Active Science Exploration in the Classroom

I was interested to see real-life science learning occurring in the classroom, where the students were engaging in higher-level learning using both Bloom’s taxonomy and Bruner’s learning pyramid. Bloom’s taxonomy shows that creating and evaluating are the highest levels of learning, and Bruner’s learning pyramid shows that procedural knowledge and metacognition are the highest levels of learning. Actually applying what we have learned to different contexts is crucial to retain information more efficiently, since 75% of the information we retain is done so by practice. In addition, the highest level of retaining knowledge is done so by teaching others, as 90% of information is retained by doing so.

Therefore, here is a video of students learning science and reflecting on this process in a fifth grade classroom.

DNA: The Blueprint for Life

My first nature observation is not an observation that takes place outdoors, but inside a lab. In genetics lab the other day, we isolated the DNA from beef liver. This was the first time I had ever extracted DNA, and it is a long, interesting process. It led me to think about how complex and amazingly powerful such a small molecule truly is. It took us over three hours to isolate the DNA using both centrifuging and substrates.

DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is what encodes our genes that program our phenotypes, which are the physical reflections of our genotypes. This double-helical structure is so complex and long, and is compacted into the nucleus of every cell in our bodies. It is truly a fascinating thought. If stretched and unraveled to capacity, our human DNA in would be over 6ft in length inside every cell! The length of all of the DNA present inside one adult human, or the human genome, would be equivalent to nearly 70 trips from the earth to the sun and back! It is incredible that we carry all of this encoding information inside of us.

Although the human genome has been cracked, there are still endless questions about how genes are turned on and off, and how to exactly do so. I am personally curious in this field of genetics, known as epigenetics. Patterns of gene expression are governed by the cellular material — the epigenome — that sits on top of the genome. It is these epigenetic marks that tell your genes to switch on or off. It is through epigenetic marks that environmental factors like diet, stress and prenatal nutrition can make an imprint on genes that is passed from one generation to the next. Helping individuals not inherit transmissible diseases or avoid being more prone to obesity is a great application of this knowledge.  

Returning to my experience in the lab this past week, I found it interesting to examine the replication process of DNA. The DNA replicating process in eukaryotes is not as well understood as prokaryotes, since we are innately more complex organisms with linear DNA instead of circular; however, the process is still very similar. Therefore, I am providing any readers with this video on DNA replication to visualize the process, which involves an assortment of DNA enzymes (polymerases) and RNA (ribonucleic acid) enzymes, instead of simply reading about the process. Enjoy!

Locating Your Scientific Self

Reflecting on my own personal experiences as an elementary student, I have come to realize how much influence many of the attitudes and beliefs my teachers had influenced me, as well. For example, I have never been very fond of mathematics; however, I have never fully understood why or how I have come to be this way. While thinking back on my very first experiences with math, I can remember being ridiculed in front of my peers by my teacher for not knowing the correct answer to one of the very “simple” problems. This was probably the start of my downward spiraling relationship with math at the highly influential age of seven. In addition, many of my other experiences of math are associated with repeated failures and lack of self-confidence, but I also noticed that they are associated with a lack of motivation and support from my teachers. Often before starting a math lesson, my teachers would make comments about wanting to skip the math lesson, or how math was never their favorite subject in school. These negative comments over the years only assured me that I would never be able to enjoy or be successful in math, as well.

Therefore, teacher’s beliefs and attitudes about any subject, including science, can have a great impact about what student’s think about science, as well. We do indeed teach what we think, and therefore, it is important to locate one’s scientific self before proceeding to teach science to a group of developing and hungry minds. The authentic self is always present ad visible no matter what subject is being taught, and can have a great effect on students. Teachers want to instill a positive outlook on science to students, and to do so, we must recognize how we feel about science. Students are able to notice and recognize how you feel about a subject even if you do not make negative comments, and if you have not confronted your own negativity about science it can lead to discouraging students from pursuing scientific interests. Being a reflective teacher and exploring my experiences from my past with science can only help me to create and modify the classroom environment and lessons to establish new and better contexts for learning science. The ability to be a successful science teacher is largely governed by one’s experiences as a science learner.

I feel that I maintain a very positive outlook on science since I have a great interest in the subject. Therefore, my “scientific self,” is an individual who is interested, curious, excited, and passionate about the subject, and is enthusiastic to teach students to feel the same way about science. I feel that I am most scientific when I am in the lab in my science classes, such as in genetics and chemistry lab. In lab, we make our own hypotheses about situations and divulge in experiments to either support or refute these educational guesses. Creating experiments, such as determining the percent weight of sodium carbonate in a toilet cleaner, or engaging in lab exercises, such as extracting DNA from beef liver, and reflecting on the results is when I feel I am fully using inquiry and the scientific process.

