Just because food packaging, the textbooks, and teachers, all say food contains energy, students do not have to believe them. The author uses "The tale of the tortoise and his nose," which is available to read on this blog: https://oxygen-energy-life.blogspot.com, as a context for teaching about oxygen. This article outlines the adult…

The limited availability of research instruments that reflect the vision of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) restricts the field's understanding of whether and how teachers are making instructional shifts called for by the standards. The need for such instruments is particularly urgent with teachers of multilingual learners (MLs), who…

This study employed a sequential mixed methods explanatory research design to explore the influence of mentoring in the self-efficacy-forming experiences of primary school teachers who participated in a variety of professional development projects on science teaching. In the quantitative phase, survey data drawn from primary school teachers…

Most primary school students, although they grasp the scientific concepts of heat convection at the macroscopic level, commonly fail to visualize those concepts. Therefore, our research aims to enact a constructivist teaching sequence (CTS) to restructure students' visualization changes, ultimately enabling them to synergize macroscopic and…

Unlike in other countries, heredity and genetics appear first in Spanish science standards in secondary levels. However, some researchers have suggested the need of progressively introducing some basic genetic ideas already from primary education levels. In this context of no formal instruction in early stages, the objectives of our work were to…

In this article, Nicky Bolton describes how she devised an approach that would encourage both experienced and newly qualified and trainee teachers to approach outdoor learning confidently. The challenge was to enable every teacher to view the outdoors as an effective learning. She called this model 'Bucket School' and initially developed the…

The concept of productive failure posits that a problem-solving phase prior to explicit instruction is more effective than explicit instruction followed by problem-solving. This prediction was tested with Year 5 primary school students learning about light energy efficiency. Two, fully randomised, controlled experiments were conducted. In the…

Our goal in this article is to provide research-based strategies for embedding Nature of Science (NOS) into science instruction at the elementary level. We thus intend to aid researchers, professional developers, and teachers in noting that not only is it important and possible to teach NOS at the elementary levels, but also that elementary…

Based on the control-value theory of achievement emotions, the study examines elementary school students' science performance and control-value beliefs (self-concept, intrinsic and achievement value) as antecedents of their cognitive (worry) and affective (nervousness) science anxiety. Performance in the science topic "floating and…

This study investigated grade 4 learners' understandings about the Nature of Scientific Inquiry (NOSI) in primary schools within the South African context. A qualitative methodology was employed using a framework of five knowledge aspects about the NOSI in assessing learners' understandings about the ways scientists investigate the natural world.…

Microteaching is a significant way to prepare pre-service teachers to overcome specific challenges in a natural classroom environment. It is widely accepted that pre-service science teachers gain pedagogical benefits from microteaching activities. Furthermore, microteaching enhances the conceptual understanding of the presenter on the related…

This article describes how using a variety of differentiation strategies, such as listening to stories, visualizing scenarios, and performing tactile activities, can help fourth-grade students to conceive of and express examples of energy transfer.

Robin James was one of fifteen primary teachers who visited the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Switzerland. They were tasked with finding a way to interest students in particle physics after the visit. The science of really small things, such as atoms, is as relevant and intriguing to young…

It can be a continual struggle to develop interesting and engaging experiments for use in primary schools, especially when related to electrical phenomena. Most people are familiar with the phenomenon of charged objects picking up paper or attracting hair, but there are number of simple and highly engaging activities within this area that are…

With limited time for science, using science trade books for science and language instruction has become more common in elementary schools. Studies show that trade books often neglect scientific practices. Yet previous analyses have not differentiated by targeted grade level nor by book type. Do some grade levels and types of books highlight…