Hard to believe that it’s time for us to think about the November “Nudging Toward Inquiry” topic. This year, we’re returning to the popular topic from 2009-2010 about the Civil War. This time, we’re giving it a prior knowledge twist.

I’ve made a PDF of my favorite strategy here. What are yours?

Monica Edinger’s blog alerts us to the hashtag craze #JaneAustenattheSuperBowl, in which Austen aficionados describe, solliloquize, and reflect on all things Super Bowl as if living in 1830s London.

To whit (or is it wit?), yanked at random from the Twitter stream a few moments ago:

Or, for those of you preferring a translation:

Today you become a stranger to one of your parents. If you root for the Steelers, your mother will never speak to you again. If you root for the Packers, I’ll never speak to you.

Talk about a prior knowledge mashup. You have to know Pride and Prejudice AND text-speak to get this one.

Here’s an excerpt from P&P, Chapter 20:

Mrs. Bennet rang the bell, and Miss Elizabeth was summoned to the library.

“Come here, child,” cried her father as she appeared. “I have sent for you on an affair of importance. I understand that Mr. Collins has made you an offer of marriage. Is it true?” Elizabeth replied that it was. “Very well—and this offer of marriage you have refused?”

“I have, Sir.”

“Very well. We now come to the point. Your mother insists upon your accepting it. Is not it so, Mrs. Bennet?”

“Yes, or I will never see her again.”

“An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents.—Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.”

Golly, but I like Mr. Bennet. I mean, how can you not like a man whose favorite room is his library?

Well, summer is here, but we’re hard at work on School Library Monthly for 2010-2011.

This year, for the “Nudging Toward Inquiry” column, we’re going to examine one step on the inquiry journey instead of looking at content-specific lesson plan makeovers.

You can view the whole list - and submit to any of this year’s columns - here.

Even better, contribute to the first article — what do you do to awaken prior knowledge in students? How do you assess this stage? Click here to contribute.

The more diverse ideas we get, the more holistic and helpful the article can be!

Thanks!