If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it…rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.

Hello Friend! Hello Friend! How do you do? Both my hands I give to you. Round we go and round again… Now let’s find another friend!!

General Beliefs Build on the sense of wonder Playful experiences NaturallyEngaging All parts of the classroom and outdoors Intrinsically motivated Exploration has no right or wrong answers Provide an appropriate learning environment

General Beliefs Trial and error natural learning experiences Culturally relevant Equal access Adults need to model Engaged in active learning are more likely to succeed Peer modeling and interactive conversations Honor their choice of words Balance between child-initiated and teacher directed

Get out of their Way Self-discovery leads to meaningful knowledge All children time to talk Ask new question Explore other scientific principles Further exploration

All Children will Learn, if the Grown-ups will just get out of their way

Developing Scientists….Age by Age Three-Year-olds may: *choose sensory and physical activities over problem-solving activities. *like to do more than watch! *begin to “play with science for a purpose”. *have difficulty manipulating small items and science tools. *want to talk about their findings but may not have the vocabulary. Four-Year-olds may: *begin to think ahead, plan, and imagine many different outcomes to an experiment. *start to infer information gained from one experience and apply it to a new situation. *like to use dramatic play to pretend to be scientists and to help themselves make sense of fact and fantasy. *enjoy discussing a discovery and using new science words in context. *take a more purposeful approach to science experiments. Five-year-olds may: *look at the world with more abstraction. *follow directions (on a task card or from a teacher) for an experiment that involves more steps. *like to look up information in books, charts, and photos with teacher guidance. *enjoy telling others about their findings in a group meeting or small group. *be able to draw and write their findings in science journals. *feel like they “know all” about a science topic but usually have many gaps in their understanding.

Categories of items and activities found in the Science Center should include Living things Science related books Science games and toys Science activities Collections of natural things Activities need to be changed/expanded/ enriched at least every 2 weeks. You need to have at least 3 of the above categories containing at least 3-5 examples.

Create a physical environment that supports inquiry! ?????????????????????????????????? Is the area large enough for several groups of children to work together? Are there additional places to work on these ideas? What materials will focus the children’s attention on the science ideas? What materials should I add? or What materials can I remove? Are materials such as markers, paper, and clipboards, which children can use to document and represent their work, accessible? What books and pictures can I display to encourage science exploration?

Science Process for Young Children Observing – Move them from simply seeing to true observations Sorting and Classifying – Observable traits Asking Question – different ways to answer Predicting – More than guessing Experimenting – explore and conduct experiment Measuring and Estimating – Concrete objectsMeasuring and Estimating – Concrete objects Designing and Making Models – Design and engage in making modelsDesigning and Making Models – Design and engage in making models Finding patterns and relationships – Patterns and relationshipsFinding patterns and relationships – Patterns and relationships Communication – Record through drawing, telling or a combination of bothCommunication – Record through drawing, telling or a combination of both

Connecting Scientific Concepts To Other Curriculum Areas Science and Language Arts Science and Math Science and Social Studies Science and the Arts Science and Health Science and Physical Development Science and Social Development