Quick answer: Inquiry-based learning is a teaching approach in which children build understanding by asking questions, investigating, and explaining what they find, while the teacher guides the process instead of simply delivering answers. In a preschool classroom, that might mean exploring what a seed needs to grow. Teachers can choose from four levels of inquiry, from confirmation to open inquiry, depending on how much structure children need.
The way teachers invite children to learn shapes how children engage with new ideas. Many preschool educators look to inquiry-based learning as a way to build on children’s natural curiosity and give them practice with problem solving. This guide explains what inquiry-based learning is, how its four types differ, the benefits and challenges, and examples you can try in your classroom.
What is inquiry-based learning in preschool?
Inquiry-based learning is a teaching approach that encourages children to use critical thinking and creative problem solving to answer a question or solve a problem. Instead of receiving facts and then recalling them, children investigate, test ideas, and explain what they discovered.
For teachers, it is a way to encourage children to look beyond what is right in front of them and stay engaged with a topic. It also creates room for open dialogue between teachers and children and supports children’s autonomy inside a classroom structure that the teacher sets.
Inquiry fits with how major early childhood organizations describe good practice. NAEYC’s position statement on developmentally appropriate practice calls for learning experiences with active engagement through play, exploration, and inquiry, and NAEYC publishes guidance on using a cycle of inquiry to plan curriculum from children’s interests and thinking. The Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework also includes Approaches to Learning as one of its five central domains for children from birth to age five.
How does inquiry-based learning work in the classroom?
There is no single required sequence, but many preschool teachers follow a simple cycle like the one below. NAEYC’s cycle of inquiry, which starts with observing what children are curious about, is another approach to explore.
- Start with a question. Present a question or invite children to share their own, such as what a seed needs to grow. Open-ended questions work well because they have more than one possible answer.
- Investigate together. Give children time, materials, and guidance to explore. Ask questions and offer prompts along the way, and let children choose how to test their ideas when the activity allows it.
- Reflect on the process. Talk about what worked, what surprised them, and what they want to find out next.
This process shifts the focus of a lesson from listening to investigating, and the activities that go with it give children many chances to think out loud.
Teachers can encourage hands-on learning with brightwheel’s Experience Curriculum, which includes digital lessons in the brightwheel app and hands-on learning materials mailed monthly. The complete curriculum system offers expert-designed lesson plans aligned with all 50 states’ early learning standards, flexible plans for baby, toddler, and preschool age groups, and daily embedded assessments to monitor each child’s growth at your program.
What are the four types of inquiry-based learning?
Educators commonly describe four levels of inquiry, a framework from Heather Banchi and Randy Bell’s 2008 article “The Many Levels of Inquiry.” The levels differ in how much information and guidance the teacher provides, from confirmation inquiry (the most teacher-directed) to open inquiry (the most child-directed).
| Level | Who provides the question | Who designs the method | What happens with the answer | Preschool example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Confirmation inquiry | Teacher | Teacher | The result is known in advance, and children confirm it | After a lesson on floating and sinking, children follow the teacher’s steps to confirm which objects float. |
| Structured inquiry | Teacher | Teacher | The result is not known in advance, and children explain it from their evidence | The teacher asks which objects float and provides the materials and steps. Children record results and explain them. |
| Guided inquiry | Teacher | Children, often in small groups | Children build explanations from their own investigation | The teacher asks what a seed needs to grow. Groups decide how to test sunlight, water, and soil. |
| Open inquiry | Children | Children | Children pursue their own question and build their own explanation | After a nature walk, a child asks why some leaves are different colors, and the group plans how to find out. |
The levels are not rigid categories. One activity can start as guided inquiry and become open inquiry as children begin asking their own questions, and researchers describe the levels as overlapping and dynamic rather than fixed. Teachers can move between levels depending on the activity, the time available, and how much experience children have with investigating.
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What are the benefits of inquiry-based learning?
Inquiry-based learning is designed to put children’s questions and thinking at the center of a lesson. These are the benefits teachers most often look for in early childhood education.
It reinforces core concepts
After introducing a concept from the curriculum, a teacher can use an inquiry activity to let children apply the idea, see why it works, and connect it to what they already know.
It makes learning more active
Instead of mainly listening, children take part in the investigation. Their curiosity shapes what they try next, which gives them a say in how they learn.
It builds problem-solving skills and confidence
Breaking a big question into small steps, making a prediction, and explaining a result gives children practice with problem solving. Finding answers with a teacher’s support can help children build confidence in their own thinking.
What are the challenges of inquiry-based learning?
Inquiry-based learning also asks more of teachers, and it is not the right fit for every lesson. These are the challenges to plan for.
It takes teacher preparation
Inquiry can feel less predictable than a scripted lesson. A literature review of inquiry-based teacher preparation in the Journal of Teacher Education and Educators (Bacak and Byker, 2021) reports that new teachers are often not adequately prepared to teach this way and that the process of inquiry is often ill-defined. Planning questions, materials, and prompts ahead of time makes the approach easier to manage.
It requires flexible planning
Open-ended investigations can take longer than a single-session lesson and may lead children in unexpected directions. Teachers can manage this by choosing a level of inquiry that matches the time available, starting with structured or guided activities, and tying each investigation to the learning goals in their curriculum.
