Despite its proven added value, modeling-based learning (MbL) in science is not commonly incorporated into the early grades. Our purpose in this descriptive case study was to enrich our understanding of how kindergarten children enact MbL by examining these children's constructed models and their accompanying oral descriptions of their models. For…

This study aims to investigate the views of pre-service teachers who have taken the "Science Teaching" course in the undergraduate program of classroom teaching about the teaching of science concepts. In this study, the phenomenology study approach, one of the qualitative research designs, was used. The study group of this research…

Although previous research provides insights into how gestures function as a pedagogical tool, relatively little is known about how gesture is related to language, together creating a key meaning-making teaching resource. Drawing on the system of logico-semantic relations in Systemic Functional Linguistic theory and McNeill's description of…

Forces and motion are at the heart of physics and children start learning from the moment they are able to interact with the world. Children as young as one year show surprise when a ball does not behave as expected. This is a tremendous bonus to learning physics, but it has hidden dangers: they only learn how things move on the Earth, where we…

School principals play a pivotal role in directing students' classroom educational experiences. However, in the USA, many elementary principals (serving youth 5-12 years old) have had few formal experiences with professional development or coursework that centers on current standards for quality science instruction as guided by the "Framework…

Vocabulary knowledge plays a critical role in supporting text comprehension and broader learning across the school day. While school offers opportunities to build vocabulary knowledge, studies have shown that very little time is devoted to vocabulary instruction at the elementary level. This may be, in part, because educators commonly report being…

Science teacher education literature has emphasized the importance of prospective teachers' prior knowledge of their K-12 experiences as a key factor influencing their professional development as future science teachers. The purpose of the study was to identify the teaching practices in prospective teachers' prior knowledge of science instruction…

Understanding teachers' experiences as they lived them and as they told them is important for conceptualizing a well-rounded view of the state of science education and the role teachers play in it. Journey mapping, a way of visualizing one's processes and experiences as they progress towards a goal, is a tool with the potential to capture…

Studies of both professional science practice and children's science learning show that care is not merely ancillary to disciplinary work but a core and generative constituent of science practice. In science education research, however, students' care is often overlooked. In this paper, we describe the expression of care across two STEM classrooms…

In this article, we share the inspiring story of 9-year-old Tallulah, who is passionate about creating homes for wildlife. We include information to help you and your students carry out a biodiversity audit. As an extension activity, students can implement a plan to improve the habitat for wildlife in their area. While students will be learning…

This study aims to uncover the prompts most frequently repeated by pre-service teachers when using the Copilot technique, as well as their reflections on its use in preparing and planning science lessons for fourth graders. The qualitative research methodology with an exploratory case-study design was conducted on a purposeful sample of 20…

Teaching disciplinary literacy in the elementary classroom provides rich potential for bridging the literacy-content divide, building background knowledge, extending learning, and deepening student thinking. This article explores how six elementary teachers tried and tested approaches to embedding literacy in three very different subjects:…

Thermal cameras have shown to have utility in secondary school classrooms and undergraduate courses. In this paper, the author argues for their potential in the primary school classroom and presents a range of activities that can be undertaken with thermal cameras (or supplied images). With limited access in mind, the activities in this paper have…

"Marinyo" is a culture left by the Portuguese around the 15th century in Maluku. The purpose of this study was to find out to what extent students' misconceptions about the concept of sound in the "Marinyo" case in the Kepuluan Tanimbar Regency. The method used was a qualitative study in ethnography in ten villages in two…

Changing where, when, and how objects are studied is central to lab-based science (Knorr Cetina, 1999). Science involves changing the scale of objects--particularly scales of size, time, and intensity--from what is experienced in the world. Similar to investigations conducted in science laboratories, classroom investigations involve…