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 guiding principles highlighted in "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" (NRC 2012) states that "children are born investigators," claiming that students construct their own understanding of the natural world even before they learn about it in formal learning settings. Even if students lack a thorough…

The Common Core State Standards, released in 2010, were rapidly adopted by more than 40 states. Champions maintained that these rigorous standards would transform American education, but the initiative went on to encounter a bumpy path. A decade on, what are we to make of this ambitious effort? What kind of impact, if any, has it had on the…

Exploring number systems of other cultures can be an enjoyable learning experience that enriches students' knowledge of numbers and number systems in important ways. It helps students deepen mental computation fluency, knowledge of place value, and equivalent representations for numbers. This article describes how the author designed her…

This article presents classroom resources for teaching both weather and climate along with background resources for teachers who want to beef up their own knowledge in the subjects. In addition, the author proposes learning progressions that teachers can use to guide their instruction. (Contains 13 online resources.)

With the 2010 Winter Olympic Games prominent in the media, children were exposed to images of athletes skiing down snow-covered slopes, coasting furiously on bobsleds, and skating gracefully across the ice. Therefore, the authors capitalized on their children's natural curiosity about the world around them by exploring the concept of motion in a…

In this article, the authors present a sequence of activities from a curriculum about light for third and fourth graders that supports students in learning to disagree like scientists. This sequence of activities helps students discuss reasons for the discrepancies in their data, use the language of argumentation in classroom discourse, and get a…

Fifth graders in Mrs. Caldwell's class would soon experience a "change" as they made the transition from elementary to middle school. Participation in classroom inquiry investigations and schoolwide science enrichment events had already developed students' enthusiasm for science; here was an opportunity to solidify that enthusiasm. Guest science…

The setting: the science classroom. The characters: you and your students. The scene: Your students acting out scientific discoveries, modeling a frog's life cycle, mimicking the transition from liquid to solid. This is "dramatic science", a teaching approach that uses acting techniques to explore and develop young children's ideas about…

Thematic units are more than isolated lists of vocabulary, grammar points, or language functions. It is important to design thematic units from the national standards with clearly defined objectives. They should offer opportunities for connections with other content areas. Units should also have a strong cultural foundation, perhaps centered on a…

Drawing activities in science can help students conceptualize and reflect on their experiences. In this article, the authors share their experiences incorporating drawing into science lessons for third- and fourth-grade students. While these examples pertain to life science lessons, drawing strategically is appropriate for any topic and is an…

Analyzed the 1994 Grade 4 Maryland National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) regarding the effects on reading achievement and engagement of: students' amount of engaged reading, parental education, gender, balanced reading instruction, and reading opportunities. Amount of engaged reading predicted reading achievement after controlling for…

This manual of ideas zeroes in on current picture book titles. It features reproducible worksheets, writing activities, related reading-based activities, and technology for grades three through five. The ideas have been tested in the authors' libraries and are linked to national curricular standards. Designed for school librarians, the book is…

For the past three years, we have been investigating the implications of testing on students in elementary mathematics classrooms throughout the state of NJ. Our research, and the work of others, indicates that the impact of testing depends on many factors, not the least of which involves how teachers prepare their students for the test. In this…

Why should your school have a Family Math Night?: (1) Help students learn essential math concepts; (2) Give parents a chance to serve as models of motivation, persistence and competence; and (3) Promote math success in a supportive setting. With its step-by-step directions and suggestions for both teachers and parents, this book takes the worry…