Science and mathematics share a common purpose: to explore, understand and explain the pure beauty of our universe and how it works. Using mathematics in science enquiry can enhance children's understanding of science and also provide opportunities for children to apply their mathematical knowledge to "real" contexts. The authors…

Quarry Bank Mill in Cheshire was built in 1784 and was one of the first water-powered cotton mills of the Industrial Revolution. While the machines are now powered by electricity, the water wheel still turns and the machines run. Linking the two are cogs, shafts and belts, so it is possible to see how the power of the river was captured and then…

Even though many educators are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), science often does not receive the attention in elementary school that it should. One way to ensure that elementary school children have the science experiences they need and deserve is to use it as a context to teach…

Chemical demonstration shows are a popular form of informal science education (ISE), employed by schools, museums, and other institutions in order to improve the public's understanding of science. Just as teachers employ formative and summative assessments in the science classroom to evaluate the impacts of their efforts, it is important to assess…

This report summarizes the findings of a systematic review of research literature on teaching about interdependent relationships in ecosystems to upper elementary students. The report is a product of the Knowledge Assets to Support the Science Instruction of Elementary Teachers (ASSET) project. ASSET is exploring a method for collecting and…

This article is written for primary and high school students, and provides a way to introduce kids to science and the concept of gravity.

This paper gives the rationale and a draft outline for a framework for education to teach epistemic insight into schools in England. The motivation to research and propose a strategy to teach and assess epistemic insight followed research that investigated how students and teachers in primary and secondary schools respond to "big…

We first examined the effects of a year-long professional development (PD) programme for elementary science teachers on fifth grade student performance on state-mandated science achievement tests of students from a treatment and a comparison group of teachers in the 2009-2010 academic year. Then, we investigated the longer-term impacts by…

Various studies have noted current shortcomings in the teaching and learning of science in schools, and the results of large-scale tests show that despite heavy investment in education, Brazilians' understanding of science test scores typically fall short of what could be if students had a consistent, high-quality basic education. This article…

Learning to teach elementary science well is not only a goal for preservice teachers. This article describes a partnership that has led to an on-site science methods course in an elementary school library that blends pedagogical instruction with practical classroom time to the benefit of inservice and preservice teachers. In the course, both sets…

The worry over urban children having lost their connection to nature is most often addressed with either initiatives of reinserting the "child back to nature" or with evidence aiming to prove that the worry is unfounded to begin with. Neither approach furthers our understanding of child-nature relations as continuing transformation of…

This report summarizes the findings of a systematic review of practice-based literature on teaching about interdependent relationships in ecosystems to upper elementary students. The report is a product of the Knowledge Assets to Support the Science Instruction of Elementary Teachers (ASSET) project. ASSET is exploring a method for collecting and…

A major challenge in preparing elementary teachers to teach inquiry-based science is finding qualified mentor teachers who use research-based approaches to teach science in their classrooms. This situation means preservice teachers often see few connections between the research-based principles for teaching science they learn in university-based…

In this article, Mann and Pynes describe a five-day mini-project-based learning (PBL) unit about organisms and their environments that addresses the "Next Generation Science Standards" (3-LS4-3). Third-grade students were asked how they could determine which animals live in their neighborhoods. In teacher-determined collaborative groups,…

One tried-and-true way to hook students' attention and promote long-lasting understanding is to sequence science instruction in an explore-before-explain instructional sequence. In these lessons for the second through sixth grade band, elementary students investigate the interaction between "cold" and "hot" substances and…