Science
Nearly Extinct in Bay Area Schools
By Sarah Shaffer
Science is not merely a body of facts, and it's not only
a method for understanding the world; underlying all this
is the desire to know the world - curiosity about the
world. Curiosity is abundant in childhood. Curiosity
is fragile. It must be encouraged and developed. If every
time a child asks "why?" or "how come?" she
is told "You learn that in high school or college," the
curiosity begins to wane. The child gets the message that
the world is not really knowable - at least not by her
or him.
I'll never forget how shocked and delighted I was to read The
Double Helix, by James Watson during my junior year
in high school. Before that, science was "boring" to
me. It meant nothing - just lists of facts to memorize,
facts that rarely made sense. I failed biology the first
time - just hated it (and this the girl who collected
and raised bugs, toads, wildflowers and who wanted to
be an oceanographer at 8 years of age). But something
important shifted in me after reading Watson's book.
It was my first insight into what science really was,
in the real world. These scientists struggling (often
viciously competing) to figure out the very nature of
life - DNA - gave me my first glimpse that science
was still alive.
 Earlier
this year staff at the Center for Research, Evaluation,
and Assessment at the tatus of science education in Bay
Area elementary schools. The results of this study Lawrence
Hall of Science at UC Berkeley and at WestEd conducted
a study of the soffer some insights about why students
are not performing well in science in this region.
Study findings suggest two interdependent reasons for
these achievement results.
- First, the current status of science education is weak:
science education is of inconsistent and often poor quality;
Bay Area schools spend too little time teaching the subject;
and many teachers are unprepared to teach science.
- Second, the current status of the efforts to improve
science education is also weak: public educational policy
(national, state, and often local) does not adequately
address the importance of science education and often
presents structural barriers to the improvement of science
instruction.
Fortunately, many schools and communities would like to
improve these conditions.
This is my plea to all the powers that be - we must keep
science education in elementary school. If we wait until
high school to present science, we risk losing a child's
natural curiosity. As in my initial experience in high
school biology, children will find science a boring set
of facts, disconnected from their lives and the world around
them.
Yes, children must learn to read and decode the written
word, but they must also learn to read and decode the world.
It doesn't have to be either/or - either we teach reading
or we teach science. I offer two solutions:
- Stop the tests - they take up too much time and they
stultify good teaching.
- Train elementary teachers how to teach science vibrantly.
In the meantime, while we are waiting and fighting for
a sensible system of education, don't sacrifice your curious
child.
- Take them out into nature.
- Ask questions with them, wonder with them.
- Read them cool science books.
- And send them to us - we at Sarah's Science will do
our part.
Check out these links:
Lawrence
Hall of Science Study for more detailed
information on the study.
Lawrence
Hall of Science Video for a delightful
children's "commercial" highlighting the
lack of science education.
SF
Chronicle Article for reaction to
the study from the Bay Area community.
"What If?" Science
Turning a Science Fair project into an experiment
By Sarah Shaffer
It's science fair time again, the time of year when I
get frantic phone calls from parents desperately trying
to help their children figure out what experiment to do.
First let me voice my personal opinion that the competitive
element should be removed from science fairs. Science Expositions,
where the work of all participants is on display, without
judging whose is best, provide an excellent format. Most
schools, even if they have an "Expo" format,
want students to do an experiment, using the scientific
method. I don't understand this insistence on experiments,
since students can learn so much just researching a science
topic and displaying their knowledge, or doing a project
and displaying it. However, since so many of you are confronted
with this need to help your child do an experiment, I'll
give you my easy method for turning a fun project into
an interesting experiment. And, believe it or not, this
can be an enjoyable, tear-free, experience.
Step One: Finding a Project (Don't Worry
About Experiments Yet)
The first thing to do (and do this early) is go to the
library or book store and find a science book that has
projects that interest your child. Our featured book
this month, Science Is..., has some excellent
ideas for projects. Let your child find a project
that she or he finds interesting. If you reach a
dead end here, give me a call and maybe I can help your
child pinpoint an interesting project.
Step Two: Doing the Project
Once your child has an interesting project, it's best
to start the whole process weeks before the assignment
is due at school. I've found that many science books
are not properly edited, and the project or experiment
simply doesn't work. If this happens, you can either
try to find that same project described in another book
or move on to another project.
 Example: Your
child is fascinated by electricity. You find a book
with lots of electricity experiments, and she or he decides
to make an electromagnet. Take your child with you
to the hardware store to buy the battery, the bell wire
and the long nail. Kids need to know where supplies
come from. Then sit down with your child and help
with assembling an electromagnet. Let your child
do as much as possible. If you make the electromagnet
for your child, it may be fun for you, but not fun for
your child. Let them make mistakes. Offer suggestions,
but resist the temptation to do it for them. Remember,
this is not about winning a contest. It is about
giving your child a rewarding experience.
Step Three: Waiting for the "What Ifs?" -
Turning the Project into an Experiment
This is the tricky part, because it requires a lot of
patience on the part of the parent. If your child
enjoyed the project he or she did, they will probably continue
to play with it. Almost invariably a child will start
asking questions that begin with "What if...?" or "I
wonder what would happen if...?" Take those
questions seriously. The "what ifs?" often
make great experiments.
