Resource - High/scope In The Elementary Classroom

REAL SCiENCE iN PRESCHooL
and the types of play scenarios that develop
in this learning area often involve
children distinguishing and grouping
materials, roles, and actions, as exemplified
by the following (some of these
scenarios refer to scenarios given in
“observing,” above). Also note that as
children elaborate on their play, they may
bring materials over from other areas.
The house area can
be one of the best
environments for
children who are
classifying, organizing,
or sorting objects
or information.
The cake bakers say that their cake
recipe calls only for “the pine cones
and the yellow sponges — we don’t
want any of the packing peanuts.”
While Tommy and Maria are setting
the table, they organize not only all
the plates and bowls but also the
silverware to make sure there is one
piece for each place setting. When
it’s time to clean up, they put the
knives with the other knives, and
the forks with the other forks; then
they put all the plates together and
all the bowls together.
over in the veterinarian’s office,
the vet’s assistant has to find all the
tools the vet needs for an operation
on the sick puppy, so she went over
to the woodworking area and got
the hand drill, some clamps, and
a screwdriver.
The mommies who are caring for
their babies are sorting through
the blankets to find the softest ones
to wrap their babies in, because it
is naptime.
Experimenting
As children continue and elaborate
on their play scenarios, they try out
solutions to problems and test their predictions
(the following scenarios are a
continuation of those given above):
The cake bakers consulted their
cookbooks about whether or not the
cake needed some kind of liquid and
then checked with José, the teacher.
Children and adults can turn the house area into a doctor’s office and pretend to be doctors and patients.
The Six Components
of the Preschool
Scientific Method
Observing: Paying close attention to
something to learn more about it
Classifying: Grouping similar things
together by identifying the relationships
between things and the categories they
belong to
Experimenting: Testing an idea to see
if it is true, or trying a solution to see if
it works
Predicting: Describing what you expect
will happen
Drawing conclusions: Fitting one’s
observations into one’s existing system
of knowledge and understanding
Communicating ideas: Sharing one’s
questions, observations, predictions, and
conclusions with others
Real
Science
in Preschool:
Here, There, and
Everywhere
Authentic, hands-on science
learning takes place every day
throughout the classroom as well as
outdoors. You’ll learn to recognize
and support the six behaviors that
are part of the preschool scientific
method and that you’ll see in all types
of children’s play — behaviors that
lay the groundwork for children’s
later science learning in school.
FW-P1366 $25.95
www.highscope.org ReSource Fall/Winter 2008 21