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When you learn science you build on what you already know. Children need to start learning early, at home, so that they have a firm base of knowledge to build on when they get to school. As parents, what\'s important is that we share the knowledge we have with our children. Science is in everyday activities: cooking, washing dishes, growing plants. So, look around the house and out the windows and see that science is everywhere.
Here are some things you can do: - Ask your children questions: How do you think the clock works? Why does a bird make a nest and what is the nest made of? How does electricity help us every day?
- Have children look at what\'s happening around them and have them write down what they see.
- Have your children make predictions about the weather or how fast a plant will grow or how high a piece of paper will fly with the wind. Have your children then test to see if their hunches are correct.
- Remind your child that it may take many tries before you get an answer. Keep trying.
- Have your children start collections of shells, rocks, or bugs, so that they can see similarities and patterns.
- Have your child look at how things are different. He or she can look around the neighborhood to see the different animals and plants that live and grow there.
- Help your child look at what causes things to change. What happens when a plant doesn\'t have water or sunlight?
Science Activities Bubbles for young children  - Mix 8 tablespoons of dishwashing liquid in 1 quart of water in a shallow pan.
- Blow through a straw as you move it slowly across the top of the liquid.
- When you\'ve made a bubble, touch it gently with a wet finger. What happens? Touch another bubble with a dry finger. What happens?
- Look at the bubbles. How many colors do you see? What do the colors remind you of?
Creepy Crawlies! for beginning scientists - Search for bugs: in sidewalk cracks, on lights, on animals, or on plants.
- Tell your child the names of the bugs you found. Did you find: ants, spiders, fleas, moths, flies, ladybugs?
- Ask your child how the bugs are alike or different. Explain the difference between an insect and a spider (insects have six legs, spiders have eight), for example.
- Watch ants in an anthill or around some spilled food. Explain that when an ant finds food, it runs back to the hill to "tell" the others. As it runs, it leaves a trail that other ants in the hill can smell. The ants find the food by smelling their way along the trail.
Plants and Light for more advanced scientists - Cut 3 paper shapes about 2 inches large. Circles and triangles work well, but you can use other shapes, too.
- Clip these shapes with paper clips to 3 leaves of either an indoor or an outdoor plant, being careful not to tear the leaves.
- Keep 1 piece of paper on the leaf for 1 day, a second on for 2 days, and the third on for one week.
- Watch to see what happens to the leaves. Do they change color? What effect does the lack of light have on them? What effect does the length of time the leaves are covered have on them?
Note: Plants use sunlight to turn carbon dioxide (in the air) and water into food.
Why is the sky blue?
Why do things fall to the ground?
How do seeds grow?
What makes sound and music?
Where do mountains come from?
Young children ask their parents hundreds of questions like these. In search of answers, we use science to both enlighten and delight.
As parents, we must prepare our children for a world vastly different from the one in which we grew up. In the next century, this country will need citizens with more training in science and technology than most of us had in school.
Even children who don\'t want to be scientists, engineers, or com- puter technicians will need science to cope with their rapidly changing environment. But without our help, our children will not be prepared for these changes.
This book suggests ways you can interest your children from about 3 to 10 years old in science. It includes: - Some basic information about science;
- A sampling of activities for children to do --some alone, some with supervision--in both the home and the community; and
- An Appendix with practical tips on how to encourage schools to develop good science programs, a brief description of nine scientific concepts, and a list of recommended science books and magazines.
Many of the activities cost little or nothing and require no special equipment. Science Starts at Home We play a crucial role in determining how much science our children learn. Our enthusiasm and encouragement can spark their interest. Fortunately, youngsters of all ages are curious and love to investigate. And the earlier we encourage this curiosity, the better.
Scientific knowledge is cumulative, so children need to start learning early--at home. Many of us assume that children will learn all the science they need at school. The fact is that most children, particularly in elementary school, are taught very little science. How You Can Help As parents, we don\'t have to have a strong background in science to help our children learn science. What\'s far more important than knowing what sound is or how a telescope works, is having a positive attitude about science.
Every day is filled with opportunities to learn science--without expensive chemistry sets or books. Children can easily be introduced to the natural world and encouraged to observe what goes on around them.
