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*Children are natural scientists - curious, observant and questioning. Their knowledge of science grows out of an attempt to find meaning in their environment and by relating new experiences to past personal experiences. They try out things to see how they work, they experiment, they manipulate, they are curious and they ask questions. Through these activities, they learn to enjoy and appreciate their surroundings. Earth and Space Sciences
| What this means: Understanding how the cycles on Earth such as day to night are connected with systems in the universe such as the sun and planets in the solar system. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Begin to use science words such as night, day, sun, moon, stars, cold, hot to describe what they see. * Notice how animals and plants cause changes in their surroundings such as leaves falling from trees and collecting on the ground or squirrels digging holes. * Describe and compare seasonal changes such as leaves changing color, weather getting warmer or colder, or flowers pushing out of the earth. * Use words or drawings to describe changes in the earth. Life Sciences
| What this means: Understanding how living things live, how they work together and how they interact with the environment. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Know that living things need food, water and air. * Begin to learn that stories such as cartoons and movies sometimes show plants and animals doing things they can't do in the real world such as a flower that talks. * Begin to understand that baby animals usually look like their parents and young plants usually look like full-grown plants. * Recognize differences in the same group of people, plants or animals. For example, dogs come in many sizes and colors, and apples have many different colors. Physical Sciences
| What this means: Understanding what objects are made of, what they can do and what we can do with them (physical systems). Understanding the concepts and the properties of matter, energy, forces and motion. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Show that objects are made of parts such as a chair has legs, a seat and a back. * Use the five senses - touch, smell, sight, taste and hearing - to compare different types of materials such as water, sand and wood. * Sort familiar objects by one or more properties such as color, shape and size.
Science and Technology
| What this means: Understanding how the relationship between science and technology is used to solve problems. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Recognize familiar tools and know how to use them safely (with help from an adult) such as scissors, a hammer, a paintbrush or a cookie cutter. * Use familiar objects in a new way such as using a paper towel roll as a telescope or using a pan and wooden spoons as a drum set. Scientific Inquiry
| What this means: Using scientific processes to ask questions, study a problem, or gather, analyze and communicate information. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Ask questions about objects including "what if" questions. * Begin to compare objects or living things based on how they are alike and how they are different. * Tell about what has been observed by drawing pictures or telling stories. Scientific Ways of Knowing
| What this means: Learning how to think scientifically and understanding how people have shaped the study and practice of science. What children know and can do at the end of the preschool years, with adult guidance: * Offer ideas and explanations for observations, such as why an ice cube melts, by drawing, speaking or demonstrating (with help from an adult). * Recognize the difference between actions that help or hurt living things. * Participate in experiments such as testing items to see which sink or float in a bucket of water. |
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