 Example: Your
child has constructed the electromagnet and is seeing how
many paper clips it can pick up. He says, "I wonder
what would happen if I used a stronger battery. Do you
think the electromagnet could pick up more paper clips?" Great
question! Let's try it. You now have an experiment that
has naturally grown out of a science project.
Step Four: When All Else Fails...
One reason I loved Julia Child was that she told you what
to do when you followed her recipe and the hollandaise
still curdled. In that vein, if your child did the science
project and the "what ifs?" did not come up,
and the assignment is due very soon, you can help your
child with those "what ifs?" It's best to wait
for your child to express the questions, but if you've
waited patiently and no questions or "what ifs?" are
forthcoming, you can ask some questions yourself to prime
the pump.
Example: Your child made the electromagnet and
no questions came up while she was playing with the electromagnet.
You might say, "I wonder if there's a way to make
an electromagnet stronger?" A question like that might
be enough to get the ball rolling.
In working on a science project with your child, the most
important thing is for both of you to enjoy yourselves.
Forget about winning the Science Fair. If your child learns
something (even if it is only that science is fun), that
is what matters.
Choosing the Best Camp for Your Child
by Sarah Shaffer
 Many
questions arise when thinking about summer programs for
your children. With so many exciting possibilities,
choosing the right program for your child can be challenging. Your
options include camps and programs that specialize in sports,
academics, science, art, drama, nature or music. Begin
with your child's interests and remember that summer should
be fun! Kids recharge their batteries in summertime. If
you worry about your child's performance in school, paradoxically,
it might be best to avoid academics during summer. Let
them fill their spirits back up as they run in the woods,
soak up forest smells, chase bugs and lizards, and get
good and dirty.
As an educator for over 20 years, I have long encouraged
parents to let their children spend some of the summer
reveling in the outdoors. Now, a growing body of
research indicates that experiencing nature is essential
for healthy physical and mental development. Richard
Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving
Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder,
advocates "healing the broken bond between children
and nature." Louv cites several studies that "suggest
that thoughtful exposure of youngsters to nature can even
be a powerful form of therapy for attention-deficit disorders
and other maladies. As one scientist puts it, we
can now assume that just as children need good nutrition
and adequate sleep, they may well need contact with nature."
Once you decide what kind of program best suits your child,
how do you evaluate the quality of a given program? Start
with referrals from other parents who have used a particular
program. A good program responds to your questions
and accommodates the individual needs of your child. Look
at the adult/child ratio; shoot for at least a 1/10 ratio
depending on the nature of the program. It's
okay to ask questions. A good program will address
all your concerns.
When you pick the right camp, don't be surprised if Sally
is the one rushing you out the door to get to camp
on time.
Getting
Lost in the Great Indoors
Many Adults Worry Nature Is Disappearing From Children's
Lives
By Donna St. George
Washington Post Staff Writer
Linda Pelzman appreciates the beauty of the outdoor world,
sometimes pulling her children into the yard to gaze at
a full moon or peer into a dense fog. An educator and founder
of a summer camp, she only wishes her enthusiasm was fully
shared. On a recent nature walk near her home in Gaithersburg,
her younger son, 6, was unimpressed, pleading, "I
just want to go back to civilization." Her older son,
at 13, has made it clear he prefers PlayStation.
"Kids don't think about going outside like they used
to, and unless there is some scheduled activity, I don't
think they know what to do outdoors anymore," Pelzman
said.
Pelzman's view is shared by a growing number of children's
advocates, environmentalists, business executives and political
leaders who fear that this might be the first generation
of "indoor children," largely disconnected from
nature. Concerns about long-term consequences -- affecting
emotional well-being, physical health, learning abilities,
environmental consciousness -- have spawned a national
movement to "leave no child inside." In recent
months, it has been the focus of Capitol Hill hearings,
state legislative action, grass-roots projects, a U.S.
Forest Service initiative to get more children into the
woods and a national effort to promote a "green hour" in
each day.
Read
complete article
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/18/AR2007061801808_pf.html
Sarah Shaffer on making Nobel winners out of science
campers
Science is not Sarah's real last name, but that makes
no difference to the kids at This Land is Your Land Summer
Day Camp in Oakland. Campers sing the Woody Guthrie anthem
each morning as Sarah Science, nee Shaffer, 56, puts on
her show.
"When I was a little girl I wanted to be an oceanographer.
I was told I wasn't good enough in math, so in college
I majored in French and linguistics. I did graduate work
in African languages at the University of Wisconsin. The
way I got started teaching science was helping out in my
daughter's classroom at Sequoia Elementary in Oakland.
There is not a lot of science taught in elementary school,
even still. It's hard to teach.
Click
here for complete article on Sarah
in the Sunday Chronicle Magazine.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/07/29/CMGIR5JO31.DTL
|
and 
.
Both of these books include fun projects that you can do with materials
readily found at home. The science behind every project is explained simply
and accurately.