The "Primary SPACE Project Research Report: Sound" (Watt and Russell, 1990) provides interesting reading relating to primary-aged children's concepts of sound. It reveals a range of children's views on how sound is made, how sounds are heard and how sound travels. While some children are shown to have knowledge that sounds travel and are…

Stories are a place where magical things happen, where ideas are challenged, where the imagination runs free and questions are asked. They are a safe place, where the reader can walk about with new identities, try new ideas, process life's ups and downs and make new meanings. This makes stories the perfect place for creative learning. In this…

In this second installment of a two-part article, the author draws from coaching and research into children's learning in science to present a model for building pupils' scientific ideas quickly and effectively. In the first article, the author outlined how pupils' reading improves when they are more engaged in finding scientific…

Helping children to visualise what is inside them and how their bodies work can be a challenge, since teachers are often reliant on secondary sources or investigations that can only measure outward signs (such as pulse rate). Another way is to involve the children in an imaginative role-play exercise where they explore the insides of a…

Great science teachers recognise the importance of providing children with practical, real-life experiences to develop their understanding of, and enthusiasm for, this truly inspirational subject. However, Gareth Metcalfe believes that the process by which children understand and remember their scientific experiences can be enriched. This article…

There are numerous benefits from using puppets in the classroom. There is evidence to suggest that puppets have a positive impact in motivating children and promoting language development. In this article, the authors explore the use of puppets to teach food science and nutrition. (Contains 2 figures.)

The Association For Science Education's "schoolscience.co.uk Great Bug Hunt 2011," in association with Martin Rapley and Gatekeeper Educational, has been a resounding success--not only because it fits into the science curriculum so neatly, but also because of the passion it evoked in the children who took part. This year's entries were…

There are lots of exciting ways for children to learn science. Going on a journey is one of them. However, when going to distant places is not possible, a virtual journey may be the next best option. Ricky, one of the authors' puppets, helps children to make virtual journeys, and this can create an exciting context for them to raise questions and…

This article discusses how the author has developed and managed a collection of exciting resources that aim to aid transition from primary to secondary school by tackling science topics through historical contexts. Working with teachers at both primary and secondary level, the Double Crossed project has designed two exciting cross-curricular…