Teaching Science In Elementary Grade

Introduction:

Teaching strategies for Elementary Science (Physics, Earth and Space Science)

Enables future Science teacher;

 Understand the intent, content, and structure of the Elementary Science Curriculum
 Equip them with principles and elements with instructional planning, constructivist approach, in
teaching and learning, instructional and assessment strategies for elementary science
 Provides activities fostering understanding of spiraling basic science concepts and application of
science inquiry in Physics, Earth and Space.

Four Instructional Designs:

Activate aims to activate or stimulate student’s prior knowledge about the topic.
Analyze aims to activate or stimulate student’s prior knowledge about the topic.
Abstract though the carefully-designed group activities, students infer or deduce essential
concepts and understanding
Apply provides engaging and challenging activities where students apply their science concepts
and science process, skills, attitudes, and values

Constructivist Instructional Strategies:

Observation the act of noticing and recording information about a phenomenon using your senses,
which can include sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste,
Experimentation the process of performing a scientific procedure, especially in a laboratory, to
determine something.
Inductive Guided Inquiry is a teaching strategy where students make inferences or generalizations
from specific observations or data provided by the teacher.
Cooperative learning a teaching method where students work together in small groups to learn and
complete tasks.
Design Thinking a process for solving problems that's centered on people's needs and experiences. It's a
way of working that involves observing and empathizing with users, generating ideas, and testing
solutions.
Gamification the application of typical elements of game playing (e.g. point scoring, competition with
others, rules of play) to other areas of activity, typically as an online marketing technique to encourage
engagement with a product or service.
"gamification is exciting because it promises to make the hard stuff in life fun"
5E Model Of Instruction in Formulating Lesson Plan:

The 5E Model of Instruction, which stands for Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate, is a
framework for structuring lessons where students actively participate in constructing their own
understanding through a series of progressive steps, starting with piquing their interest and building on
prior knowledge, then moving to hands-on exploration, explanation from the teacher, application to
new situations, and finally assessing their learning throughout the process

Engage:
Purpose: Capture students' attention, activate prior knowledge, and create curiosity about the
topic through questions, visuals, real-life scenarios, or thought-provoking activities.
Example activities: Brainstorming, quick quizzes, short video clips, intriguing stories,
demonstrations.
Explore:
Purpose: Allow students to actively investigate the concept through hands-on activities,
experiments, simulations, or collaborative exploration, encouraging them to make observations
and collect data.
Example activities: Lab experiments, group projects, data analysis, open-ended exploration,
manipulatives.
Explain:
Purpose: Provide clear explanations and definitions of key concepts, clarifying misconceptions,
and connecting new knowledge to prior learning through teacher-led discussions,
presentations, or text readings.
Example activities: Teacher lecture with visuals, guided notes, vocabulary building, summarizing
key points.
Elaborate:
Purpose: Apply new knowledge to different contexts, deepen understanding, and promote
critical thinking through real-world applications, problem-solving activities, or creative projects.
Example activities: Case studies, design challenges, debates, simulations, writing assignments.
Evaluate:
Purpose: Assess student learning through formative and summative assessments, including
observations, questioning, quizzes, performance tasks, or self-reflection to identify areas of
mastery and further support needed.
Example activities: Exit slips, concept maps, portfolio reviews, presentations, written tests.
 Unit 1: THE ELEMENTARY SCIENCE CURRICULUM

Lesson 1: What is Science

Lesson:2: Science Education
Lesson 3: Elementary Science Curriculum, Physics, Earth and Space Science
Lesson 4: Constructivist Theory in Teaching Science

Lesson 1: What is Science

INTRODUCTION
 Science is valued
It has helped in satisfying many basic human needs and improving living condition
 Advances in technology and science are transformimg our world at an incredible and
unimaginable pace.
 Science has shaped the world.
 Public and private policy decisions that impact every aspect of our lives are driven by scientific
process and scientific evidence.
 Being “science literate”has become not just just an advantage but an absolute necessity in the
1st century.
 Science is our way of understanding the world-its wondrous structure, ntural events,
interrelated elements and systems and processes.
 Important goal of science is to find a way to responsibly and ethically use natural resources to
guarantee their continuity and that of humanity itself. An endeavor and advocacy that is
reffered to as ”sustainability”
 Education could become the most important application of science in the next decade.

