[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Inquiry is an integral part of the teaching and learning of science. However, many science teachers are unsure of how to promote and support inquiry in the classroom or how to design lessons that engage students in inquiry in a way that improves students' understanding of important concepts and practices in biology. In this article we describe an instructional model called Argument-Driven Inquiry (ADI) that enables biology teachers to integrate inquiry-based laboratory experiences in biology with other school subjects, such as reading and writing, in a way that promotes and supports learning. It also provides biology teachers with a way to help students develop important habits of mind and critical thinking skills by emphasizing the important role argumentation plays in the generation and validation of scientific knowledge (Driver, Newton & Osborne, 2000; Duschl & Osborne, 2002). This model is designed to frame the goal of scientific inquiry as an effort to develop an argument that provides and supports an explanation for a research question. As part of this effort, students are required to design and implement their own investigations, gather and analyze data, communicate and justify their ideas with others during interactive argumentation sessions, write investigation reports to share and document their work, and engage in peer-review. This process provides students with an opportunity to take ownership of their learning and can help make laboratory work more educative for students. Overall, this type of instructional model can be a useful pedagogical approach for science teachers interested in integrating science with other school subjects or who want to help students develop a better understanding of the types of practices that make science different from other ways of knowing. * Why Is Integrating Science With Other School Subjects Important? In America's Lab Report: Investigations in High School Sciences (2005), the National Research Council (NRC) makes several suggestions for how laboratory experiences can be made more effective. The NRC defined laboratory experiences in this report as "opportunities for students to interact directly with the material world (or with data drawn from the material world), using tools, data collection techniques, models, and theories of science" (p. 31) and suggests these experiences need to be inquiry-based and integrated with other activities such as reading, writing, and discussions in order to enhance student achievement. The NRC committee proposed the phrase "integrated instructional units" to describe this type of instruction (p. 82). It also stresses the importance of constructing or critiquing arguments and embedding diagnostic or formative assessment into the instruction sequence that can be used to gauge students' developing understanding and to promote critical reflection. Although more research is needed in this area, current studies indicate that integrated instructional units are more effective than traditional laboratory experiences at enhancing student mastery of subject area, development of scientific reasoning, helping students learn to read and write, and for cultivating interest in science (NRC, 2005, 2007). It also appears that integrated instruction is an effective way to help more and a wider diversity of students progress toward these goals (NRC, 2005). However, efforts to promote this type of instruction inside science classrooms will require the development of new and effective instructional models, such as Argument-Driven Inquiry, that biology teachers can use to design new laboratory experiences or to adapt existing lab activities. * The Argument-Driven Inquiry (ADI) Instructional Model We have developed the ADI instructional model to function as a short integrated instructional unit and to encourage students to engage in interdisciplinary work in a way that promotes their understanding of important concepts and practices in biology. …