The authors combined content-driven and inquiry-based lessons into the framework of problem-based learning (PBL). They did this in eight third- through sixth-grade classrooms--two each from grades 3-5, one from sixth grade, and one mixed-grade special education. These older elementary students explored a local problem of lobsters infected by…

Recommends using authentic science conferences as a way of teaching about critical issues in science, how scientists work, and the role of conferences. Includes classroom activities of inquiry-based investigations in which students present their collected data at a conference. (YDS)