Sunday 30 March 2014

How can I scaffold science thinking?

Science in the Classroom

The value of a question when asked at the right time in the right context can challenge children's science thinking.
Always make sure children have clarification of what

I notice that....
I think this....

Picture prompts to apply the above prompts to explain and justify their thinking.

Model expectations of sentence structure.
Try to put explanations with their thinking to have reasons for what they have observed.
Requires prior knowledge to infer so always check prior knowledge.

Cues cards - animal picture prompts to practice. Make sure they are specific science pictures, not cats in hats.



What would happen if....
I wonder why.....
I wonder why plants have leaves?  

record and develop ideas knowledge building and scaffolding. 

What do you notice as you go past the plant?
Select thinking and links to build on. 

I wonder what would happen if the plant had no leaves?

Challenge thinking by questioning the opposite to reality. 
What would happen if plants were kept in the dark?

Turn it into action
What do we need to do to make plants grow well?

Keep it in context
- walk in the garden, what do you notice? Can you see the seeds, animals in the garden. 
Being scientist is about looking carefully.

Gather something to grow in a pot or soil to see what happens. Beginnings of a science investigation from questions shared from observations.
Can we grow our own native plants?

Introduce a new word / scientific language to help explain what we now know.
Make a statement.

No comments: