The Fairywren Challenge: Ask Questions Like a Scientist

How Do Scientists Pick a Research Question?

The surprising science of bird families—An evolutionary biologist's #SciJourney

'Fairywrens and the Art of Inquiry' |Science| G6-8 (en-US)

Anna Wilkins

Acknowledgments

#### Connection to Research
  <figure class="figure float-md-end ms-md-3 mb-3" style=" max-width: min(40vw, 400px);">
  <img   src="https://storage.googleapis.com/gp-cloud/lessons/FairyWrens_en-US/Copy-of-Copy-of-PBFW-square.jpg"    class="img-fluid"    style="height: auto;" alt="Purple-backed fairywren illustration"> <figcaption class="figure-caption text-end fst-italic small">
Purple-backed fairywren illustration by Dr. Allison Johnson
 </figcaption>
</figure>
This unit features photos, video footage, and real data collected by a team of researchers studying evolution of behavior and group size in [fairywrens](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malurus)—a group of colorful Australian birds in the genus *Malurus*. These adorable birds are inherently fun to watch, and serve as a gateway for students to get curious about animal behavior and practice being observant and asking questions. The unit also features amazing scientific illustrations by Dr. Allison Johnson sprinkled throughout videos and teaching materials!  
#### Research Background
 Dr. Allison Johnson and Dr. Dai Shizuka are behavioral ecologists whose work examines the relationships formed between animals within and across social groups. Dr. Johnson has been conducting research in Australia since 2011, focusing on understanding when and why cooperatively breeding birds form social groups. Dr. Shizuka’s work has investigated the links between sociality and ecology in birds in a wide variety of contexts. Together with collaborator Dr. Joe Welklin, they have combined their expertise to address how environmental variation, social conflict, and the benefits of sociality might interact to shape patterns of social organization within and across species. 

#### Check out the Fairywren research labs:
- [Allison E. Johnson, PhD](https://allisonelainejohnson.weebly.com/)
- [Dai Shizuka, PhD](https://shizukalab.com/)
- [Joe Welklin, PhD](https://www.josephwelklin.com/)
#### Further Reading:
**Scientific Papers**  
- [Ecogeography of group size suggests differences in drivers of sociality among cooperatively breeding fairywrens| ProcB (2023)](https://fairywrenproject.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=40a05ae25003beac45ad21c6f&id=6442f016b9&e=6cb5da9bae)— the paper from which group size data were used for Station 2 in Lesson 2
- [Ecogeographical rules: elements of a synthesis| Journal of Biogeography (2008)](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1365-2699.2007.01772.x) — a description of some of the common ecogeographic rules and discussion of their generalizability across different biological levels

Background

**Laura Perry** | Designed and developed all curricular materials  
**[Matt Wilkins](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattwilkinsphd/)** | Oversaw development of all materials, wrote script and directed videos  
**[Stephanie Castillo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/castils/)** | Produced, edited, narrated, and scored supporting videos  
**[Dai Shizuka ](https://shizukalab.com/)** | Defined outreach goals; provided feedback throughout development; provided scientific validation of lesson content    
**[Allison Johnson](https://allisonelainejohnson.weebly.com/)** | Defined outreach goals; provided feedback throughout development; provided scientific validation of lesson content  

Credits

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How do scientists pick a question to study?

Science

#### Driving Question(s):
1. How do scientists pick a question to investigate?
2. How does a scientific question develop while collecting data? 
#### Hook(s):
- Learn alongside actual scientists as they observe the same data as you!
- Includes creative, interactive videos and think-alouds with scientists that model how students can ask better questions.

Fairywrens and the Art of Inquiry

The Gist

Driving Question(s):

Hook(s):

Lesson summaries

Let Your Questions Fly

Not Just Winging It

Supporting Multimedia

The Fairywren Challenge: Ask Questions Like a Scientist