Empowering Young People With Questions
what questions best enhance a learner’s development?
Questions are powerful learning tools.
Unfortunately not all learners have access to great questions, and instead are inundated with explanations, rules, and commands.
Of course there is a place for explanations, rules, and commands; but if that’s all that’s encountered at school—or if that’s the majority—then a learner’s development will be slowed.
At The Forest School we’ve developed a seriously long list of research-informed questions that we ask learners regularly to help them learn, self-reflect, build self-belief, and think deeply about their goals and challenges. We deliver these questions in a signature learning experience called "check ins". Weekly we pose select questions to help learners keep track of their learning progress and to think deeply about their goals and the challenges they’ll face in achieving them. We don’t judge learners’ answers, and instead challenge them to think deeply about themselves—their identity, interests, goals, and plans. When we perceive they may be getting in their own way (for example, self-doubt, stinking thinking, victim mentality, or misinformation), we use questions to invite them to run small experiments and learn for themselves the merit of their perspectives.
Below are some questions that we ask to empower our learners:
How are you? How do you feel?
When were you most yourself recently?
What are your expectations of yourself today and this week? How can you pursue your goals and interests and have fun?
What are your boundaries today and this week?
How are you doing at getting into flow? What’s helping you? How can you improve?
Did you meet your learning goals last week? If so, how did you accomplish them? Do you feel proud of yourself? What challenges did you encounter? If not, what challenges did you encounter that didn’t allow you to accomplish your goals? Moving forward, what can you do to overcome those challenges?
Next week, what are you capable of? What do you think will happen?
Are you behind, on track, or ahead with your learning goals for the year? What makes you say that? If you’re ahead, do you want to go fast (move on to the next level), go deep (explore a passion project), or go broad (follow your curiosity)? If you’re behind, what does that make you think? Do you know what you would need to do to get back on track?
How do you feel about your workload today and this week? Do you feel like you’re in your Challenge Zone, Comfort Zone, or Panic Zone, and why?
What learning strategies are you using and finding most successful? How will you manage your tasks for the day? For the week? Would you change any strategies or your schedule for this week? For what reasons?
If you have been learning virtually (from home), what are the biggest opportunities and challenges you face?
How are you getting along with others? Are you expressing your feelings?
Are you worrying too much about others? What would you be doing if you didn’t worry so much about others?
Are you having any conflicts with others? If so, how do you feel, and what is a healthy way to function with others in that situation? What are your boundaries? How will you learn to live together?
What do you enjoy most from your day, and why?
If you could learn anything in the world, what would it be, and why?
For our high school learners, we also ask these bigger picture questions twice per year:
What are three things in your life you’re most proud of accomplishing?
What do you think your purpose in life is?
Can you rank these from 1 (most desirable) to 8 (least desirable)? 4 year college, 2 year college, military, start my own business, start nonprofit, GAP year, get an entry level job, get a beyond entry level job?
If college is your goal, what kind of college? Can you name some colleges that interest you? What might you study and why? If a job, what job and why? If a business or nonprofit, what kind? If military, what branch and why? etc.
Of the majors / careers you mentioned, on a scale of 1 (unfamiliar) to 10 (very familiar), how familiar are you with what those jobs actually look and feel like?
Do you want to study a world language this year? Which? How good do you want want to get at that language by the time you graduate?
Are there any college visits you know you want to do this year?
What apprenticeships do you know now you want to do this year? List at least 3. You will do 4 per year.
What courses might you design for yourself? If you could learn anything in the world, what would it be?
To date, do you have a portfolio to document and showcase your best work? How might you update it?
What might you want to study or explore that is disconnected from your current interests?
Walking backwards from your long term goals, what might a solid school year look like this year?
Let’s ask ourselves these same questions six months from now…what will your answers be?!
When learners have conflict with others, here are some go to questions:
What happened? How did you feel? What did you think? How did you respond? How did that response help you? How did it hurt you? What was the familiar threat? Is there another way to reframe what’s actually going on? What’s another possible course of action next time?
Is there any immature part you’re playing in your relationships? If so, how might you address that?
Am you expecting others to meet your needs, or to be gratified? What do you need to understand from the other? What do you need to change about your unhelpful reactions?
How do you feel, but how can you make sure that feeling doesn’t dominate?
In what do you need to delay gratification? And what can you do in the interim?
If you feel upset, how did you contribute to getting there?
What are your guiding values and principles and which ones do you need right now to manage yourself in this challenging moment?
How is your point of view different, or even very different, from others who are relating with you? How are we all impacting each other?
With your family and friends, are you showing an interest in all aspects of what they’ve been doing and making sure that you really listen, keep in contact with them, and share what’s happening in your life?
Is your behavior more directed by what is rewarding and comfortable in the here and now, or by what you believe is important and would bring longer term satisfaction?
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