After attending an astronomy camp at Tarleton State University (TSU) for teachers and secondary students in Summer 2002, the author, a kindergarten teacher, was disappointed to discover that the university offered no science camps for elementary students. She returned to her preK-K campus, whining to her principal. What a shame no one would take…

As a first-grade teacher in an urban school, the author was eager to bring authentic science into the classroom. She wanted students to experience various scientific processes, and wanted their parents to be involved, too. To meet this goal,she implemented a program first learned of as a graduate student in a science methods class at Texas…

With the current focus on constructivist perspectives, science demonstrations have fallen out of favor in some circles. Demonstrations are easy to do and offer many benefits and unique opportunities in the constructivist classroom. With careful use, demonstrations can be powerful teaching tools. A wonderful quality of a demonstration (or a series…

Science notebooks are an everyday part of learning in the Tucson (AZ) Unified School District. Recently, K-8 schools there began using notebooks in conjunction with their kit-based science program. As part of the district's professional development team, the authors helped during the implementation at Miller Elementary, where teachers and students…

This article explores the issue of domain generality of epistemological beliefs and world views of practicing teachers in the context of elementary school teaching. We describe ongoing research that examines beliefs held by teachers and their relationship to instructional practices. We examined the world views and beliefs of practicing teachers in…

It is natural to study astronomy outdoors, but it is not quite as natural to study astronomy during the daytime. This lesson uses the Earth's closest star as a subject of study within the schoolyard. The importance of the rising sun is combined with hands-on inquiry in which students explore the properties of shadows. Students (a) complete a…

In this descriptive case study, we describe a 10-day program of study of motion down inclined planes during which a class of 21 second graders investigated scientific relations such as mass and speed, speed and momentum, and mass and momentum via both text-based experiences ("second-hand investigations") and hands-on, materials-based experiments…

A cross-sectional study of Portuguese primary school pupils' conceptions on digestion and the digestive tract was carried out before and after teaching this topic. Pupils of the prior four school years (5/6 to 9/10 year old) drew what happens to a cookie inside their body. In some cases they also wrote a short text or were interviewed. To identify…

In those far off days, before the days of the National Curriculum, there lived two rare beasts in the primary jungle. The beasts were known as "science" and "citizenship", and it depended on which school one went to, and which teacher one got, as to whether one learned any science at all or whether discussion of ethical issues…

When one begins to look at science in primary schools elsewhere, one is immediately struck by the fact that those in England are the odd-ones-out. Hence this is the second in a series of articles looking at how science is dealt with in other systems, beginning with England's immediate neighbours and then looking outwards towards school systems in…

The benefits of using investigation for promoting scientific skills and enhanced conceptual understanding within primary science are well documented. ISE (2000) defines investigations in primary science as "the means of carrying out a fair test to explore some of the children's own ideas on how the natural or man made world works". However, a…

The exciting world of plants may be something of a mystery to many children, and the often-dry content of a curriculum taught indoors inhibits real understanding of many complex biological processes. Moving outdoors opens up an unexplored world and presents rich opportunities for imaginative learning. The "Life processes and living…

Science enquiry activities set in an industrial context are motivating for children and teachers. In this article, the author describes Children Challenging Industry (CCI) project, an initiative developed and coordinated by the Chemical Industry Education Centre at the University of York, and now running in four northern regions of England (Humber…

Schools in England have a range of data sources available to them to track pupils' progress effectively, ranging from national to school level. Tracking pupils' performance not only shows value-added evidence but it also helps the pupils and teacher see when and where they are doing well or not so well and the reasons for this. The records can…

The essential purpose of primary science should be to help children make meaningful sense of the world around them. This will enable them to develop into scientifically literate adults who have a critical understanding of the ideas of science, but who also have respect, care and sensitivity for the world they live in and their impact on it. If…