Is It Play or Learning When It's Fun?

Our educator inquiry:  Will there be learning if students are permitted to engage in free exploration of intentionally selected materials? 

Method:

1) Educators selected the materials and library resources (based on student interest) for students to explore. (See our materials list in the post entitled "Provocations")

2) Students and Educators reviewed pre-existing class norms for the appropriate use of learning time.

3) Students explored, based on their own interests.  Teachers observed and documented.

At the end of the class, when asked 
"What did you learn today?" 
students said:

"I learned about momentum."

(Grade 6 student)

"I learned how to write words in another language and how to carve them too."

(Grade 5 student)

"I never thought that taking apart a phone would be so much fun. I found that there's a whole lot of parts in a phone that look like GOLD. I had a lot of fun opening the phone and we figured out that static electricity can power the screen."

(Grade 6 student)

And educators said:
"Older students can learn through exploration too."
"Intentionally selected materials provoke student thinking and learning."