Inquiry-based instruction is gaining favor in college classrooms because it improves scientific skills as well as critical thinking. As we seek ways to improve science education, elementary school is increasingly becoming an embattled component because of decreased time spent on science during those years. The approach that elementary educators take to science will be critical in making the most of time spent on science in their classrooms. This research examines the influence of an inquiry-based introductory biology laboratory on preservice elementary teachers' perspectives on science and how to teach it. The implementation of the inquiry-based biology laboratory improved preservice elementary teachers' opinions about science and affected their opinions about how science is best taught. These preservice elementary teachers appreciated the flexible and self-directed structure of the inquiry-based format and expected to use exercises from the inquiry-based lab in their future classrooms. These results suggest that the use of inquiry-based laboratories in teacher education programs will encourage preservice elementary teachers to use inquiry in their future classrooms. (Contains 3 figures.)