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"I've learned to take the children's lead, using their theories as a starting point, then helping them think about how they might test out those theories. And by helping them test their theories, they're able to refine their thinking, and develop new theories that lead to new questions and deeper investigations."
—From Worm City: Excerpts from a Teacher's Journal, Discovering Nature with Young Children.
Let's do real science! Discovering Nature with Young Children is an inquiry-based curriculum that builds on children's natural curiosity about the living world.
The curriculum guide helps you prepare yourself and and your classroom for a new approach to science learning. It then assists you in planning open and focused explorations, ranging from indoor terraria to outdoor animal searches and habitat discussions. You will also learn how to better observe, assess, and document the children's learning.
This curriculum is designed to help children learn:
Essential scientific reasoning skills, such as hypothesis, inference, prediction, and estimation
— Important language and literacy skills as they communicate their findings, participate in discussions, and represent their experiences
— Crucial math skills as they count, measure, sort, categorize, and compare the many plants and animals in their surroundings
"As a passionate explorer of nature with young children, I welcome this thoughtfully designed guide to support teachers in their own discoveries with children. It clarifies the myriad details of planning and discussion and documentation that can enable young children and their teachers to re-create, in developmentally appropriate ways, what scientists really do."
—Elizabeth Jones, faculty, Human Development, Pacific Oaks College, coauthor of Emergent Curriculum and The Play's the Thing
"Teachers walked away from the workshops feeling confident that they could implement the curriculum, and they left excited, too. Science was always weak in our program. In fact, it rarely occurred. But now you can see science everywhere."
—Tina Heily, EPIC Head Start, Yakima, WA
"The teachers really enjoyed the workshops. Looking at science like this is new for them and I feel that their excitement transferred to the classroom which, in turn, made the children more interested and excited—both boys and girls."
—Minoo V., Cisco Systems Bright Horizons, Milipitas, CA
"I found it really easy to follow. Everything was very clear. Anybody could use it. The teachers didn't lose interest. They really like the hands-on parts, and they were very engaged in the reflective discussions."
—Elaine Woo, Seattle Public Schools
"I see evidence of teachers applying what they learned during the workshops. Teachers are writing down children's observations. The children dictate, notice and wonder."
—Julie Cross-Steele, Museum School, Fort Worth, TX
"These materials were very, very helpful. As the instructor, I knew just what to do."
—Cindy Addis, Thompson Early Childhood Center, Seattle, WA
"When I read through the workshops, they looked so good, I decided we needed to do them all!"
—Mindy Barbakoff, Childspace Day Care Center, Philadelphia, PA
"This comprehensive, inquiry-based curriculum builds on the 3-5 year-old child's natural curiosity about nature."
—Skipping Stones magazine
Redleaf Press is a division of Resources for Child Caring, a nonprofit resource and referral organization. Your purchases directly support the care and education of young children.
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