What's the Big Idea? by Jim Burke

I have just started reading this book for my Language Arts Methods class.  I chose this book because designing lessons around essential questions is a technique that is currently being encouraged throughout my school district.  I have already created several lessons centered around essential questions, which I will soon try to transfer to internet-friendly formats and post on my blog.  So, why read this book if I am already such a seasoned "essential questions expert"?  Well, to be honest, this is a skill that, for me, is still in its infancy.  The lessons that I have created so far were more text-centered than anything else.  I had to teach a certain text (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, for example) and I had to create a lesson around an essential question.  So what did I do?  I built a question based upon what I knew students would (or should) understand after reading this text.  I have to admit, I knew this was a bit like cheating.  I know that a true question-driven unit is just that, it starts with a question.  But what are these questions?  Where should I really begin??  That is what I hope to learn from this book.  So I will share with you this lesson that I created around the text, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and my hope is that by the end of the semester I can share with you a new lesson, one that truly is centered around a meaningful and thought-provoking question.  Wish me luck!