What is science for a child? How do children learn about science and how to do science? Drawing on a vast array of work from neuroscience to classroom observation, "Taking Science to School" provides a comprehensive picture of what we know about teaching and learning science from kindergarten through eighth grade. By looking at a broad range of questions, this book provides a basic foundation for guiding science teaching and supporting students in their learning. "Taking Science to School" answers such questions as: (1) When do children begin to learn about science? Are there critical stages in a child's development of such scientific concepts as mass or animate objects?; (2) What role does nonschool learning play in children's knowledge of science?; (3) How can science education capitalize on children's natural curiosity?; (4) What are the best tasks for books, lectures, and hands-on learning?; And (5) How can teachers be taught to teach science? The book also provides a detailed examination of how we know what we know about children's learning of science--about the role of research and evidence. This book will be an essential resource for everyone involved in k-8 science education--teachers, principals, boards of education, teacher education providers and accreditors, education researchers, federal education agencies, and state and federal policy makers. It will also be a useful guide for parents and others interested in how children learn. The table of contents is as follows: Part I, Introduction, contains: (1) Science Learning Past and Present; and (2) Goals for Science Education. Part ii, How Children Learn Science, contains (3) Foundations for Science Learning in Young Children; (4) Knowledge and Understanding of the Natural World; (5) Generating and Evaluating Scientific Evidence and Explanations; (6) Understanding How Scientific Knowledge Is Constructed; and (7) Participation in Scientific Practices and Discourse. Part Part iii, Supporting Science Learning presents: (8) Learning Progressions; (9) Teaching Science as Practice; and (10) Supporting Science Instruction. Part iv, Future Directions for Policy, Practice, and Research: contains (11) Conclusions and Recommendations. Appended are: (1) Overview of Learning Progressions for Matter and the Atomic-Molecular Theory; (2) Biographical Sketches of Committee Members and Staff.

Kindergarten.

Elementary Secondary Education.

Elementary Education.

Early Childhood Education.

English.