Reception Class Are Poor Questioners

[Guest tinkerbell]

My class love listening to stories .They take home Floppy and Mog and re tell amazing imaginative stories to the class.BUT when the class ask questions they haven't listened to what the children have been saying, they are very poor at this...I am working on this questioning .

Does anyone have advice?

Thanks Tinkerbellx

[Susan]

I don't think its unusual. Its about knowing what else there might be to know about too, isn't it which may not always be obvious to little children?

 

Specific speaking and listening activities may be the way to address this.

[Guest]

You need the Special question chair

Each day it is one child'e turn to sit in it and, once they have been introduced with a bit of a razamatazz, everyone asks them questions. Start easy, by modelling some like favourite colour, favourite food etc, and then be prepared for the children to get inventive: Have you got a brother? Where do you live? (Down there, round the corner, past the chippy!) What colour is your front door? What do you want for Christmas?

We found that the child on the chair loved it, and everyone got very good at asking questions.

[apple]

We had this problem, the children would ask questions but totally unrelated to what had been said!

Lawernce Educational- the ones that do all the Lola and Steady Beat, Beat Baby stuff... have a great book called 'Helping Young Children to ask Questions' we have used it to great effect. However, we found that we had to model questions before hand. Myself and my TA did this for a few weeks- yes I know it took a long time but it worked.

 

I used an idea that I saw on Teacher's TV that involved erecting a basket on a pully system hung from the ceiling. Our class toy would hang out in the basket and come down at fruit and milk time to 'ask' a question which we (me and the TA) had written on a post it pad. The daily question was either a what, who where how when or why- so introducing these forms of questions. The children gave answers that were really insightful to their own perceptions and knowledge of the world. We wrote their answers down and added them to an ongoing display; the more abstract the better we found like why is the sky blue, how does a car work? etc

One day the basket was pulled down but there was no question inside- shock horror The children then had to think of their own quesiton- we wrote them all down and stuck them to the display board- at the end of the week we planned a session were the children went in small groups to the library to use the internet and non-fiction books and also to generate their own answers to the questions. What we found was that the children obvioulsy became more focued on what was being said as they wanted to be the ones to answer the quesitons- in turn their achievements went up on the profile for reading - related to non-fiction and in KUW relating to asking questions about why things happen etc

 

I'd say stick with it but definately model, model, model

[Guest]

We had this problem, the children would ask questions but totally unrelated to what had been said!

Lawernce Educational- the ones that do all the Lola and Steady Beat, Beat Baby stuff... have a great book called 'Helping Young Children to ask Questions' we have used it to great effect. However, we found that we had to model questions before hand. Myself and my TA did this for a few weeks- yes I know it took a long time but it worked.

 

I used an idea that I saw on Teacher's TV that involved erecting a basket on a pully system hung from the ceiling. Our class toy would hang out in the basket and come down at fruit and milk time to 'ask' a question which we (me and the TA) had written on a post it pad. The daily question was either a what, who where how when or why- so introducing these forms of questions. The children gave answers that were really insightful to their own perceptions and knowledge of the world. We wrote their answers down and added them to an ongoing display; the more abstract the better we found like why is the sky blue, how does a car work? etc

One day the basket was pulled down but there was no question inside- shock horror The children then had to think of their own quesiton- we wrote them all down and stuck them to the display board- at the end of the week we planned a session were the children went in small groups to the library to use the internet and non-fiction books and also to generate their own answers to the questions. What we found was that the children obvioulsy became more focued on what was being said as they wanted to be the ones to answer the quesitons- in turn their achievements went up on the profile for reading - related to non-fiction and in KUW relating to asking questions about why things happen etc

 

I'd say stick with it but definately model, model, model

 

Love this idea, thanks. In my experience of Reception Children, you give the opportunity to them to 'ask a question', they willingly put up their hand and then go on to tell you what they had for tea last night! This could help to get them more on track regarding 'questioning'.

[Susan]

Hi Liz Harrison and welcome.

[Guest]

Brilliant ideas so far. One I've recently started doing is not as clever but has been good at getting children to ask specific questions: a very simple version of 20 questions. The children sit in a circle and I place 6 random objects in the centre. Recent objects were a tractor, a clothes peg, a tractor, a finger puppet, a pen and a mug. The rules are that I am thinking of one of the things and they have to work out which one by asking me questions. They are not allowed to say 'Is it the...' unless they know what the object is because otherwise they lose the game. When a question is asked we discuss what we need to get rid of/do we know what it is?/do we need to ask another question? They are really good at this now and I'm amazed at how they hone in on an aspect of each object in order to try and determine the object. The questions for the objects above included 'Has it got a lid?' (for the pen), 'Does it have a handle?' (the mug) and one that I thought was brilliant - 'Does it have a spring?' (the peg).

[Guest]

I also find doing a show and tell based session where you model q's ( when you want to find out something not tell us something !) works well as the children really enjoy sense of audience and gives them an idea of what your role feels like......... sometimes even reults in more empathy I always do it so the children are out at the front, not in a circle so it is truely their moment and having something from home etc to talk about makes even the shyest public speakers confident!!

[Guest tinkerbell]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.

My class is getting a little better at questioning but I still feel they have a long way to go.I bought a bed bug/woodlouse from IKEA its a pyjama case, he has a huge mouth.He sits under my chair and we have to sing a soing for nhim to come out

Gordon Gordon are you there?

Sleeping under the teachers chair

Gordon Gordon come on out

What have you got in your great big mouth?

The children love to be chosen to see what is in his mouth.....coulkd be anything the phonic sound for the day, a packet of jelly .....but i do write a simple question now and the children have to think and answer it

 

Tinkerbellx

[Guest Wolfie]

That's a great idea! Who made the song up...and what's the tune??!

[Andreamay]

what lovely ideas

Im in a pre-school but do begin to model questions esp when having visitors in some children have grasped it before they go over to reception but it is obviously one we need to practise.

[Guest]

Another lovely idea tinkerbell. IKEA will be rubbing their hands with glee as we all trip of to buy a pyjama case for our class