K-4 Science Standards

The National Science Teachers Association
 http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=4962&page=109

TABLE 6.8. CONTENT STANDARDS, GRADES K-4

UNIFYING CONCEPTS AND PROCESSES	SCIENCE AS INQUIRY	PHYSICAL SCIENCE	LIFE SCIENCE
Systems, order, and organization	Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry	Properties of objects and materials	Characteristics of organisms
Evidence, models, and explanation	Understandings about scientific inquiry	Position and motion of objects	Life cycles of organisms
Change, constancy, and measurement		Light, heat, electricity, and magnetism	Organisms and environments
Evolution and equilibrium
Form and function
EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE	SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY	SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES	HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE
Properties of earth materials	Abilities of technological design	Personal health	Science as a human endeavor
Objects in the sky	Understandings about science and technology	Characteristics and changes in populations
Changes in earth and sky	Abilities to distinguish between natural objects and objects made by humans	Types of resources
		Changes in environments
		Science and technology in local challenges

Criteria for the Content Standards

Standards for Science - What to teach?

I'm finally starting work on the science project. First question, what standards? Answer:

Develop to the latest and greatest thinking relying on Big Ideas and Science Anchors.

Correlate to the existing standards which turn out to be the National Science Education Standards!

Which are on the National Academies Press website.

Chemistry, Elementary Education, The Periodic Table

I've mostly been thinking about physics, earth sciences, biology, and the scientific method. I've just started to think about Chemistry which is arguably, the most important and central science. Here's what I've been reading:

A Blog Post About Chemistry which covers a range of issues from the periodic table to teaching chemistry in alterative ways.

Teresa's howtoteachscience.com ....Cd, book...websites...

Federal Resoures for teaching science

Concord.org with their molecular workbench database of curriculum, models, and activities.

PreK-2nd Science Education - Big Strands

The curriculum should cover:

Earth Science

Earth’s Surface
Changes in position of objects and environments through time; - volcanoes, canyon thru erosion, mountains thru earthquakes, videos, beaches thru erosion (interesting how they are rebuilt), dust-storms thru cutting down cover
Relative movements of the Earth, Moon, Sun, and the planets - sun song,

Physical Science

Matter and Its Transformations - water cycle, burn something (smoke and ash)
Energy and Its Transformations - physics and game engine
Forces and Motion - physics game engine

Life Science
Change and Evolution - Avoid evolution but show how selection changes. Dogs are great example.
Cells and Their Functions
Organisms
Ecology

Science Curriculum Math Curriculum

[Talk about online science curriculum and online math curriculum!] Here is a list of science and math textbook publishers from Gizmos website (explorelearning .com) for future reference. http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cResource.dspResourceCatalog

• Carolina Biological
• CPM
• Delta Education
• Freeman
• Glencoe/McGraw-Hill
• Harcourt
• Holt
• Houghton Mifflin
• It's About Time
• Key Curriculum
• Macmillan
• McDougal Littell
• Prentice Hall
• Scott Foresman
• Wright Group

Learning SEO & Online Marketing - Intermediate: Education and Parenting Domains

Learning SEO & Online Marketing - Intermediate: Education and Parenting Domains

I'm not entirely sure how this "create a link" works. Can someone explain it to me?

thanks, john

Science simulation tools

A few big possibilities if I don't want to develop from scratch.

www.fantasticcontraption.com - a great game, reminds of the incredible machine. I think it's by Brain Fargo (who I remember from Interplay's Glory Days in the late 80s, early 90s when I was at 3DO). Can this be used as a learning tool? As in:
- no ads
- programmable with decent science
- is it physics and motion only??

www.explorelearning.com - their gizmos are cool, they're intended for education, they belong to VoyagerU that just merged with some one.
- what would their licensing model be?

Videos
- universal
- brainpop.com