After months of research, preparation and all-around hard work, the students in all grades at Hope Highlands Middle School had the opportunity last week to present their inquiry projects to family, friends and community members.

With each grade taking a day on either Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 1:15 p.m. through to the end of the day, the students presented projects such as a song or puppet show, PowerPoint presentation, a poster, a play, three-dimensional product, or other final product along with an oral presentation on a topic related to one of three field trip sites students will be visiting in May, depending on their grade level.

The students in the sixth-grade will be visiting the Boston Museum of Science, the students in the seventh-grade will be visiting the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the eighth-grade students will visit Six Flags, New England.

According to Principal Alex Kanelos, earlier in the school year the students attended a presentation that modeled examples of inquiry learning and sample projects. In addition, they were given access to exhibits or topics related to one of the three field trip sites based on their grade level.

For example, students visiting the Six Flags amusement park could choose to explore the history of amusement parks or the physics behind the rides, or any other inquiry connected to that topic. Those visiting the museum of science could first explore the types of exhibits at the museum and then choose a related topic for their inquiry question. Those visiting the fine arts museum had the opportunity to choose any topic having to do with Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Ancient Egypt, The Renaissance, or the Middle Ages, such as religion, weapons, fashion, or architecture.

“The students were tasked with exploring topics in an attempt to choose a question that sparked their curiosity enough to start their own inquiry project,” Kanelos said. “Once an exhibit was chosen, students began conducting research and forming questions about that topic.”

Each student’s presentation began with them sharing their question with the audience and then sharing the findings of their research. Students were given the chance to debrief with their teachers and their peers after the presentations.

One seventh-grade student, Ava Boyle, shared her initial feelings after her presentation.

“Last year was the first year I did this, and I was so nervous every time I practiced my presentation,” she said. “This year was the second year and I wasn’t as nervous this time.” The students were scored on a rubric based on their level of thinking, learning, teaching and craftsmanship. Each student had the chance to reach one of three levels: approaching expectations, met expectations, and exceeded expectations.