Stereotypes are relentless, and plague the subject and act of being a scientist even in today’s world. When asked to draw an image of a scientist, many people will create a drawing of a man in a lab coat wearing glasses, holding test tubes containing some unknown, bubbling concoction, and sporting a crazy hair style. In fact, I am not immune to this misconstrued idea of a scientist even though I myself am a science major. The major force behind feeding these false ideas and images to students is the media. Cartoons, movies, television shows, and magazines all utilize and play with this idea of a scientist being a man creating chemical formulas in a secret lab somewhere. Unfortunately, stereotypes become part of our belief system and can influence what we think and feel. Women and minorities are usually not included in this stereotype, and these present-day images of scientists demonstrate that this stereotype persists.

As a teacher, I want to show my students the influence that both women and minorities have had in the field of science, and the contributions made by these individuals. I hope to instill a desire to pursue future science occupations and interests in my students, as well. To do so, I plan on introducing a wide range of scientists and contributors to science from history in my classroom. For example, I feel that Rosalind Franklin is a perfect example of a brilliant woman contributor in the field of science, specifically genetics and DNA, whose efforts in x-ray crystallography were both borrowed and overshadowed by two more familiar individuals, James Watson and Francis Crick. Franklin and Maurice Wilkinson worked together to develop fantastic images of DNA using x-ray crystallography, which revealed information about the structure of DNA. Wilkinson showed Watson and Crick the images produced, and Watson, Crick, and Wilkinson were awarded the Nobel Prize for their discovery of the double-helix structure of the DNA molecule. Rosalind was never acknowledged or mentioned for her instrumental efforts in discovering the structure of DNA.

In addition to Rosalind Franklin, Marie Curie comes to mind as another great, woman scientist. Marie Curie was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1903 for her research in radioactivity, and in 1911 was awarded the Nobel Prize again for her discovery of polonium and radium.

I am very fortunate to be able to observe and explore nature almost daily. Living in the Hudson Valley, I am surrounded by trees, the wildlife of NYS, the Hudson River, the beautiful mountains in this valley, and I am able to do so at the wildlife preservation center where I intern. The Hudson Highlands Nature Museum in Cornwall, NY offers many opportunities to bring science and nature to students of all ages, and influence them to care for their environment. There are various programs offered that demonstrate to students how to respect nature through nature walks, presentations on animals and  the environment, wildlife preservation, interactions with the wildlife in this area at the animal center, and other science related experiences available to the public. It is extremely important to make an impact on children very young to show and educate them why and how they should care for their environment. Therefore, the internship I have acquired at the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum offers multiple opportunities for me to interact and observe nature through interacting with the animals (owls, snakes, etc.) at the wildlife center, going on nature walks, maple sugar tours, and educating students about the environment.

Science: A Search for Understanding

Science is not simply about facts and information, but it includes a way of thinking, a set of ideas, and is an ever evolving process. Science is a way of understanding and making sense of the natural world around us, and engaging in exploration. However, understanding how science is correctly taught to students is often a puzzling challenge.


First, science needs to be understood as a process, or a scientific method. Asking good questions is usually a good start to begin thinking scientifically. Making careful observations, coming up with an idea or ideas that may explain these observations (hypothesis), testing the hypothesis in an experiment, analyzing the results, and repeating the experiment to support your results is the basic process behind science. This overall scientific process of ideas and discovery is referred to as inquiry.


Second, science is also a set of ideas examined through experimentation, in which understandings of the natural world will arise. For example, a theory is a comprehensive explanation of some aspect of nature that is supported by a considerable body of evidence, such as the theory of evolution.


Finally, science is a way of thinking, in which one maintains an open mind when confronted with new evidence. Since scientists often work collaboratively, the scientific attitude includes a willingness to consider other’s ideas and a desire to find evidence to support these ideas. For example, students working together on an experiment in class and sharing and comparing observations is an example of a scientific way of thinking. Some students may need to modify their way of thinking based on new evidence brought to their attention by others.


The question remains, however, concerning how to properly teach science to students? How do we, as teachers, engage students in inquiry and scientific thought? To promote this way of critical thinking and observing in classrooms, it is necessary to understand how children learn science to become a successful and motivational science teacher. According to the psychologist, Jean Piaget, children pass through different stages of cognitive development. Knowledge is constructed, meaning it is not passively received. Instead, students are actively contributing to their knowledge base by continuously expanding upon prior knowledge and experiences. Children add and accommodate new knowledge into the previous categories and concepts they have stored in their brains.


In addition to Piaget, the Russian psychologist, Lev Vygotsky, demonstrated how social contexts influence the ideas that individuals construct as they communicate and interact socially with each other. Teaching and learning must take into account a student’s social context. New ideas are built on earlier understandings, and depending on the extent of those earlier understandings, misconceptions or confusion may arise. Therefore, factual knowledge must be placed in a conceptual framework to be well understood. Newly acquired knowledge must also be followed up with reflection on these concepts to fully make sense of these ideas. This ability to understand what you know is known as, metacognition.


