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10 Great ways to Jazz up your science curriculum Excerpted from Teaching Science and Having Fun! by Felice Gerwitz |
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Are you interested in action, adventure, mystery, intrigue, and discovery? Well science contains all these elements and many more! Yes, you heard right! I can just see you shaking your head in denial. Yes, I am using those adjectives in the same breath as the words science!
I am going to show you many ways to make your science program so exciting that your children will be asking you do science everyday! First let me share a bit about where I’m coming from. . So that you will see that if I can do this to, so can you I hated science as a student, an educator, and especially as a homeschool parent so how is it that I’m here talking to you about science? Well, without God’s grace I wouldn’t be writing this. I knew nothing about science let alone unit studies or hands on learning. When I was first introduced to the unit study idea I said, “It looks like too much work!” I had purchased various books for our first year of homeschooling, yet my child was having difficulty with some of the books. He just wasn’t showing the same enthusiasm he did when we went to the library and checked out non-fiction books. I also noticed strange things, such as the fact that he couldn’t wait until a rain storm ended. You see, we live in Florida in an area once known as the Cypress Slew. Translation for those of you not from this area it floods during the summer rainy season! My children love to wear big rubber boots and carry their treasures in a red wagon, which they towed along. They asked so many questions such as, “Mom, what do frogs eat?” Or “Mom how can you identify a poisonous snake is it red on black or black on red?” Yikes! It’s time to get out the books. If they found new pets they spent more time researching and categorizing and learning than I could ever get them to do with my hand picked curriculum. As I began to pray the Lord opened my eyes to see that, gosh, they really like science and they are doing all this learning on their own with a little encouragement I could really teach them so much. As an aside here, by planning your curriculum ask the Lord to help you it is amazing how he will! So, slowly my curriculum began to look a bit different incorporating many hands on activities. I believe science is the study of the wonderful world God has given us. You can learn so much with so little. You don’t need expensive lab equipment to begin with, or even at all. Teaching Science is important for many reasons. It utilizes all of the senses; it encompasses reading, comprehension, writing, spelling, mathematics, history, and critical thinking. Science is not cut and dry, it requires research and hands on activities. There is a natural over lapping of subjects if you are doing hands on science especially in the younger grades. I found I was covering most of what was “required” for the year just by doing some of the suggestions I will be giving you. In fact we covered 2 years of science in one without realizing it this tends to happen, especially if you are doing unit studies. You usually tend to delve into a topic in detail much further than you would in a textbook. If you have considered unit studies yet are concerned about missing something academically for the year, you may want to invest in a scope and sequence, which gives information about what a child should be covering in each grade level. (My book contains a science scope and sequence.) No matter what your approach to teaching science, I feel most children will love science if given half a chance. I believe half of the battle in homeschooling is attitude. If you love it they’ll love it if you don’t well they won’t either. Something to remember, even if you don’t love science it is a required subject. They have to learn it sometime. I would hate to think that many children would be introduced to it at the high school level without enjoying all the exploration, experimentation, and fascination that can come when they are younger. Make a promise to teach science this year on a regular basis. I know it’s easier said than done. If needed make a sign and hang it up reminding yourself that you made a promise to teach science. Many public school systems are using science and technology schools to lure students into less desirable neighborhoods. Yet, most public schools spend less than 1 hour per week on science in K-3 and around 3 hours per week in grades 4-6. In surveying a group of my personal friends I found that most left science out of their elementary curriculum more interested in learning the 3-R’s (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic). Many left science for the end, if they had extra time. Translated? This means they are not teaching science at all. Who, as a homeschooler has an abundance of time? Did you know that the number one reason parents put their child back into high school (after playing sports) is because they don’t want to teach or don’t feel qualified to teach high school science. Well how many parents are qualified to teach reading, or spelling, or any of the 3-R’s? Many have said they learned along with their children. Why should teaching science be any different? I never took High School chemistry or physics in school, didn’t learn how to teach it as an educator, yet I was able to teach these topics to my children. I also arranged labs with a brave group of her friends! I have found the resources to help us and that is how it should be for you too. One of the best tools you can give you child is the