UtSTA 2024: Out-Of-This-World Science Teaching

As a first grade teacher I know it can be overwhelming to teach young children complicated Science and Engineering practices. However, with a few simple changes and techniques what once felt overwhelming can suddenly be simple and engaging for students when we connect these practices to students own schema and experiences. Using the SEPs is essential to the SEEd standards across multiple disciplinary core ideas. I am choosing to focus on how to engage students in Obtain, Evaluate, and Communicate, as this is a building block towards more advance scientific practices. I really want to help share the importance of helping students build the understanding of these processes by integrating them into many different areas. This is a concept we use in math, literature, art, etc, Its a basic principal that facilitates students scientific thinking. I will show fun props and picture cards to remind students of the steps involved in this process, and then allow participants to explore in several engaging center based activities to determine which methods, materials, or information best supports their individual learning targets in a way that is natural through play and exploration.

Center 1: student use photos feed and models of animals to obtain needed information and to evaluate which animal left marks along a trail, and then communicate that in a journal or with a partner....?

Center 2: Students use qr codes to view videos and photos of the sun, moon, and sky patterns to obtain information, evaluate the information to determine why they moon changes shape in the sky over a period of time, and be able to communicate that with a picture, model, or a written or verbal description.

Center 3: Students determine which type of material would be best to block out the light of the sun on a hot day by experimenting with different types of materials to obtain, evaluate, and communicate why some materials are better at blocking out light.....

Come learn how your 1st grade students can go from detective to dendrochronologist (scientist who studies tree rings) while using Red Butte Garden's Botany Boxes. The Tree Detectives Botany Box directly supports SEEd standard 1.2.1 with hands on observations and wonders using your very own tree cookies. Learn how trees grow and to determine how much sunlight and water a tree received during its life. Then analyze data and make a plan to save a grove of dying trees.