Elementary Science Methods

      In lab this week, we investigated living versus nonliving things. We began the lab by discussing the eight characteristics of living things. The eight characteristics are as follows: has cells, produces energy, responds to stimuli, maintains homeostasis, reproduces inherits genetic information, grows and changes, moves.     To investigate living versus nonliving things, we did three different activities in a packet. The first one was to walk outside and write down names of living things, nonliving things, and unsure things we find. Back in the classroom, we talked as a class about things we saw. The second activity we did to investigate was dissecting a seed. We drew what we saw in our packet as we took off the seed coat, split it open, and took off the embryo. We discussed each part of the seed and their functions. The third and final activity was to identify the parts of a flower and draw what they looked like in our packets. We found the ...

     In lab this week, we investigated the questions: What should students learn in an elementary science classroom & what is NGSS. It was very interesting and eye-opening talking about what we remembered doing in our elementary classrooms so long ago.      To investigate these lab questions, we first bounced ideas back and forth within our table groups around what we remembered learning in elementary school. Then, the class came together and discussed the fundamental topics of elementary science as a whole group. After that we walked through the history of NGSS, broke down its components, and did individual exploration on our devices.      We figured out that the answers to our first question can be found on the NGSS website! There is a range of basic science concepts and topics that elementary students should be learning that are listed as standards. NGSS, or the Next Generation Science Standard, can be used to help teachers create scie...