It became one of the first experiences I had where students lead me with ideas and questions. I discovered then that students could steer their own learning. And, with the right guidance, it would go far beyond what I could plan on an individual level. I simply needed to set up an atmosphere and opportunity for this to happen. Like Lewis and Clark, every student is on a path of seeking the unknown and discovering new territory.
Every classroom is an exploration that finds new answers and new beginnings.
Over a teaching career that found me teaching younger students, I learned that what I had learned on the secondary level could be applied to all grades. What a wonderful approach to learning. This tact implies a need to know and find out a critical ingredient to helping students become life-long learners. Let's not limit this approach to one or two content areas. Exploration means everything.