ability to research questions they have. A high school teacher with the answers isn’t going to follow your child around for life and answer their most pressing questions. And yes, my child has been accepted to a university for further study after high school. Learn to schedule and become organized. This is not a talk on organization, but I have learned that with organization you will lower the frustration of every member of your family! How do you get organized? It has literally taken me 12 years of homeschooling to learn how to schedule, my homeschool/ business/ household chores/, and my husband’s business and I‘m not done yet! Organizing under construction... Life has gone on much smoother with planning. Plan on scheduling science in. How do you schedule science? a. Once a week? b. Every day c. Every other day. The choice is yours...d. Never is not an option. One of the simplest ways to schedule is to take several calendars and look at them. I use two together, first a yearly calendar, as I begin by mapping out the approximate no. Of days I plan to do formal school second I use a monthly calendar which has holidays and other scheduled events as far in advance as possible. I then coordinate the two blocking out no school days. Look at the number of days you plan to school. Look at the curriculum you are planning to use. If your book has lessons you may do one a day, so that’s easy to plan. If your curriculum has chapters try to approximate how long it will take you to complete. One week, or two? If you are doing a unit study the rule of thumb is 6-8 weeks. Another important part of any schedule is to have a formal daily plan. You do many of the same things daily without thinking about it... yet formalizing it, in writing, may show you areas with blocks of time that is wasted. For example I found I was doing laundry everyday. With 5 children that may seem normal, but I found if we all pitch in and work hard we can narrow it down to once a week. This leaves free time for other things. If you learn to schedule the entire day, (ahead of time) your weeks, months, and years will go so much better. It is amazing how much you will get done and with that comes a sense of accomplishment and that “YES!” This is the way it should be. Why don’t we set goals and follow through? Because it takes work, time we don’t have and it seems on the surface insurmountable. I believe that some people are naturally organized. The Lord has blessed me with many things but he skipped the organizational gene. I had to learn the hard way: Or the way many of you have learned. First, I read some books to glean some information: translated (with children) that means a book that should take several days to read take weeks. Then, you put the book aside, procrastinate for a few months and when things come to a boiling point you decide to do something about it. Here are some goals I have made in my science program through the years. The first is 1. Exploring and Discovering: (I tend to say this is for younger children, but if you have never done “science” before you can start this with any age.) Give them opportunities I gave my 3-year-old bubbles when he took a bath. He soon learned that bubbles only form when he blew gently, then he learned bubbles could be blown again without dipping the wand into the jar by catching another bubble and gently blowing. He learned that bubbles stuck to some surfaces and popped when they encountered another he may not understand the physics of a bubble but this is the beginning of learning. Slowly you can add some structure as they begin to explore and discover. The key here is to expose them to many opportunities. 2.Learning Concepts: Beginning with the Scientific Method which is: observation, collecting and classifying, prediction and finding answers, proving a conclusion, evaluating and interpreting findings and discussing results. 3.Applying Knowledge: The goal is to be able to apply what they have learned in new situations. This can be as simple as using the principles of heat to boil water, or as complicated as using the study in carbon dioxide production in yeast to make bread. I pray that I’ve convinced you that science is important, and with scheduling you can find time to include it in your curriculum. Now, how are you going to keep a record of all the exciting things you are going to do? You may consider having your children make a record what they observe or discover. So, whether you are using a textbook, unit studies or winging it, here are some ways to make your year really fun and learn in the progress Don’t limit yourself to these ideas. As I’m talking I hope I this will spur you on to think many more ideas! Here are ten ways to Jazz up your science! 1. Go outside: A. Dig a hole Amazing what you can find. If you have manicured lawns try digging in an obscure section of a flower or shrub box. Make sure the ground is damp. If it isn’t you may want to water an area of ground where you plan to dig for several days in a row. This will attract larger insects you can observe with the naked eye. Bring a cardboard box out a shoe box or larger so you can sift through the dirt. You can make a sifting screen box to put your dirt in and gently shake it back and forth. Bring a magnifying glass or better yet a lighted microscope and look at the grains of sand under it. If you can, use the same hole and continue to dig deeper each time. B. Study the trees, shrubs or plants in your own yard or in the neighborhood, take a walk C. Observe butterflies and categorize them. D. Observe birds and identify (one year we had chimney swifts nesting in our fireplace. We didn’t know what type of birds they were at first, but