InFlow Inquiry Process Gets a New Look

Whether it’s Social Studies research, information writing or a Science investigation, ASD students and teachers continue to apply the Information Flow Inquiry Process to their learning experiences. Over the past year, we have been developing our common language and practice of inquiry using InFlow as a school.

ASD K-12 Libraries are excited to reveal our new InFlow logo and poster design. The puzzle pieces represent the interconnected nature of the InFlow elements. Each piece of the puzzle can be connected in any order and can be repeated. Students build the big picture of their individual process. They are discovering that the picture of their learning process look different depending on the task.

Building on the original work of Sarah McNicol who developed the InFlow model, our library team saw the need to add a new element, “connect,” to the process to capture the way students synthesize information and connect to prior knowledge to create new understanding. 

Special thanks go to Ms. Margaret, our ES Library instructional assistant, who designed the new look for InFlow. The library team is proud to report that we now have a Creative Commons Attribution License for InFlow. Under the license, other schools can use, adapt and share further work with InFlow.

Talk Tuesday: InFlow Research Model K-12

More than 20 parents joined us in the Elementary Library this morning to learn more about the InFlow Research Model. The four ASD Librarians, Carly, Jill, Jenny and Natasha, presented an overview of the model demonstrated how students engage in research at ASD from K1 through Grade 12.

Our discussion included the importance of purposeful, intentional teaching of information literacy skills. Much has been written about the “digital native.” Our children, our students have never known life without technology at their fingertips. Adults often presume that this access to technology equates with a high level of skill. New research is revealing that, in fact, many of skills needed to use technology and to use information effectively must be purposefully taught and practiced.

Samples of students' research projects from Lower and Upper Elementary, Middle and High School helped to show how skills are developmentally built and purposefully taught through the grade levels.

Some of the key principles of the InFlow model are:

• K-12 common language, cohesive model for research.
• Engaging, learner-centered, individualized. 
• Authentic learning experiences, creative outputs.
• Process flows naturally from one element to the next, not isolated tasks.
• Elements can be undertaken in any order. 
• Not essential to use every element.
• Iterative: learners may return to each element several times.
• Learners engage with information in a variety of ways.
• Collaboration is important, also supports individual.
• Adaptable for different age ranges.
• Refined and adapted by learners and teachers.

We appreciate parents involvement in helping their children become adept researchers. Parents' knowledge of the InFlow research process will serve to support and extend their children's learning at home.

InFlow: Building Research Skills

This year, elementary students are reflecting on their research process by using a new model called InFlow. ASD has adopted InFlow as an integrated model for K-12 information literacy. The eight elements of InFlow are ask, map, explore, make, show, imagine, collaborate and reflect. 

Some of the basic concepts around the InFlow model are:

• K-12 common language and cohesive model for the research process. 
• Designed to be engaging for learners and to support learner-centered and individualized learning. 
• Focussed on authentic learning experiences and the production of creative, tangible outputs. 
• Process which flows naturally from one element to the next, rather than a set of isolated tasks. 
• Elements can be undertaken in any order. It is likely that some elements will be repeated several times, but equally, it is not essential to use every element during an activity. 
• Learners engage with information in a variety of ways as they map, explore, ask, reflect, collaborate, imagine, show and make. 
• Collaboration is an important component of and group projects and team work are supported. However, each of the elements can also be carried out as an individual task as appropriate. 
• The model is designed to adaptable for different age ranges. 
• It is intended to be refined and adapted by each individual to suit their own situation and the needs of their learners.

InFlow in Action:

Grade Four students are working collaboratively to research life on the Oregon Trail. In small groups, they have developed a series of questions. Using a Google Doc to organize their note taking, each group member is responsible for a specific focus area. As a team, the students work together to learn about this period in American history. All of the questions are self-selected making the process entirely inquiry driven by the students. A variety of books and electronic resources are used to answer their questions.

Destiny Quest: A Powerful Tool for Readers and Researchers

Our elementary students are savvy searchers! Students are learning to use Destiny Quest as a tool for finding books and other resources. They can view popular and new titles, search for books in a variety of ways, monitor their personal library accounts, flag books to read in the future and also post book reviews. It is our library catalog in an interactive, personalized app.

Grade 4 students have been using Destiny Quest to search for books and websites for their current Social Studies unit about cultures around the world. Students are researching a place that is important to them. After digging in deep about aspects of their culture, students will showcase their learning at a World Expo display next month.

One of the best ways to decide what to read next is to hear from friends. Grade 2 students have been rating books in Destiny Quest and writing reviews to explain why a book is special to them. This way, when students search for a book, they can read what their friends think about it and decide if it might be a good fit.

In Grade 3, students are learning to find books using call numbers. Using Destiny Quest as a portable tool makes finding books a breeze! Students can also learn all kinds of information about a book while standing at the shelf. Is the book in a series? Are their other books related to this topic? Are their other books by this author? Destiny Quests makes browsing more effective and interactive.

If your family has an iPad or other mobile device, make sure to download Destiny Quest from the app store for free. Click here for step by step instructions on setting up the app on your device.