What Is An Inquiry Cycle in the IB PYP ?

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If you're new to inquiry based learning or the IB PYP, you may very well be asking yourself what exactly is an inquiry cycle? Well, basically it is a marvellous journey that you take alongside your students, allowing a common language into exploration.😊 Let's dive in and unpack it together.

Concept-based inquiry is at the heart of the IB PYP pedagogy and the process of inquiry is often modelled as a linear cycle. There are many correct inquiry cycles out there and it doesn't matter which one you prefer to follow or adapt since the process of learning is what's most important for your students. It provides a powerful framework for cultivating curiosity in our classrooms. When we talk about inquiry, we’re talking about active learning; empowering our students to BE thinkers, questioners, explorers, communicators. However, PYP schools are probably most familiar with Kath Murdoch’s inquiry cycle.

In today's post, we’ll explore the fundamental stages of the process of inquiry and I'll offer practical tips to help you create an environment where curiosity thrives and students take ownership of their learning journey.

Form & Function: What is the Cycle of Inquiry?

The inquiry cycle is a dynamic process that takes your learners through phases of exploration, investigation, and reflection. It does NOT happen in a neat, linear fashion; it’s organic, messy, and reflective of how real learning works: More like a web than a cycle, really. As teacher-facilitators, our role is to guide students through these stages, going back and forth where it happens naturally and making sure they’re thinking critically, reflecting, and applying what they learn.

Kath Murdoch, breaks the process of learning through inquiry into distinct stages: Tuning In, Finding Out, Sorting Out, Going Further, Making Conclusions, and Taking Action. Other cycles have their own titles for the stages of the process of inquiry. The title isn't important, it's the skills that are being developed within each part of the process that count.

Connecting the Skills Throughout the Inquiry Process

Each of these stages comes with its own set of skills and when done well, leads to a deep, meaningful understanding of the world. We can and should absolutely connect the ATL Skills within each stage of the process. I created these ATL skills cards, seen above, to correlate with each stage of the inquiry process. Of course, the skills can and will overlap and interconnect. I wanted my students to be able to identify which of the skills they were developing and working with as we progressed through the learning journey. Why? This awareness was going to really bring authenticity to our co-constructing of success criteria and build upon meaningful reflection and self-assessment. The example above was designed for lower grades. I have a set for big kids too.

1. Tuning In: Excite & Engage!

This is where the magic begins! Tuning in is all about getting students curious and engaged. During this stage, we’re helping learners connect to what they already know, enabling us to gauge prior knowledge and understanding at the same time. And this is the point where they begin asking questions. One of the most powerful tools at this stage is a strong provocation—something to make students think, “Yes, I know this much and wow, I want to know more about this!”

Educator Tip🍒: Don’t be afraid to go big with provocations! A powerful image, a thought-provoking video or an interesting artefact or experience can ignite students' curiosity. It can even be a wee bit controversial. Encourage them to share what they wonder, their current perspective and what they think they already know about the topic. You can find more ideas about inviting wonder and the art of the provocation in this blog article.

Make Questioning Skills A Big Deal!

If we are inquiry teachers, facilitating a student-led inquiry process, then it makes absolute sense that we have to be able to teach the children the art of questioning. Questions are, after all, the beginning of each and every inquiry. The chart below is a fantastic visual for teaching children how to develop and assess their own higher level questions. And question starters are an effective way to differentiate learning as your young inquirers learn how to ask concept-based questions. I created these specified concept-based questions starters as a tool to keep in our table groups' toolboxes. The kids would often reach for them independently. Win!

You can link to this article for more ideas for developing thinkers and inquirers.

2. Finding Out: Building Knowledge

Now that we have their curiosity, it’s time for students to dive into finding out. This stage is where they gather information and start answering some of their initial questions. It’s also the stage where students learn how to research. Whether it’s through reading, observing, interviewing, or hands-on exploration, this phase is about building a strong knowledge base.

Educator Tip🍒: Equip students with a variety of research tools. Let them experiment with books, articles, videos, and even experts they can interview.

Scaffold research by teaching your students how to find reliable sources and organise their findings.
What's the difference between primary and secondary sources? Why does it matter?
Model note-taking strategies and encourage students to share discoveries with each other as they go.

Collaboration makes this stage even more exciting! I created resources specifically to support my grades 3,4 & 5 with options for note-taking, support different learning styles. By providing structure and options, we are honouring agency and differentiating to meet the needs of all our learners. You can find many resources for developing research skills for all ages in my store. Take a look here.

3. Sorting Out: Making Sense of Learning

At this stage, students begin to organize and make sense of all the information they’ve gathered. It’s where they start to see patterns, connections, and relationships between ideas. This is a critical thinking stage where students need to categorize, compare, and evaluate what they’ve learned so far.

