The inclusion of engineering in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) as a key component of K-12 science learning has provided both opportunities and challenges for elementary teachers. One challenge is integrating the design thinking processes that undergird engineering with core science concepts and current issues facing scientists and…

One of the most powerful strategies to support next generation science instruction is the use of instructional models. The Biological Sciences Curriculum Study 5E (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate) instructional model is arguably the most widely used version of a learning cycle in today's classrooms. The use of the 5Es as an…

In this article the authors describe what they call their "Snapshots of Science" program. These mini-lessons of science are taught once a week to all students in the school library. Over the last two years, they have been working to extend the experiences students have in their science classroom into the library. Each week, students…

Many teachers have developed "tried and true" lessons that they look forward to teaching-- mystery powders is one that these authors like. Originally part of the Elementary Science Study curricula in the 1960s, there are now many different versions of this well-known activity in which students examine physical and chemical properties of…

Two separate writing-to-learn activities in which students wrote to authentic audiences outside of the instructor were used in a college integrated science course, Science of Water. For the first task, students were asked to write to fourth-grade students, and for the second, students were asked to write to their academic advisor. An overview of…

The students, from the Academy of the Americas, a public school a few miles from downtown, are being asked to do the painstaking work of science, in an unlikely setting. It's part of a curriculum and professional-development program called BioKIDS, which seeks to build students' skill in complex scientific reasoning. The approach goes well beyond…

Teachers often rely on student questions, their observations of students at work, and their own intuition to monitor how well students are learning. However, the authors found that teachers learn more about their students when they use the four-step Reflective Assessment Technique that draws on guided teacher reflections to inform classroom…

In this article, the author presents three themes that can form the basis for exciting world language instruction in Spanish, French, and Chinese at any grade level. These three themes (the prehistoric world; endangered species; and space exploration) use basic science as a context for communication that generates student excitement and enthusiasm…

America's advantage has historically been its people's creativity, flexibility and entrepreneurship. But just as painters need to be proficient in technique and theory to produce great masterpieces, the next generation of Americans will likely require a solid grounding in mathematics and science for their creativity to be maximized in a world…

Members of a team of educators and university students participating in the project, Pittsburgh Partnership for Energizing Science in Urban Schools, addressed the issue of helping students develop investigative skills within the context of an introductory science unit for fourth graders. The unit focuses on data-collection techniques and is a…

In this article, the authors present a classic playground game called "Sharks and Fishes" to introduce second- to fourth-grade students to the concept of "predation," or the relationships between a predator and its prey. By incorporating the game in a learning cycle on predation, students not only learn about predation in a memorable way, but they…

The Connecticut Science Teachers Association has identified science competencies for students completing grades 4, 8 and 12 in Connecticut schools for use by school districts as a guide for curriculum assessment and development. This list is not to be used as an instrument for testing and evaluation but should provide a reference for…

In this essay, the author describes her experience with an experiential model of learning through teaching that gives college students the opportunity to use what they learn in the college classroom to develop curricula and then teach those curricula in an elementary school. Her specific experience was with a science course for non-science majors,…

Discusses a unit to teach reasoning and problem solving skills by helping students develop a systematic approach to problem identification, gather and analyze data, arrive at inferences and keep from jumping to conclusions. Describes the development of an activity investigating liquids designed to foster the needed problem-solving skills. (JM)

To successfully generate student excitement in science, teachers need to be flexible regarding their curriculums. Students also need to be open to novel, hands-on experiences. This article describes a student teacher (ST) who taught a science unit on "Our Environment." She had already prepared her lesson and unit thoroughly but she changed the…