with some research we found out. Isn’t it amazing how the Lord provides?!) E. Observe types of airplanes and helicopters that fly by. Research them. F. Take pictures of these things and put them in a nature album, with a brief description, which can be a single word for a preschooler or a paragraph for an older child. G. Draw pictures and keeps a nature album of all of the above. F. Blindfold your child and have them identify sounds they hear. Let them blindfold you and you can do this too!! H. Study and observe weather. Make various instruments to gauge weather. If we were in a small group I would ask you what areas of academics we covered above, just by the things I mentioned, but since we aren’t I’ll answer my own question Writing, (which encompasses spelling and grammar), reading, observing, researching, math (counting, sorting, categorizing), acoustics study of sounds, ballistics study of flight, ornithology bird study, nature study, dendrology tree study, The botanical study of trees and other woody plants, entomology insect study, meteorology weather study, etc... While you are outside... 2. Plant a Garden The benefits of growing a garden are innumerable such as: teaching children the art of giving, generosity, the joy of sharing, responsibility, nurturing, productivity, and accomplishment. From a scientific point of view: they could learn about soil analysis, seed germination, weather, seasons, calendar, insect control with and without pesticides, composting and fertilizers and best of all fruits of labor! Eating: digestion, health, and nutrition etc While you are still outdoors... 3. Nature Walks: Possible supplies needed: A magnifying glass, binoculars, sunscreen/ bug screen, camera, pad and paper, backpack to carry supplies. Try to take walks in different ecosystems. Begin simply in your own neighborhood then branch out. If you have never camped maybe this is a time to get started. If the thought of buying everything you need to “rough” it puts you off you may want to consider going to a “retreat” campground. Look around and see what is available near where you live or take a trip! Mountainous area: Look at rock formations. As you probably already know, in Florida, there is an abundance of porous rock called limestone. Many times the kids can use a sharp object and scrape away at it and find fossil formations have the children look at the rock formations and categorize them. You can have them collect rocks from different locations they visit or enlist family and friends to bring rocks back for them. Remember use your resources Beach area: Study or collect shells, in FL the cocina’s are great fun to watch (Take a clear cup and fill bottom with sand some water and these tiny creatures. Then watch them bury down into the sand. It’s neat. Make a shell collection/ organize and classify your finds at the beach. Swamp area: There is an abundance of swamps in the Southern area of Florida. As I mentioned earlier, I have first hand knowledge of this because we happen to live in the middle of an area known as the 6-mile cypress slough. Some of our land is underwater for a good part of the summer. While it may not make me very happy at times, it supplies an abundance of wildlife for the children to observe and learn about. Projects: Use your resources. There are great resources available on the Internet. You can do many searches using science as the key word or the subject you are studying and find many resources. We have been involved in Science Fair projects and competitions. It may be worth consideration if you have access to these competitions in your area or within your homeschool group. 5.Videos or Television Programs, computer programs and Internet Sites: The list is endless. You may need to see what is available in your area for videos and television programs. Here are some web sites with great information on science. Internet Sites: some of my favorite... www.nasa.gov/ www.exploratorium. edu/ www.howstuffworks.com www.icr.org/ www.MediaAngels.com Computer Programs I have an extensive list in my book but here are some I have personally used...GeoSafari Science ages 8 and up, A.D.A.M. the inside story (may need to be monitored), Mayo Clinic Family Health, ProOne Chemistry and Biology. 6. Experiments and Activities: If you are teaching by reading science textbooks or having your child read the information in a workbook and skipping the experiments then your child may find science very boring. This is the reason I didn’t like it as a child. I don’t remember doing one experiment until I reached high school. With hands on experiment or activity come a better understanding and a greater chance for the retention of knowledge. Just observing has its limitations, just experimentation has its limits, and the scientific method in its self has its limits. Not everything is observable but with a mixture of reading about the topic and doing an activity or experiment is a wonderful combination. There are too many great experiment books to mention. I have many reviews in my book. 7. Planetarium: and Nature Center If your town has one a nature center is a wonderful place to visit. They often include designated walks, museum, guides, gift shop, group discounts. If you do not have a Nature Center in your town, perhaps you could find the closest one to you and plan a visit. Our children attended many of the science workshops they offered during spring break and during the summer. If you want a guide to star gazing, then a Planetarium is for you. Most have shows (some that are pre-taped) and they shine various stars on the curved ceiling pointing various constellations and stars. They also have high-powered telescopes and most of the nature guides we have met have been very enthusiastic, some offering to stay as long as we wanted! I recommend that anyone can attempt star gazing at home or in a dimly lit area. It’s exciting to take a car ride in the evening to view stars. Get acclimated to the dark first. Put out a big blanket or get out the lawn chairs use a glow in the dark star finder and a good pair of binoculars. 