Together, parents and children can-- - See how long it takes for a dandelion or a rose to burst into full bloom; or
- Watch the moon as it appears to change shape over the course of a month, and record the changes; or
- Watch a kitten grow into a cat.
- Bake a cake;
- Guess why one of your plants is drooping; or
- Figure out how the spin cycle of the washing machine gets the water out of the clothes.
Learning to observe objects carefully is an important step leading to scientific explanations. Experiencing the world together and exchanging information about what we see are important, too.
A nasty head cold can even be turned into a chance to learn science. We can point out that there is no known cure for a cold, but that we do know how diseases are passed from person to person. Or we can teach some ways to stay healthy--such as washing our hands, not sharing forks, spoons, or glasses, and covering our nose and mouth when we sneeze or cough. Questioning and Listening We should encourage our children to ask questions. A friend once asked Isidor I. Rabi, a Nobel prize winner in physics, "Why did you become a scientist, rather than a doctor or lawyer or businessman, like the other immigrant kids in your neighborhood?" Rabi responded:
My mother made me a scientist without ever intending it. Every other Jewish mother in Brooklyn would ask her child after school: "So? Did you learn anything today?" But not my mother. She always asked me a different question. "Izzy," she would say, "did you ask a good question today?" That difference--asking good questions-- made me become a scientist!
If we can\'t answer all of our children\'s questions, that\'s all right-- no one has all the answers, even scientists. And children don\'t need lengthy, detailed answers to all of their questions. We can propose answers, test them out, and check them with someone else. The library, or even the dictionary, can help answer questions.
We can also encourage our children to tell us their ideas and listen to their explanations. Being listened to will help them to gain confidence in their thinking and to develop their skills and interest in science. Listening helps us to determine just what children know and don\'t know. (It also helps the child figure out what he or she knows.)
Simple activities can help to demystify science--and we will suggest some of these later. But children also need to learn some basic information about science and about how to think scientifically. The following section contains information for parents that can point our children toward this goal.
Listed below are a few of the many excellent science books available for elementary school children. A special thank you to the American Association for the Advancement of Science for its recommendations, many of which received positive reviews in its publication Science Books & Films. Suggestions also came from Science Fare, by Wendy Saul and Alan R. Newman; from The New York Times Parent\'s Guide to the Best Books for Children, by the National Science Resources Center; and from Phyllis Marcuccio at the National Science Teachers Association.
The Consumer Information Center (CIC) has many booklets and pamphlets available free or for a small fee. For a free catalog, write to Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, CO 81009.
There are many local, county, state, and federal offices that can help. Contact your state energy or environmental office or state department of education; the county cooperative extension service; or a county, state, or national park near you for information and literature. Also try the U.S. Department of the Interior (Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Forest Service, Cooperative Extension System), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
1. Dinosaur books (particularly suitable for children in primary grades):
Aliki, (1981). Digging Up Dinosaurs, Thomas Y. Crowell, New York.
Aliki, (1985). Dinosaurs Are Different, Thomas Y. Crowell, New York.
Lauber, Patricia, (1987). Dinosaurs Walked Here and Other Stories Fossils Tell, Bradbury Press, New York.
Richler, Mordecai, (1987). Jacob Two-Two and the Dinosaur. Knopf, New York.
Sattler, Helen (1981). Dinosaurs of North America, Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, New York.
2. Animal and wildlife books: Arnold, Caroline, (1982). Animals that Migrate. Carolrhoda, Minneapolis.
Arnold, Caroline, (1988). Penguin. Morrow Junior Books, New York.
Coldrey, Jennifer, (1987). Discovering Flowering Plants. Bookwright, New York.
Cutchins, Judy, and Johnston, Ginny, (1989). Scoots the Bog Turtle. Atheneum, New York.
Lerner, Carol, (1987). A Forest Year. Morrow Junior Books, New York.
McClung, Robert, (1988). Lili: A Giant Panda of Sichuan. Morrow Junior Books, New York.
McClung, Robert, (1988). Major: The Story of a Black Bear. Shoe String Press, Inc., Hamden, Conn.
McNulty, Faith, (1986). Peeping in the Shell: A Whooping Crane Is Hatched. Harper & Row, New York.
