Actions to Inspire Curiosity

The more curious a child is, the more they learn. Nurturing children in their curiosity is one of the best ways to support children to engage in authentic self-sustained learning and create learning habits for a lifetime. 

All children are naturally curious and consistently seek to discover how the world works. As educators, we don't need to make children curious or push them to learn. Children will seek out interesting activities on their own if we give them the time, materials, and opportunities to explore different environments.

How can educators support curiosity in the classroom?

Model interest in the world around you and ask questions aloud. Do you take time to think aloud in class, wondering what might happen if you explored a question together? Saying questions aloud invites discussion, collaboration, and new ideas to blossom.

Follow children's interests. Do you let your plans go when all the children rush to the window to watch a flock of birds? Do you follow up on their interest in the birds by starting a conversation and following that conversation with a bird-related invitation the next day?

Give children time to process their questions. Children's minds are growing, so it may take longer to put ideas together. Ask a question, and then invite a little time to think about our answers. 

Provide questions rather than answers. When children ask a question, do you come back and ask the question back to them? What do you think? How might we discover the answer to your question?

Think aloud with children when you don't know an answer. If you don't have the answer, do you let them know? I don't know the answer to that question. How could we find out more information? Where might we look for a solution?

Use open-ended instead of closed-ended questions. Closed-ended questions have a yes/no response. Open-ended questions start with "Tell me about?" "How do you feel about it?", "What do you think we might do next?" Open-ended questions encourage children to develop their thoughts and ideas. Asking open-ended questions and authentically listening helps us open a window into children's inner lives. 

Foster an engaging environment full of open-end materials. Think about your space. Are the children invited to make a mess as they work? Do children mix classroom materials to foster new ways of thinking about their work? 

Provide opportunities to extend explorations. Do children have opportunities to work on their projects for multiple days? Are there protected spaces in the classroom that encourage children to revisit and expand their work? Providing long-term workspaces invites children to extend their interests and dive deeper into learning.

Rotate materials. Are materials rotated in the classroom? Rotating materials brings energy into classroom exploration and invites children to make new connections to their work.

Embracing and fostering curiosity is one of the greatest gifts we can give children.

How do you foster children's curiosity in your program?