8. Archaeological dig: Remember when I mentioned action and adventure? Archaeology is something many children enjoy. There are archaeological sites all over the world! Did you know people out on walks have found the majority of the dinosaur fossils? Over the years my children have viewed various digs. When they were younger we visited Pine Island and a Caloosa Indian Dig. They found all types of artifacts, broken pottery and shells. They took a canoe (the only way to get there is by boat) to Useppa Island and observed a dig there. By far their favorite has been the Fossil Float, which they took in Arcadia Florida. A gentleman on a previous dig with CSI (Creation Science Institute) found Mammoth bones! The kids looked forward to this trip for a long time! They took canoes, homemade sifting screens, and their survival skills and braved the Peace River. There are alligators in this river, so care must be taken. The children found countless sharks teeth and some fossilized remains. They were given charts to help in identifying the pieces they found. The Peace River is a fresh water river and there is interesting speculation as to how salt water creature's teeth are in a fresh water river. (We have written a fiction account, which takes place in Arcadia. It is an action, adventure in a book the Missing Link Found!) 9. Field trips? There are great places to visit all over the world. When you plan trips consider a study of science. Once again the Internet is a wonderful source for finding great locations. It is fun to plan trips with friends who are also homeschooling. Here are some trips we have attended. Turtle Watching: In Florida several times of the year are optimum for turtle watching. The large loggerhead turtles come up on FL beaches to lay their eggs check with your nature center many have night watches using volunteers. The Kennedy Space Center includes many rockets, space gear, and interactive displays. A hot air balloon festival. We went to the Brandon balloon Classic Usually held it in April. Brandon is near Tampa. For more information contact the Chamber of Commerce. Museums and State Parks are fun trips and located all over the world. As the children get older so do their interests. This year my older 2 children and husband took a SCUBA certification class. They learned so much science in this intense course, they learned about currents, tides, buoyancy, air pressure, altitude, water pressure, pressure/ volume and density relationships, safety in handling scuba equipment, underwater vision, underwater hearing, heat loss, respiration, temperature, bottom compositions, aquatic animal and plant life, fresh and salt water and on and on. Best of all they had covered many of these concepts earlier at a much younger level. This was an opportunity to re-learn and apply past knowledge. 10.Co-ops A definition of this: several families pooling their resources and talents working together with the best of both worlds, still homeschooling and enjoying group dynamics with handpicked friends. One parent recently told me she invited two of her daughter’s friends over once a week to do science and this insured that they got to the projects and experiments she often neglected. This gives you a time to do experiments, activities, arts and crafts, plan trips, etc. Could I keep this to just ten ideas? Of course not. Here are some extras: Study Scientists: Kepler, Newton, Morse Hatch chicken eggs: I have had many friends who have ordered eggs from a science catalog and the children patiently waited for the chicks to hatch, make sure you have a place for them to go after they’ve hatched! Take Lessons: As I stated earlier, Scuba, water safety, boating, canoeing, sailing, mountain climbing. Science Camps: There are many camps available for children those that readily come to mind are space camp and oceanography camps. These are quite pricey and you may want to plan ahead with your children for ways to fund these. Perhaps they could do special jobs for you, a neighbor or relative. Work takes on a whole new meaning when they are saving for something special. Host a workshop: Have a speaker come to your area. This is a great way to motivate yourself or your children. Many are available and travel extensively. You can teach science! As you can see it is as easy as walking outside and digging a hole. You are the best model for your child, whether you are enthusiastic, curious or have the ability to make mistakes and correct them. There are many valuable lessons to be learned. The best way to begin is to just do it! © 2000 Felice Gerwitz. All rights reserved. Re-printed with permission. |
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 Felice Gerwitz is a nationally recognized author, educator, lecturer, mother, and homeschooling consultant. Felice is a graduate of Florida Southern College and a former teacher with a degree in Elementary Education, Learning Disabilities and Early Childhood Education. She is the founder and managing director of MediaAngels Publishing that produces study guides for homeschoolers, and Virtual Field Trips, a unique Internet exploration and learning web site. Felice has been deeply involved in homeschooling since in 1986. | ||
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