Powzyk, Joyce, (1988). Tracking Wild Chimpanzees. Lothrop, Lee & Shephard, New York.
Pringle, Laurence, (1977). The Hidden World: Life Under a Rock. Macmillan, New York.
Scott, Jack Denton, (1976, 1978). Discovering the American Stork, and Discovering the Mysterious Egret. Harcourt, Brace Jovanovich, New York.
Selsam, Millicent, (1984). Where Do They Go? Insects in Winter. Scholastic, Inc., New York.
Spencer, Guy J., (1988). A Living Desert. A Troll Question Book, Mahway, N.J.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Take Pride in America with Mark Trail. Acitivty book listed in the CIC catalog.
3. Astronomy and physics:
Adler, Irving, (1980). The Stars: Decoding Their Message. Thomas Y. Crowell, New York.
Arnold, Caroline (1987). A Walk on the Great Barrier Reef. Carolrhoda, Minneapolis.
Asimov, Isaac, (1988). How the Universe Was Born. Gareth Stevens, Inc., Milwaukee.
Asimov, Isaac, (1989). Is There Life on Other Planets? Gareth Stevens, Inc., Milwaukee.
Bronowski, Jacob (1987). Biography of an Atom. Harper Junior, New York.
Hines, Anna Grossnickle, (1989). Sky All Around. Clarion, New York.
Lauber, Patricia (1987). Volcano: The Eruption and Healing of Mount St. Helen\'s. Bradbury Press, New York.
Maurer, Richard, (1985). The NOVA Space Explorer\'s Guide: Where to Go and What to See. Clarkson N. Potter/WGBH, Boston.
Radlauer, Edward and Ruth, (1987). Earthquakes. Children\'s Press, Chicago.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (1988). Stars in Your Eyes: A Guide to the Northern Skies. Listed in the CIC catalog
4. Anatomy:
Allison, Linda (1976). Blood & Guts: A Working Guide to Your Own Insides. Little, Brown and Company, Boston, Toronto.
Balestrino. Philip, (1989). The Skeleton Inside You, revised edition. Crowell, New York.
Smith, Kathie Bilingslea, and Crenson, Victoria (1987, 1988). Hearing; Seeing; Smelling; Tasting; Thinking; and Touching. A Troll Question Book, Mahwah, N.J.
5. Applied science:
Adkin, Jan, (1980). Moving Heavy Things. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Macaulay, David, (1975, 1981, 1988). Pyramid, Cathedral, and The Way Things Work. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Marsoli, Lisa Ann, (1986). Things to Know about Going to the Dentist. Silver Burdett, Morristown, N.J.
Munro, Roxie, (1989). Blimps. Dutton, New York.
Shapiro, Mary J., 1986). How They Built the Statue of Liberty. Random House, New York.
6. Fiction incorporating science:
George, Jean Craighead, (1972). Julie of the Wolves. Harper & Row, New York.
Holling, Holling C., (1971). Paddle-to-the-Sea. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Hurwitz, Johanna, (1978). Much Ado About Aldo. Morrow, New York.
Law, Felicia, (1985). Darwin and the Voyage of the Beagle. (A fictionalized account of the voyage to Galapagos), Andre Deutsch, Bergenfield, N.J.
Scott, O\'Dell, (1960). Island of the Blue Dolphins. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
7. Biographical Figures:
Look for books about:
Nathaniel Bowditch, the early 19th century American mathematician and astronomer and author of the best book on navigation of his time;
George Washington Carver, the agricultural scientist who discovered over 300 uses for the peanut;
Marie Curie, the Polish-born French physicist famous for work on radioactivity;
Charles Darwin, the English naturalist reknowned for his work on evolution;
Amelia Earhart, the aviation pioneer;
Louis Pasteur, one of the world\'s foremost early microbiologist whose research led to pasteurization;
Sally Ride, the American astronaut and scientist; or
John Augustus and Washington Augustus Roebling, U.S. civil engineers and designers of the Brooklyn Bridge.
8. Science Experiments:
Allison, Linda, (1988). The Wild Inside: Sierra Club\'s Guide to the Great Indoors. Little, Brown & Co., Boston, Toronto.
Barr, George (1986). Science Projects for Young People. Dover Publications, Inc., New York.
