What has been your experience in the area of science? Did you enjoy science while you were in elementary school? Which of your teachers was an effective science teacher? Why was that teacher effective? What strategies did he/she use to "pique your interest?" Do you think that science should be taught at the elementary level? How many hours a week should be devoted to science at the K-6 level? How confident do you feel about teaching science at the elementary level?
My experience with science hasn't been the best as it is a subject that I've struggled with from middle school to college. I did enjoy science when I was in elementary school because it helped answer some of the questions that I had about our world. I really enjoyed learning about the solar system and about our environment. I don't recall ever having a teacher that I felt was effective because I had little interest in science compared to other subjects. One thing that I did find effective with all of my science teachers was when we got the opportunity to do hands on activities. Whether it be testing out a hypothesis or looking at different particles through a microscope. I always felt that I learned best when I got the opportunity to do science. I think that science should be taught at the elementary level because children need to become familiar with the world they live in. At that age students are curious and science may help answer their questions. I think that from K-2 they should devote a maximum of 2 hours of science a week and for grades 3-6 they should devote 3-5 hours of science a week. I don't feel super confident with teaching science at the elementary level but I think that I could do it with proper training and preparation. --Adelkis
ReplyDeleteDeanna-
ReplyDeleteMy experience with science was not as enjoyable as I would've expected. In elementary school, science was pleasant to study but as I reached middle school it just became another subject to get out of the way. Out of all the science teachers I've had, the one that comes to mind that has made my science experience fun is my fifth grade science teacher Miss Wess. She made us do a lot of hands on science projects and really challenged our discussions with interactive activities. I believe science is important to teach to younger students because it allows them to question how things function and why things happen in certain ways. I believe science should get an hour a day during school to really dive into learning information and taking advantage of bringing in fun science projects. Science is definitely not my strong suit but I will do anything to make science a fun and engaging subject for my students.
My experience with science was pretty enjoyable throughout my education. Science was never really my favorite, but I also never really disliked it. The best experiences I had in science were always when doing hands-on activities. Science at the elementary level is so important because it helps students to understand the world around them. I think that at the K-6 level, science should be for at least one "period" a day. A science lesson that I observed in a Kindergarten room a few years ago that I noticed a lot of students enjoyed was a color mixing lesson. The students learned all about mixing colors and then watched a video on how to mix primary colors to make new colors. Then, once they had watched the video and discussed, they made their own color wheel by mixing red, yellow, and blue. The students were so excited to watch the colors change as they mixed the paints and were all very engaged in the lesson.
ReplyDeleteMy experience with science from what I can remember was not at the elementary level because science was a lot of the time thrown to the side and then in the 4th and 5th grade classes we would switch for that subject and if I am being honest I do not remember what we did in that class.
ReplyDeleteHowever, in middle school in 7th grade especially I had one teacher who made science so amazing not just with experiments but with interactive videos and websites and also how she had us keep a science notebook. She always had something exciting to say about science and no matter the day it was never boring.
I think science should be taught at the elementary level but I do thin it needs to be structured and make sense because from what I have seen it is very messy and the teacher has even admitted to me that she doesn't know what she is doing. Currently, in my school I like how the science teacher incorporates different pieces of technology within her lessons to get students used to living in a technology based world. She has them take notes online sometimes or has them highlight and annotate on a Kami word document.
Eleanor McAloon:
ReplyDeleteI don't remember much of Science in elementary school. The content has escaped me, but I do remember some of the fun interactive lessons and field trips we went on. One of my best memories was when Liberty Science Center would come to my Catholic school each year. There would be a "show" for each grade that was relevant to what they were learning in class. For example, one year there was a show where the people made clouds right in front of us. Another year, they brought in a bunch of animals and we learned about them. They even brought a penguin and it walked around in front of us. We also did a Leaf Walk in third grade where this man Ranger Rick took us around the grounds of our school and told us about different leaves that we collected for a poster. These lessons were all effective because I was directly involved in the experiments and activities, rather than sitting still. Science is by nature an exploration and experiment-based subject, so students should be able to explore. I feel confident teaching Science because I remember many of the great things I was able to do in elementary school (even though I don't remember the content exactly). There are so many resources to draw inspiration from and using the world outside the classroom will help students see the practical applications. Also, the lessons can be themed - seasons, weather, holidays, etc. - which is another way to keep students engaged and excited about Science.