What is Science?
 Derived from the latin word “Scientia” meaning knowledge
 Commonly referred to as systematic and organized body of knowledge in any inquiry that is
acquired using a “scientific method”.
 Definition of Science in summary:
 Science as a broad body of knowledge- Physics science, chemistry, astronomy, Earth science
 Science as a set of skills - the science process skills form the foundation of scientific method
 Basic science process skills: observation, communication, classification, measurement, inference
and prediction
 Science as an intellectual activity- -it is the intellectual, practical and systematic study of the
structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.
  Science as a social activity- shaped by history, institutions , beliefs and values. Society shaped
science and vice versa.
 Science as problem –solving- problem solving skills are necessary in all aspects of life,and the
science class provides the student opportunity to develop and utilize their problem –solving
skills which include the ability to critically analyze a problem, determines all its elements, and
prepare a feasible solution
 Science as a career- individual who have devoted themselves in studying and doing science have
established career in science.
 Science as a global human endeavor-

Lesson 2: Science Education

Science education is concerned about, learning, teaching and understanding science

Three dimensions of science that are important in science education are;
1. Science knowledge
2 Processes of doing science
3 Scientific attitudes

Learning
Science is one of the most important science subjects that must be learned because of its relevance to
the student’s life
Students use and develop life skills such as problem solving and critical skills which they need to
succeed in school, career and beyond these lifelong skills allow students to generate ideas, weigh
decisions objectively and understand the evidence

Teaching
Why teaching science is important?

 The nation is dependent on the technical and scientific abilities of its citizens for its economic
growth and national activities
 Science is a significant part of human culture and represents one of the highlights of human
capacity
 Provides a laboratory of the common experience for the development of common language,
logic and problem solving skills
 For some students it will become a lifelong vocation or career

Understanding science

 understanding science js multifaceted

 current research indicates that proficiency in one aspect of science is closely related to other
 the national academy of science developed the strands of scientific proficiency that address
the knowledge and reasoning skills that the students must acquire to be considered fully
proficient in science
 students who are proficient in science;
 know, use and interpret scientific explanations
 Generate and evaluate scientific evidence and explanations
 Understand the nature and development of scientific knowledge
 Participate productively in scientific practices

Lesson 3: Elementary Science Curriculum Physics, Earth, and Space Science

 Science education aims to develop scientific literacy among the Filipino learners that will
prepare them to be active and engaged citizens in the society
 The k12 science curriculum is is learner -centered and inquiry- based, emphasizing the use of
constructivist pedagogy in teaching
 Concepts and skills in teaching science, physics, chemistry and earth sciences are presented with
increasing levels of complexity from one grade level to another in spiral progression
 The science curriculum promotes a strong link between science and technology, including
indigenous technology, preserving our cultural heritage
 The curriculum is designed into three domain of learning science;
 Understanding and applying scientific knowledge in local setting and global setting as
well
 Performing scientific processes and skills
 Developing and demonstrating scientific attitudes and values
 The acquisitions of the 3 domains is facilitated by the following approaches;

 Multi/interdisciplinary approach
A multidisciplinary curriculum means studying the same topic from the viewpoint of more than one
discipline. It is also called cross-disciplinary which indicates the aim to cross boundaries between
disciplines.Multidisciplinary approach is a method of curriculum integration that highlights the
diverse perspectives that different disciplines can bring to illustrate a theme, subject or issue. In a
multidisciplinary curriculum, multiple disciplines are used to study the same topic.

 "Science-Society-Technology" (STS) approach

refers to a teaching method that integrates the study of science and technology within the
context of human society, focusing on how scientific advancements and technological innovations
impact people's lives and raise social issues, encouraging critical thinking and responsible citizenship
around these topics.
 Contextual learning is based on a constructivist theory of teaching and learning. Learning takes
place when teachers are able to present information in such a way that students are able to
construct meaning based on their own experiences .
 Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is a teaching method in which complex real-world problems are
used as the vehicle to promote student learning of concepts and principles as opposed to direct
presentation of facts and concepts. In addition to course content, PBL can promote the
development of critical thinking skills, problem-solving abilities, and communication skills. It can
also provide opportunities for working in groups, finding and evaluating research materials, and
life-long learning

 Inquiry-based learning is an unorthodox method of learning which incorporates active

participation of students by involving them in posing questions and bringing real-life experiences
to them. The basis of this method is to channelize the thought process of the students through
queries and help them in “how to think" instead of “what to think".