Educator Tip🍒: Sorting out is where thinking routines shine! Use visible thinking strategies to help students process their learning. Examples:

“What makes you say that?”
“First thoughts/Second thoughts"
Question, Quote, Sketch, Summary

Graphic organisers, concept maps, or even collaborative group discussions can aid in sorting and clarifying information.

As your students are learning to think critically, analysing the information from their learning experiences, the ATL thinking skills come into their realm within this stage of the inquiry and explicit teaching of those skills brings authentic practice to life.

Lower Grades:

Going Deeper with SEE THINK WONDER Thinking Skills

SEE THINK WONDER Playdough Mats

Grades 3-5

Thinking Skills & Activities for Big Kids

Thinking Skills Posters: Understanding Metacognition

4. Going Further: Deepening Understanding

Inquiry isn’t just about surface-level understanding. In the “Going Further” stage, students dive deeper into their learning. They might explore subtopics, investigate related issues, or look at different perspectives. This is where they can really take ownership of their learning journey by choosing areas of personal interest to explore further.

Educator Tip🍒: Give students freedom to follow their interests at this stage. Independent inquiries, passion projects, or student-driven research can provide opportunities for deeper learning. You can also encourage them to work in groups and collaborate on shared interests.

5. Making Conclusions: Reflecting, Synthesising & Putting It All Together

Once students have gathered and organized their information, it’s time to reflect and draw conclusions. This is a reflective stage where students synthesize their learning and form their own understanding. What new insights have they gained? What do they believe about the topic now?

Educator Tip🍒: Reflection is key here. Give students time and space to think deeply about what they’ve learned. Use reflective journals, discussions, or creative projects (like art or multimedia presentations) to help them express their conclusions. Encourage them to not only summarise what they learned, but to think about how their understanding has changed.

Assessment & Reflection Tools:

I have a collection of PYP teaching tools to support this reflective thinking stage. These focus on a practice of inclusive assessment and are fabulous for addressing conceptual understanding as well as skills development. Exactly what we want within a transdisciplinary inquiry. I've listed some of the most popular resources below:

Lower Grades:

Upper Grades:

Reflection & Assessment Concept Cards for Every Theme

Reflection & Assessment Maths Concept Task Cards

If you'd like more practical ideas for getting the kids actively involved in assessment and reflection, head over to this blog Assessment: Strategies for Getting the Kids Involved.

6. Taking Action: Empowering Students to Make a Difference

Inquiry doesn’t stop at understanding—it’s about taking action! This is where students apply their learning in real-world contexts, whether that’s by advocating for a cause, raising awareness, or solving a problem in their community. Taking action is the ultimate goal of inquiry because it empowers students to use their knowledge to make a difference. Read the blog Inspiring Student Led Action for more ideas.

Educator Tip🍒: Encourage students to think about how they can take meaningful action. It doesn’t have to be big—sometimes small, personal actions are just as impactful. Support students in identifying ways they can make positive change, whether it’s through a class project, a community service activity, or even sharing their learning with others. You can find reference posters to support your students as they learn what taking action might LOOK-SOUND-FEEL-ACT like.

The Power of Reflection in Every Stage

One of the most important aspects of inquiry is reflection and within the PYP we pause to reflect throughout the inquiry. At each stage of the cycle, students should be reflecting on their learning—what worked, what didn’t, and what they’re curious about next. This is how inquiry becomes a lifelong habit, where students learn to think critically, solve problems, and continuously ask questions about the world around them.

Educator Tip🍒: Build regular reflection into your inquiry practice. Simple strategies like exit tickets, think-pair-share, or student-led conferences are excellent ways to foster reflection. Help students see the value in thinking about their thinking (metacognition) as they move through the inquiry process.

Bringing It All Together

Inquiry-based learning is about more than just answering questions—it’s about nurturing a mindset of curiosity, reflection, and action. Regardless of which inquiry cycle you follow, they are designed to give us a clear framework to guide our students through this process. Remember, inquiry isn’t a straight line. It’s messy, it’s dynamic, and it’s deeply personal for each learner. But when you give your students the tools and the freedom to explore, you create a classroom where authentic learning happens, and students become lifelong inquirers.

So, as you head back to your classrooms, a few things to remember:

the process of inquiry might look more like a web than a cycle!
embrace the messiness of inquiry.
let your students ask big questions,
dive into their interests,
be flexible enough to step away from your planner
take action on the issues that matter to them.

P.S. If you are looking for more in-depth support with the process of concept-based inquiry, you will absolutely want to dive into my online course, Essentials for Inquiry. Take a peek and reach out with any questions.