This study explores the importance of scientific observation in primary education, highlighting how the use of observation sheets can facilitate the acquisition of knowledge and the development of students' observation skills. In the research, 153 second-grade students were divided into three experimental groups, each group observing a woody plant…

Using a verbal protocol, this study investigated how 38 second-grade students identify, describe, and interpret five types of commonly used visual graphics in science texts (i.e., cut-away diagrams, maps, captioned photographs, flow diagrams, and hybrids). Additionally, we explored the challenges students encountered when interpreting these…

Background: This dissertation examines the pervasive influence of the white and colonial imaginary in shaping educational narratives that promote neoliberal success and capitalism, impacting the minds of successive generations. Contemporary youth perceive these narratives as detrimental, contributing to racial violence, climate-induced…

This study, which was reviewed through the Registered Report process, examined the initial efficacy of the Scientific Explorers program (Sci2) on second-grade students' science achievement. Sci2 is grounded in the growing body of empirical research on science instruction, embedding principles of explicit instruction within a guided inquiry-based…

Although the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS) have three dimensions, the crosscutting concepts are often the forgotten dimension. One reason teachers may not emphasize the crosscutting concepts might be because they are broad, domain-general constructs that can be difficult to conceptualize in a meaningful way. Yet, when taught…

This dissertation investigates how embodied learning within a Mixed Reality (MR) environment supports young children's science learning, focusing on a honeybee system. To do so, I designed three types of activities within an MR environment to enable young children to assume different perspectives as they create embodied models of honeybees as…

School closures because of natural phenomena, such as COVID-19, underscore long-standing gaps in access to science education in the United States of America, particularly for young students. When educators have to pivot to deliver virtual instruction, it is important to identify feasible remote learning strategies for science content across formal…

Research has consistently highlighted the importance of promoting child-parent interactions. In this essay, we describe the development of MAKEngineering kits that provide collaborative learning experiences for children in Grades 2-6 to engage in engineering design tasks with members of their families in their home environment. First, we present…

In this qualitative, descriptive case study, we examine how elementary emergent bilinguals (EBs) use disciplinary language as they engage in integrated science and engineering instruction. Instruction incorporated language and developmental scaffolds corresponding to EBs' language and content learning needs. Oral production of EB kindergarten to…

In today's dynamic global economy, integrated units of study are particularly important. Students who are fluent in several disciplines and comfortable moving among them can make meaningful connections and maintain enhanced understandings (Sias et al. 2016). This article shares an integrated STEAM unit that is grounded in the science disciplinary…

Following a theoretical framework that recognizes the potential of promotive and inhibitive effects on children's development, this study explored child-, family-, classroom-, and school-level factors as predictors of Latinx (N = 4,590) students' early elementary science achievement. Research Findings: Employing a path modeling approach with…

It is urgent to ensure that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education meets the needs of our nation's increasingly diverse student population. This study examined whether a second-grade science program, Scientific Explorers, supported educational equity in STEM achievement for diverse student populations. Sociodemographic…

This research aims to assess the impacts of the COVID-19 epidemic process on the knowledge, thoughts, actions, and awareness of primary school pupils regarding "healthy life," in accordance with the attainments of the Turkish Life Science curriculum. The research was conducted using phenomenology. Maximum variation sampling was utilized…

This mixed-methods study explores the relationship between early elementary students' domain-specific vocabulary knowledge and their ability to comprehend grade-level reading passages on unfamiliar science topics. Specifically, this study used (a) structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the extent to which students' networks of…

Working with second-grade teachers, the authors designed a six-day integrated science and language arts unit to investigate the structures that insects use to make their sound vibrations. They were inspired by "The Very Quiet Cricket" (Carle 1990), which was used as the focus text for the unit, as well as "Bug Music"…