5 Ways to Cultivate Curiosity in Your Classroom

Curious students learn best, and curiosity makes lifelong learners. It is the art of thinking and of thinking about what you don’t know. It’s also the art of caring about what you do know and the things that you do.

When students learn to ask why, when, and how, they are activating their learning. If they aren’t thinking of questions during your lectures, they are likely bored or simply taking notes to pass the next test or quiz.

But how do you cultivate curiosity in your classroom? How do you make students care about The Scarlet Letter, algebra, or the Battle of Hastings? Here are some tips to get started.

1. Be curious yourself. Let students see that you are actively engaged in learning. Talk about the books you’re reading and the hobbies you enjoy. Baking, cycling, hiking, writing, sketching, painting, beekeeping, gardening—education is wrapped up in everything, and you can help your students see the connections.

2. Integrate questions.

   • “What would you do if . . . ?”
   • “Isn’t it weird how . . . ?”
   • “Have you ever wondered . . . ?”
   • “What would it be like to . . . ?”
   • “How do we know that . . . ?”
   • “What do you think about . . . ?”

   Scenario:

   “Have you ever wondered what would happen if another country invaded our own and won? What if the invading conquerors spoke another language?” Discuss student hypotheticals. “This type of event actually happened in 1066 when . . .”

3. Make connections. Students hate feeling as though they’re wasting time and energy on something “they’re never going to use in the real world.” It’s our job as educators to help them see that knowledge builds on other knowledge. Bakers couldn’t create a moist, fluffy cake without the science of chemical reactions, and they couldn’t make their yummy creations beautiful without the principles of art and design. No one can predict how God will use their learning. It is the job of teachers to steward their learners, and the job of learners to steward their time.

4. Teach them to ask questions. Teachers should always give students the opportunity to ask questions, but they shouldn’t expect good questions if they haven’t taught students the art of asking.

5. Teach them wisdom. A lack of curiosity is intellectual laziness, and Scripture has plenty to say about laziness:

   “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. . . .” (Ecclesiastes 9:10)

   “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15–16)

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