As with much in life the term "investigative", when used to describe an approach to teaching and learning, can have many interpretations. Some might consider that the term "investigations" is somehow "mired in the past", others might consider "investigations" to be a "credo" that sustains their own mathematics teaching and learning. With contemporary talk of "curriculum pressure", the demand for "results", and the "lack of time in the classroom" default positions and strategies can lose sight of the need for learners to understand. Here the case for an "investigative approach" is explained, and illustrated in a way which provides ideas that have the potential to enliven the learning any mathematics classroom.