lesson

What makes a question essential: (pages 107-112 in UbD text.) 4 connotations of “essential”

 Important questions that recur throughout our lives

 Core ideas and inquiries within the discipline

 Helps students effectively inquire and make sense of the big idea(s) and requires students to make decisions about answers

 Engages a specific and diverse set of learners Characteristics of Essential Questions (also p. 91 in UbD workbook)

 Have more than 1 answer, meant to be discussed, investigated

 Cannot be answered in a single sentence

 Might be controversial or pose a dilemma and as such require reasoning and justification

 Raise other important questions

 Naturally and appropriately recur K-12 and beyond