Supporting Exploration and Discovery

Activity
Green card: What did you like about
your school experiences?
Pink Card: What did you not like
about school?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 3

Processing

Which among the experiences are most liked

by the group?

Which ones are least liked?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 4

 Learning is a social
experience!
Learning does not take place if a person..
Does not have anything to look at or touch..
Does not have anyone to interact with..

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

 At the center of
the learning and
discovery is the
CHILD

The Adult is just a

participant-observer

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Outline
I. What is Science for a young child?
II. Goals of Teaching Science
III.Science Process for Young Children
IV. Appropriate Science and Other Related
Concepts for Young Children
V. Active Learning Methodologies

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 7

Activity

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 8

Science is

• A process
• A body of knowledge
• Sets of ideas
• Sets of attitudes
• In the world around us

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 9

…. for the young child?
• Pausing to wonder, reflect and speculate
• Questioning conditions and events
• Seeking explanations from reliable
sources
• Doubting generalities
• Sharing ideas
• Recording findings mentally/materially
• Organizing, interpreting, generalizing
and applying information

It’s about EXPLORATION and DISCOVERY!!

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 10
 Young children are naturally curious and
they are interested in learning about the world around them.

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 11

Goals of Teaching Science

To stimulate
To help children
curiosity and
gain “scientific”
interest among
knowledge and
children
information

To develop in
To develop in Gain
children an interest
children the ability new knowledge and
and appreciation of
to solve problems life skills
the “science”
in systematic ways
around them
Prepare to lead the future

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 12

Activity
Watch a video in this link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HglYz0h2n2E

Share your thoughts after watching the video.

What is one most important thing you learned in this video?
As a kindergarten teacher/coordinator, how will you ensure that
discovery and exploration take place in kindergarten classrooms?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Scientific Process in Preschool

Interpreting

It’s the process

Experimenting that’s important!

Predicting

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 14
Scientific Process in Preschool

What do you see? Smell? etc?

Interpreting What’s happening?
Look for similarities and differences.
Observe shapes, colors, textures
Experimenting
Activity:
Provide ¼ water and ¼ white vinegar in
two similar containers.
Make a list of 5 or more ways that water
Predicting and vinegar are alike.

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 15
Scientific Process in Preschool

Interpreting Making an educated guess/prediction

Making an attempt to interpret observations
based on experience=Inferring
What will happen next?
Experimenting What would happen if you did this instead?
Would it be the same if…?
Answer:

Predicting What do you think will happen if we put

baking soda to each container- water and
vinegar?

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 16
Scientific Process in Preschool

Interpreting

Children investigate their predictions to

see what really happens and why.
Experimenting

Activity:
Add 1 spoonful of baking soda to the water.
Predicting What happens?
Add 1 spoonful of baking soda to the
vinegar.
What happens?

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 17
Scientific Process in Preschool

Interpreting Draw conclusions.

What should happen next?
What else should we try?
Can you think of anything else that works
Experimenting like that?

Predicting

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 18
Science Process Skills

Interpreting
Communicating
Problem solving
Experimenting Classification
Seeing relationships
Measuring
Inferring
Predicting

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 19
Critical Elements in Active Learning

Interpreting
• Direct actions on
objects
Experimenting • Reflection on Actions
• Intrinsic motivation,
invention and
generativity
Predicting
• Problem solving

Observation
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 20
 Each time we learn something,
a new pathway is made in the brain.

Example: learning the word “bubbles”

•brain makes new connections among what bubbles looks like, what
items can make bubbles or those cannot, and what the word “bubbles”
sounds like

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

The preschool brain is “primed” to
make pathways

Birth
Birth Preschool
Preschool Teen

aaaa
A
A
Connections among Neurons

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

 Making a pathway in the brain
is like making a pathway
through a jungle.

As you walk the same route,

over and over,
you wear out a path.

The more often you take this path,

the deeper it becomes
and the easier it is to follow.

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

•So the more often a brain pathway is used, the
stronger it becomes
• Pathways make it easier to learn and to
remember

•The more pathways a child has, the faster their

learning will become

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Activity
We learn that positive experiences build better brains.
How about the negative experiences?
Watch a video in this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMseNYpOQvE

Share your thoughts after watching the video.

