Presents a biology laboratory experiment designed to examine the ability of fish to improve their foraging rate with experience. This project is appropriate for ecology and animal behavior courses as well as introductory biology courses with a component that provides students with experience in designing and conducting scientific experiments.…

Argues that science education can provide skills and perspectives that are transferable to domains outside of science. Discusses how the rationality of science is closely related to principles and norms fundamental to discourses outside of science. (CCM)

Explains how a school developed a model for ensuring progression in experimental and investigative science. Provides progression steps and examples of models. (CCM)

Focuses on inquiry-based science instruction for third grade elementary school students. Presents an activity on analyzing data using a graph. Explains what students learn from inquiry-based instruction. (YDS)

Determines the relationship between the presence of traditional classroom assessment (tests and quizzes) and the science achievement of students in elementary methods course at East Carolina University. (Author/CCM)

Summarizes the process of a reform effort in biology instruction. Describes the use of a case study about cholera epidemics and explains how it enables critical objectives in the science curriculum to be addressed. (DDR)

Uses the precise language of science to help teachers develop students' science process skills. Provides critical definitions for the terms observation, inference, prediction, hypothesis, guess, and operational question. By reducing the reliance on guessing, teachers encourage and model the fundamental inquiry skills necessary to do science. (SAH)

Describes an animal behavior experiment using guppies. Students observe the behavior of a guppy as it feeds on prey and make observations, collect and analyze data, draw conclusions, and design their own experiments. (SAH)

Describes an experiment in which students use candy and containers of water to spark their interest in investigating. Students work in groups and make observations about what happens to the candy as it is placed in water. Features an experiment template for students to record their findings. (SAH)

Presents a three-week interdisciplinary unit for starting the school year that focuses on the concept of flight. Enables students to acquire knowledge and develop process skills that they need later in the semester. (JRH)

Describes activities for starting the school year that allow students to begin learning laboratory skills and also gives them a chance to meet and interact with classmates in a relaxed atmosphere. (JRH)

On a recent trip to a local art museum with a group of undergraduate teacher candidates, the author was impressed by the presentation made by the group facilitator. She showed the teacher candidates a slide of a painting found in the gallery and asked the students to take a few minutes to examine it and be prepared to share what they found…

In this article, the authors offer a safe, fun, effective way to introduce geology concepts to elementary school children of all ages: "coring" layer cakes. This activity introduces the concepts and challenges that geologists face and at the same time strengthens students' inferential, observational, and problem-solving skills. It also addresses…

Accountability pressures influence all levels of psychology instruction. In this article we explore how to meet those pressures with integrity, focusing on authentic assessment and teaching as a primary solution. We propose a rubric to describe the progress of students' acquisition of scientific inquiry skills applied to behavior and provide an…

The body is probably one of a child's first science experiments. Young children are curious about their own bodies and how they work. They love to explore how they move (and do not move), the sounds they makes, how they look, how different textures feel on their skin, even how it tastes when they suck their thumb. Activities suggested in this…