Therefore, to teach science to students with success, classroom lessons need to incorporate concrete experiences and meaningful experiences. A concrete experience involves interacting with objects and materials in the student’s real world. Students use “hands-on experiences” to engage in science lessons, and develop their own ideas about the natural world. Connecting new experiences to their own lives, and visible seeing and engaging in a purpose allows students to construct new ideas. These experiences also need to be meaningful to allow students to relate the experience to their own lives, explore the scientific process, and reflect on their understanding. Students all come from various background and have different prior knowedge, therefore, we need to provide these meaningiful concrete experiences for students to accomdate information into their schemata. It is crucial for students to demonstrate what they have learned in a new context because this shows that the students have truly absorbed the information, understand the content, and can apply it to new contexts. Engaging in a search for meaning is much more crucial than simply providing worksheets to students and demanding the memorization of trite, unrelated facts.


For example, in class during the first week of school, we engaged in a hands-on lab activity to learn how to make observations, compile data, and analyze the data. This activity was very useful to see how actively engaging in the scientific process is more important than simply reading about it. We took the simple concept of density, and engaged in a higher level of learning by reflecting and interpreting what we have learned about density in a meaningful way. Activities should be both "minds on" and "hands on" to formulate connections.I will use interactive exercises and experiements like the one we did in class to teach science concepts to my students.


In addition, it is important to remember that a misconception a child might have about a concept in science, is really an alternative conception. All ideas have value, and because students come from different backgrounds and have different prior experiences, their way of thinking and way they see things may be different than others. Therefore, it is important to instill in the child that they are not wrong, but are in the process of solving the problem. For example, I can remember my alternative conception about why the sky is blue. I used to think it was because the ocean reflected its blue color in the sky, however, it is a reflection of the blue wavelength.


Using the learning cycle can aid in process of teaching for understanding in science learning. The learning cycle is comprised of: the engagement stage, where students are invited by an exciting and interesting hook, the exploration phase, where students are engaged in direct experimentation and manipulation, and explanation phase, where students analyze and interpret their observations using metacognition, the elaboration phase, where connections are made, and the evaluation phase, where teachers and students can explore what they know and have learned during the experience through various assessment techniques. To both assess what a student has learned, and help them make further connections and further his or her understandings of a concept, have the student apply what they have learned in a new context, or situation. This allows the student to apply the idea they have learned to other natural phenomena, and see the wide applications of a concept, such as density. If a student has a full understanding of a concept, they will be able to successfully extend connections to other situations.

 An important aspect of learning science is addressing misconceptions; however, although students may not bring correct ideas to a lesson, they should not be ridiculed or seen as if their ideas have no value. In science, all ideas contain value because they are part of the scientific process of inquiry and the search for understanding. Ideas in science are continuously being reexamined and refined due to new evidence or conflicting experiments. In the science classes I am taking today, such as chemistry, I am continuously refining my ideas about my physical surroundings and how molecules interact. Student’s ideas about the world around them are no different, because these ideas are part of a process that eventually can lead to a better understanding of the concept. It is important that students feel the freedom to express their ideas in a community of learners in order to see their own value and ability to be scientists. The experiences I have had with science in my elementary school years were not motivational or engaging concerning the subject of science. We were often given worksheets, and told to read textbooks and study for tests. Therefore, I showed no interest in science or any desire to engage in a higher level of thinking because my teachers showed no interest, as well. It is crucial to remember that teachers play a major role in influencing students to develop an interest in any subject, and it is their duty to provide opportunities for these concrete and meaningful experiences, and time to reflect on these experiences.


Using technology in classrooms is also an important part to furthering learning science, as well as any subject, for that matter. Technology is extremely important to me for learning in general. I continuously utilize the Internet to research new topics, explore new ideas, research subjects for school, and provide additional help for subjects I may need help in. In addition, technology can provide videos, visuals, and simulations that can bring real-world phenomena into the classroom. Interactive websites can also be utilized by students that present them with a problem and allow them to manipulate stimuli to provide solutions to help create a full understanding of a concept. Natural phenomena from all over the world that would usually be out of reach can be in your classroom with one simple click of a mouse. In a way, it truly is similar to having the world at your fingertips. Therefore, using technology in the classroom can certainly be an immense help in playing the role of teaching science to students. For example, while working on a concept such as global warming, together as a class you can research weather data showing trends over a period of time in different areas of the world. Data collected from experiments, observations, or research conducted in the classroom can be compiled into charts and graphs on computer programs to visualize and analyze trends over time. These experiments and conclusions can be compiled and presented using multimedia presentations, or even shared with other students around the world using online discussions. Technology is not just a great asset to one’s classroom, it is, in my opinion, a necessary asset.