What do you think is the impact of negative
experiences of children in school in their
developing brain?
corporal punishment of teacher
bullying
pressure of structured tests and drills

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Cycle of Mastery

CURIOSITY

PLAY/
MASTERY
LEARNING

REPETITION PLEASURE

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 26

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 27
Science Concepts and Topics for
Young Children

LIFE SCIENCE
plants
animals
ecology (environment)

HEALTH SCIENCE
health
and the
human body

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Science Concepts and Topics for Young
Children
PHYSICAL SCIENCE
levers, magnets
pulleys, forces
motion, energy
machines

EARTH SCIENCE
Weather, soil, air, land,
Water, rocks, sun, moon,
Stars, and clouds

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Science and Other Related Concepts

Language Arts
Stories
Songs and Rhymes
New words (vocabulary)

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Science and Other Related Concepts

Mathematics
One-to-one
correspondence
Number and counting
Sequencing (life cycle)
Classifying
Comparing observations
Shapes
Space

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Science and Other Related Concepts

Self
Parts of the body
Functions of Body
Parts
Taking care of
One’s Body

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Activity

Watch a video in this link

http://resourcesforearlylearning.org/educators/module/20/15/76/

Share your thoughts after watching the video.

How can you help children make connections to the science concepts and
ideas that are central to their explorations?
What are some ways you can encourage children to share their thinking and
new learning?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

 How do we support
exploration and
discovery?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 34

“
Children learn best through play
and hands-on experiences. One of
the best ways is by adapting
the Active
Learning
Methodologies
in the classroom.

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Supporting Active Learning
in the Classroom

1. Organizing the environment

2. Organizing routines
3. Establish a supportive positive social climate
4. Encourage children’s intentional actions,
problem solving and verbal reflection
5. Planning experiences that build on child’s
actions and interests

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

1. Organizing the environment

• Store materials where children

can reach them independently.
• Label storage areas with a sign
or picture so that children can
clean up and put materials away
easily and independently
• Maintain a safe environment
• Give children references with
real objects that you can handle
and use for experimenting

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

1. Organizing the environment

• Encourage water play to teach concepts of

volume, measuring, density, etc.
• Move some activities outdoors
(story-telling and other activities)
• Consider removing tables and chairs,
giving the children more room to move
freely about. Children’s critical thinking skills will be
improved by making the programming shift to more
Free Play / Active Learning opportunities

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

2. Organizing routines

• Utilize every opportunity to count objects and use numbers

• Choose activities with high levels of child involvement.
• Incorporate science concepts into daily activities.
• Consider scheduling and pacing, the grouping
arrangements that will bring desired outcomes, and most
appropriate materials to meet programmatic goals.
• Let them decide what to try.
• Allow for Free Play!!

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

3. Establish a supportive positive social climate

• Keep your cool, if you are already stressed out,

seek help from parents to assist you lest no one
will facilitate their children’s learning
• Encourage child-to-child interaction/helping one
another
• Encourage children to talk!!

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

4. Encourage children’s intentional actions,
problem solving and verbal reflection
• Let the children do the work and talk. It is what active learning is all
about.
• Listen to their thoughts and ideas without judging.
• Allow children to freely create their own choices/do things for
themselves. It is OKAY even if the outputs are not the all the same.
• Provide lots of interesting materials
• Remember that trial and error is not failure.
• Ask inquiring questions that will propel
children to try new or build on his current
activity
• Help children learn problem-solving
techniques—questioning and experimenting
to solve problems
KTG Roll-out Training April 2017
Inquiring Questions

A. “Wow, that looks like a very interesting robot. What does it

do?”
B. “Nice. Okey, pack away those toys now.”

I wonder why that happens?

What do you think would happen if?
What else might work instead?
I wonder if we could…?
What else should we try?
Can you think of anything else that works like that?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

5. Planning experiences that build on
child’s actions and interests
 Come to school prepared
 Organize cohesive activities for the day
(integrated approach)
 Plan a wide variety of activities that challenge
children’s thinking, observing and
generalizing skills.
 Develop projects around nature.
 Plan field trips to stimulate concept learning
and integration of concepts
 Invite children to create drawings, labels or
diagrams to show others what they have
observed or learned.

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Application
Using your knowledge of the Child Development principles and
Elements of Active Learning, demonstrate one activity in your
assigned quarter that involve Science process.

1. List the key learning outcomes or big ideas you want children to learn.
2. What supplies and materials are needed?
3. How will you scaffold instruction to support individual children?
4. Create a list of 3-5 open-ended questions that would help children think
more deeply about the topic.
5. How will you build on children’s own experiences and connect the key
science concepts to everyday life?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Science is

• Inclusive
• Across subject areas
• Developing literacy skills
• Developing math skills
• Develops life skills
• All around us!

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 45

Science is not
• …just a set of facts that have already been
discovered by others; it is a process- a way of
thinking and understanding the world.

Children acquire scientific knowledge by

“construction,” not by instruction.

Kamii& Lee-Katz, 1983

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

Who can teach Science
Someone who is:
• Willing to try
• Can nurture and encourage children to try
• Is not afraid to fail
• Is not afraid to get dirty
• Can listen first

In other words… YOU!

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017 48
Open Forum

Insights?
Questions?

KTG Roll-out Training April 2017