Holdings Information
Teaching science for understanding in elementary and middle schools / Wynne Harlen; foreword by Page Keeley.
Bibliographic Record Display
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Title:Teaching science for understanding in elementary and middle schools / Wynne Harlen; foreword by Page Keeley.
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Author/Creator:Harlen, Wynne.
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Published/Created:Portsmouth, NH : Heinemann, [2015]
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Holdings
Holdings Record Display
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Location:EDUCATION LIBRARY stacksWhere is this?
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Call Number: LB1585 .H2985 2015
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Number of Items:1
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Status:Available
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Location:EDUCATION LIBRARY stacksWhere is this?
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Library of Congress Subjects:Science--Study and teaching (Elementary)
Science--Study and teaching (Middle school)
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Description:xiv, 160 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
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Summary:Even though there is an unending supply of science textbooks, kits, and other resources, the practice of teaching science is more challenging than simply setting up an experiment. In Teaching Science for Understanding in Elementary and Middle Schools, Wynne Harlen focuses on why developing understanding is essential in science education and how best to engage students in activities that deepen their curiosity about the world and promote enjoyment of science. Teaching Science for Understanding in Elementary and Middle Schools centers on how to build on the ideas your students already have to cultivate the thinking and skills necessary for developing an understanding of the scientific aspects of the world, including: helping students develop and use the skills of investigation, drawing conclusions from data through analyzing, interpreting, and explaining, creating classrooms that encourage students to explain and justify their thinking, asking productive questions to support students' understanding. Through classroom vignettes, examples, and practical suggestions at the end of each chapter, Wynne provides a compelling vision of what can be achieved through science education and strategies that you can implement in your classroom right now.
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Notes:Includes bibliographical references (pages 151-153) and index.
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ISBN:9780325061597 (alk. paper)
0325061599 (alk. paper)
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Contents:Machine generated contents note: 1. Why Teach Science? What Science Should We Teach?
Science Education in Action
Investigating ice
Sun, Earth, and moon
Cold cans
Features of Effective Practice
Student engagement
Materials for investigation
Linking to preexisting ideas
Student talk
Developing inquiry skills
Planning
Why?
What to Teach?
Which ideas?
Which skills?
Which attitudes?
Action Points
2. How Should We Teach Science?
Views of Learning and Approaches to Teaching
Teaching for Understanding Through Inquiry
Inquiry in Action
Modeling the Development of Understanding Through Inquiry
Introducing alternative ideas
role of inquiry skills
Developing a Climate for Learning
Motivating learning
Neuroscience and Learning
Action Points
3. Taking Students' Ideas Seriously
Examples of Students' Ideas
Ideas about living things
Ideas about how we see
Ideas about how we hear
Ideas about floating and sinking
Characteristics of Students' Own Ideas
How Do Students Form Their Ideas?
Finding Out Students' Ideas
Questioning
Drawings and writing
Concept maps
Concept cartoons
Student discussions
Helping Students Develop Their Ideas
Action Points
4. Teachers' and Students' Questions
Teachers' Questions
Question form
Question function
Question timing
Allowing time for answering
Responding to Students' Answers
Students' Questions
Responding to Different Types of Questions
Comments expressed as questions
Philosophical questions
Requests for simple facts
Questions that can lead to investigation by students
Questions requiring complex answers
In summary
Action Points
5. Students Raising Questions and Planning Inquiries
Progression in Inquiry Skills
Identifying Inquiry Skills
Raising Questions
Investigatable questions
Types of Questions and Investigations in Science
Which ... is best?
Is there a pattern in ...?
What happens when ...?
I wonder why ...?
How can we ...?
Helping Students' Progress in Raising Questions
Planning Inquiries
Thinking about variables
Investigating relationships
Helping Students' Progress in Planning
Providing opportunities
Scaffolding planning
Discussing completed investigations
Action Points
6. Students Gathering Information
Observation
Ideas affect observation
Aspects of observing
Benefits of developing observation skills
Helping Students' Progress in Observation
Encouraging development
Using Secondary Sources of Information
Using reference books
Using digital resources
Action Points
7. Students Analyzing, Interpreting, and Explaining
Analyzing and Interpreting
Which is best ... (the best place in the classroom to keep ice from melting)?
Is there a pattern ... (in the direction and length of shadows and the time of day)?
I wonder why ... (moisture appears on a cold surface)?
From Interpretation to Explanation
Scaffolding possible explanations
Using analogies in explanations
Different levels of explanation
Helping Students' Progress in Analyzing, Interpreting, and Explaining
Action Points
8. Students Communicating, Arguing, and Reflecting
Science and Literacy
Spoken Language: The Importance of Talk
Dialogue
Argumentation
Small-group and class discussions
Presentation to others
Communicating Through Writing and Drawing
Using a notebook
Reporting completed inquiries
Using Scientific Vocabulary
When and how to introduce and use scientific words
Helping Students' Progress in Communication, Arguing, and Reflecting
Action Points
9. Formative Assessment in Science
Purposes of Assessment
Summative Assessment
Nature and Importance of Formative Assessment
nature of formative assessment
importance of formative assessment
Formative Assessment in Practice
Interpreting information
Deciding next steps
Taking next steps: Feedback
Role of Students in Formative Assessment
Communicating standards of quality
Students' role in deciding and taking next steps
Peer assessment
Action Points
10. Formative Evaluation of Science Learning Opportunities
Formative Evaluation at the Class Level
Gathering data for evaluation
Deciding on action
Focused Evaluation: An Example of Inquiry-Based Learning in Science
Formative Evaluation of Science at the School Level
Standards for evaluating science at the school level
Gathering information for school self-evaluation
Using school-level information: Taking action
Science Curriculum Leadership
Continuing Professional Development
Action Points.