Participation looks different for each child
Some children will answer out loud right away, while others prefer to show, draw, build, or work in a small group. Offering several ways to take part, and welcoming answers that are still taking shape, helps every child contribute.
Is inquiry-based learning right for preschool classrooms?
Inquiry-based learning can fit well in preschool classrooms when teachers match the level of support to the children and the activity. Early childhood programs already build on play, exploration, and questions, and NAEYC’s position statement on developmentally appropriate practice emphasizes active engagement through play, exploration, and inquiry. Teachers who want to try it can start with one guided activity, such as the examples below, and adjust based on how children respond.
What are some inquiry-based learning examples for preschoolers?
Choose activities that match your lesson plans, are developmentally appropriate, and are fun for the children. Each example below can run as guided inquiry, and teachers can open it up as children begin asking their own questions.
Watch a caterpillar turn into a butterfly
Butterflies go through several biological changes during their lifecycle. This activity lets children investigate that lifecycle from the egg stage to the butterfly’s release. Inquiry level: guided.
Begin by sharing how caterpillars hatch, form a chrysalis, and eventually become butterflies. Then have children create ideal environments in individual boxes that will house the caterpillar and keep it safe until it is ready to be released. Provide a variety of containers, food types, and materials for the caterpillar to use during its transformation. Ask: What do you think the caterpillar needs? What changed since yesterday?
Grow a plant from a seed
Growing a plant seems simple, but a lot goes into creating the right environment. This activity helps children investigate the factors plants need to germinate and grow. Inquiry level: guided.
Start by explaining basic ideas such as photosynthesis, where different plants thrive, and what food and energy sources plants need to survive. Then split the class into small groups and have them use this knowledge to create ideal growing conditions for a plant. Ask: What do you think will happen if this seed gets less light?
Discover colors and patterns found in nature
Invite preschoolers to become young explorers and discover the colors and patterns found in nature. Inquiry level: structured, moving toward open.
Start by taking a nature walk with the children. Encourage them to use their senses to observe and collect items such as leaves, flowers, rocks, or shells. Back inside, lay out the collected items and start a discussion. Ask: What colors do you see? Do these items have patterns or designs on them? How does each item feel? Is it smooth, rough, or bumpy? Where in nature did we find these items?
Next, give the children a large piece of paper or cardboard to arrange their nature items on. Have them use markers or crayons to draw and color around the objects and create a portrait of nature’s palette. Encourage them to keep asking questions and exploring as they create.
Test what sinks and what floats
Set up a water table with a mix of small objects, such as a wooden block, a metal spoon, a sponge, and a plastic cup. Inquiry level: structured, moving toward guided.
Ask children to predict which objects will float, test each one, and sort them into groups. Then ask what the floating objects have in common, and let children choose new objects to test.
Inquiry-based learning FAQs
What is inquiry-based learning in preschool?
Inquiry-based learning in preschool is a teaching approach in which children build understanding by asking questions, exploring materials, testing ideas, and explaining what they find. The teacher guides the process with prompts and open-ended questions instead of simply giving answers.
What are the four types of inquiry-based learning?
The four types are confirmation, structured, guided, and open inquiry. They differ in how much the teacher provides. In confirmation inquiry the teacher supplies the question and method and the result is known in advance, while in open inquiry children form their own questions and plan their own investigations.
How is inquiry-based learning different from traditional teaching?
In teacher-directed instruction, the teacher mainly delivers information for children to remember. In inquiry-based learning, children investigate a question and build explanations from what they observe, with the teacher guiding through prompts and materials.
Can preschoolers do inquiry-based learning?
Yes. Preschoolers can take part in inquiry when activities are hands-on and match their development, such as sorting objects, testing what floats, or watching a plant grow. Teachers can adjust the amount of structure, starting with more support and giving children more choice as they gain experience.
What are the disadvantages of inquiry-based learning?
Inquiry-based learning can take more teacher preparation and flexible planning than a scripted lesson, and inquiry can be hard to define and carry out consistently. Children also take part in different ways, so teachers need to offer several ways to participate.
What are some inquiry-based learning examples for preschoolers?
Examples include watching a caterpillar become a butterfly, growing a plant from a seed, exploring colors and patterns on a nature walk, and testing which objects sink or float. Each starts with a question and gives children materials to investigate.
How do you start inquiry-based learning in a preschool classroom?
Start with one question and one hands-on activity. Choose a level of inquiry that fits your group, prepare materials and open-ended prompts in advance, give children time to investigate, and end by talking about what they found and what they want to learn next.
How can brightwheel support inquiry-based learning in your program?
Inquiry-based activities work best when teachers can plan them, capture what children do, and share learning with families. Brightwheel is an all-in-one childcare management platform, and its learning and lesson planning tools let teachers plan lessons, log observations with photos, videos, and notes, and align them to a learning framework or to all 50 states’ early learning standards. A preschool progress report then helps share each child’s learning with families.
Across the platform, 90% of administrators report brightwheel increases the quality of their program, and 95% of admins and staff report brightwheel improves communication with families.
Use inquiry-based learning in your classroom
Asking children to think critically and solve problems based on their own experiences creates a more well-rounded learning experience. Start small, choose the level of inquiry that fits your group, and adjust as children respond. Over time, inquiry-based activities give children more chances to ask, test, and explain, and give teachers a clearer view of how each child thinks.
