Story starters and science notebooking: developing student thinking through literacy and inquiry by Buczynski, Sandra C instant download

Story starters and science notebooking: developing student thinking through literacy and inquiry by Buczynski, Sandra C instant download

Story Starters and Science Notebooking is designed to provide a meaningful, comfortable framework in which teachers and parents can encourage elementary children to explore scientific ideas in an inquiry oriented format. The basis for each scientific concept is embedded in a story appropriate for elementary aged children. The activity that follows the narrative encourages learners to observe, compare, gather data, organize or classify, and draw conclusions about the problem posed from the story. Because current scientific knowledge and understanding guide scientific investigations, background information in each chapter provides teachers with a synopsis of the scientific concept involved in the activity for that story. 

The story starters present a framework for inquiry, which eliminates the free-wheeling, uncontrolled, and unstructured view some teachers have of inquiry. These are either original stories or familiar children's stories that ask learners to investigate a possible scientific explanation for a problem or scenario. Learners then communicate their findings in an oral, written, pictorial, or technological form back to a lead character from the story. Extension activities provide an opportunity for learners to compare their answers with what scientists already know about the world and also motivate them to frame new questions.

Inquiry lessons are clustered according to overarching scientific concepts, helping young scientists discover connections and commonalities. Some chapters feature an "inquiry activator," a demonstration or hands-on activity that will spark student interest, generate curiosity, and lead learners to form a measurable question for the inquiry activity.

GRADES 3-6