The implications of Earth's ocean being little explored may not be immediately evident to individuals who are not ocean literate. For this reason, initiatives to improve ocean literacy must articulate compelling reasons for ocean exploration. A lesson plan that addresses this issue has been developed as part of the education and outreach program…

Presenting both traditional and innovative assessment methods integral to science teaching and learning, this book shows teachers the connection between effective science assessment and improved student learning. The text uses a competence-based approach consistent with the National Science Education Standards to help teachers master assessment…

Amongst the challenges that elementary teachers may often face as they introduce their students to science is the need to maintain a solid understanding of the many scientific concepts and details themselves. This indispensible resource, intended for pre- and in-service elementary school teachers, provides concise and comprehensible explanation of…

"Slowmation" (abbreviated from "Slow Animation") is a simplified way of making an animation that enables students to create their own as a new way of learning about a science concept. When students make a slowmation, they create a sequence of five multimodal representations (the 5 Rs) with each one contributing to the learning…

"Glimpses of Science" is the outcome of collaboration between the University of New South Wales and four primary schools in the Sydney metropolitan region. A prototype kit on the topic of sound was developed and demonstrated by the team. This kit formed the basis for further science activities to be designed and produced in conjunction…

This case study of a fifth-year elementary intern's pathway in learning to teach science focused on her science methods course, placement science teaching, and reflections as a first-year teacher. We studied the sociocultural contexts within which the intern learned, their affordances and constraints, and participants' perspectives on their roles…

This research described in this paper firstly explored teachers' ideas about scientific literacy using an interview technique. Secondly, using a longitudinal case study approach, it examined how, following their participation in a professional development program, primary teachers presented opportunities during their science lessons for their…

Switching rural primary students on to local science was a project centred on a cluster of seven Tasmanian primary schools over a full school year. The project had as its aims a mix of professional development outcomes for participant teachers and an enhancement of science experiences for their students. In order to achieve these aims programs…

There is a particular need for inquiry-based lessons in the early elementary grades, when students are starting to develop their analytical skills. In this article, the authors present a 2-tiered inquiry-based lesson plan for 1st and 2nd grades that has been successfully used by graduate teaching fellows involved in the National Science Foundation…

The purpose of this study is to develop a worksheet about the factors affecting solubility, which could be useful for the prospective science teachers (PST) to remind and regain their science process skills (SPS). The pilot study of the WS was carried out with 32 first grade PST during the 2007-2008 academic year in the education department at…

Although the teaching of photosynthesis occurs yearly in elementary classrooms, one thing that makes it challenging is the inclusion of English language learners (ELLs). This article presents several activities for teaching and assessing of photosynthesis in a third grade classroom. The activities incorporate the photosynthesis content, teaching…

As educators, we are always deciding what experiences we want to give students in order to achieve our goals of developing science process skills. One of the best ways of teaching about observation is described here. Using a hand lens and an illuminated pocket microscope, students observe an object at three different levels of…

"MyScience" ("www.myscience.edu.au") is a pioneering primary science initiative that uses a distinctive team approach, with primary teachers, primary students and volunteer mentor scientists working collaboratively as students conduct authentic scientific investigations to find answers to their own questions. The initiative is…

"Teaching Science" has, as one of its predecessors, the "Investigating" journal, which first appeared in 1988. Looking back ten years, the winner of the "Most Valuable Paper Award" for 1999 was Kimberley Pressick-Kilborn for her article--"Steps to Fostering a Learning Community in the Primary Science…

Honeybees, butterflies, and ladybugs all have fascinating mutually beneficial relationships with plants and play important ecosystem roles. Children also love these creatures. But how do we teach children about these symbiotic interactions and help them appreciate their vital roles in our environment? One must is to give children direct experience…