Introduction: We Can Do This
- Asking Beautiful Questions
- Paying Attention to What Doesn't Feel Right
- Asking, "What If?": Creating Space for Possibility
Chapter One: What If Each Day's Teaching Focused on Children's Agency?
- Finding Our Way to a Beautiful Question: The Disengaged Child
- What's the Best That Could Happen? Agency Fosters Engagement
- Imagining New Possibilities for a Child
- Conferring to Support Access and Choice
- Paying Attention During Independent Work Time
- Conferring to Inquire and to Offer Community
- Postscript
Chapter Two: What If We Made What Children Make and Do Our Priority?
- Finding Our Way to a Beautiful Question: Workshop Planning
- What's the Best That Could Happen? Meaningful Work
- Planning for What Children Will Do First
- Planning for What Teachers Will Do During Work Time
- Figuring Out What to Teach
- Playing with the Sequence
- Taking Ownership
Chapter Three: What If Our Classroom Environment and Routines Offered Choice?
- Finding Our Way to a Beautiful Question: Frustration over Supplies
- What's the Best That Could Happen? Managing Their Own Work
- Being Intentional in Our Language
- Cocreating Routines
- Designing Agentive Environments
Chapter Four: What If We Owned the Units We Are Asked to Teach?
- Finding Our Way to a Beautiful Question: The Units We're Given
- Are These the Right Goals?
- Which Texts Work Best?
- How Will We Know When We're Done?
- How Can This Happen Within Daily Workshop?
- What's the Best That Could Happen? Perfection in Imperfection
Chapter Five: What If Read-Aloud Sustained Children's Independent Thinking?
- Finding Our Way to a Beautiful Question: The Wisdom in Children's Thinking
- Expecting Brilliance
- Finding Time for Read-Aloud
- Reading Aloud for Joy
- Teachers and Children Thinking Aloud
- What's the Best That Could Happen? Being Inspired to Act
Conclusion: In Pursuit of Beautiful Questions