Carson, Mary Stetten, (1989). The Scientific Kid: Projects, Experiments and Adventures. Harper & Row, New York.
Cobb, Vicki, and Darling, Kathy, (1980). Bet You Can\'t! Science Impossibilities to Fool You. Lothrop, Lee & Shephard, New York.
Cobb, Vicki, (1972). Science Experiments You Can Eat. Harper & Row, New York.
Gardner, Robert, (1989). Science Around the House. Julian Messner, New York.
Herbert, Don, (1959). Mr. Wizard\'s Experiments for Young Scientists. Doubleday, Inc., Garden City, N.Y.
Katz, Phyllis, (1990). Exploring Science Through Art. Franklin Watts, New York.
Lewis, James, (1989). Learn While you Scrub: Science in the Tub. Meadowbrook Press, Deephaven, Minn.
Shermer, Michael, (1989). Teach Your Child Science: Making Science Fun for the Both of you. Lowell House, Los Angeles.
Stacy, Dennis, (1988). Nifty (and Thrifty) Science Activities: Demonstrations, Experiments, and Learning Labs. David S. Lake, Belmont, Calif.
Stein, Sara, (1980). The Science Book. Workman Publishing, New York.
Stine, Megan, and seven others, (1989). Still More Science Activities (from the Smithsonian Institution). Galison Books, GMG Publishing, New York.
Toney, Sara D., (1986). Smithsonian Surprises: An Educational Activity Book. Smithsonian Instituion, Washington, D.C.
Van Cleave, Janice Pratt, (1989). Chemistry for Every Kid. Wiley, New York.
Zubrowski, Bernie, (1981). Messing Around with Drinking Straw Construction. Little, Brown and Company, Boston, Toronto.
Zubrowski, Bernie, (1985). Raceways: Having Fun with Balls and Tracks. William Morrow and Company, New York.
9. Magazines and periodicals:
3-2-1- Contact, Children\'s Television Workshop, One Lincoln Plaza, New York, NY 10023. Provides puzzles, projects, experiments.
Chickadee, Young Naturalist Foundation, P.O. Box 11314, Des Moines, IA 50340. Information, activities about nature-related topics.
Cricket, the Magazine for Children, box 52961, Boulder, CO 80322-2961. Stories and experiments for elementary school children.
Ladybug, Cricket Country Lane, Box 50284, Boulder, CO 80321-0284. Stories and activities for preschoolers and beginning readers.
National Geographic World, National Geogrpahic Society, 17th and M Streets NW, Washington, DC 20036. Excellent photographs, art, narratives.
Odyssey, Kalmbach Publishing Company, 1027 North Seventh Street, Milwaukee, WI 53233. Describes concepts and principles of astronomy.
Owl, Young Naturalist Foundation, P.O. Box 11314, Des Moines, Iowa 50304. Answers Children\'s questions about nature and science.
Ranger Rick, National Wildlife Federation, 1412 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036-2266. Helps children enjoy nature and appreciate need for conservation through indoor and outdoor activities.
Science weekly, Subscription Department, Science Weekly, P.O. Box 70154, Washington, DC 20088-0154. Focuses on topics in science, math, and technology.
Scienceland, Scienceland, Inc., 501 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10017- 6165. Each volume focuses on a scientific topic.
WonderScience, American Chemical Society, 1155 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. WonderScience is a science activity publication for children and parents. ADDITIONAL TITLES ARE AVAILABLE FROM LIBRARIES, BOOKSTORES, AND FROM THE FOLLOWING SOURCES:
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) reviews science books for children in Science Books and Films. For a subscription, write to SB & F Subscriptions, AAAS, Room 814, 1333 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
Science Fare by Wendy Saul and Alan R. Newman includes listings. It was published by Harper & Row, New York, in 1986.
The Children\'s Book Council and the National Science Teachers Association each year cite outstanding science trade books for children. A list is available by writing to the National Science Teachers Association, Public Information Office, 1742 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009. Send a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
"Books for Children" from CIC is an annual listing from the Library of Congress of the best books recently published for preschool through junior high school-age children. It includes books on science and nature. Send $1.00 to Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, CO 81009.
HELPING YOUR CHILD LEARN SCIENCE
From the US Department of Education
(Highly Recommended)
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