Knowledge→ Need to Know
o Visual→ Written
o Short→ Long
o Easy→ Hard
o Concrete→ Abstract
o Directly Stated→ Implied
o Supported→ Independent
o Whole→ Part→ Whole
o Learning→ Doing→ Reflecting
o Model→ Mentor→ Monitor
Instructional Activities to
support reading and
meaning productions
Week Two
Week One
Texts and data sets to
be used
*Modified from Inquiry Template Created by Jeffrey Wilhelm
Ideas for Sequencing From Wilhelm, 2007 and Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Understanding and Assessing from Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Inquiry Square Elements from Wilhelm, Baker and Hackett, 2001
Things I am Thinking About as I Sequence Activities:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Necessary skills for completing culminating projects
How I can create engaging activities that are also meaningful
How I can support students before, during and after reading (for
the text as a whole and each day)
How can I use models and modeling?
How to support them early on and gradually release the
responsibility as the unit progresses
How I can design and include activities that guide them to Big
Ideas and then “teach” through direct instruction and naming what
we did
How I can blend reading, writing and language instruction
How I can use a diverse blend of activities (drama, argument,
discussion, visual representation, etc.)
Skills—What Strategies and Productive
capacities do the Students Need to be
Successful? (see Common Core State
Standards)
Formative
Assessments and
ongoing proof of one’s
progress:
Week Three
Week Four
Other Thoughts/Brainstorming/Connections to Next Unit- how this unit prepares students for the next challenges
*Modified from Inquiry Template Created by Jeffrey Wilhelm
Ideas for Sequencing From Wilhelm, 2007 and Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Understanding and Assessing from Wiggins and McTighe, 2005
Ideas for Inquiry Square Elements from Wilhelm, Baker and Hackett, 2001