In most every job or profession that people do today – from the retail store manager who tracks inventory with computer programs to technicians who draw blood for lab work – science and technology play important roles.

For this reason, everyone needs to have a firm understanding of science and technology to compete in an ever-changing job market.

To illustrate the importance of science to today’s elementary school students, here are some of the "When I grow up I want to be…" professions that now require a detailed knowledge of the same scientific concepts and tools that your child is learning to use every day at school:

Auto mechanic – Though there is still a lot of hands-on work with grease and goo, auto mechanics now need a knowledge of technology to use many of the diagnostic tools (such as computer programs and computer-generated graphs) to determine what is wrong with your car and how best to fix it.

Police officer – Behind the uniforms and fancy cars with shiny lights are people who use lots of scientific reasoning skills to do their jobs. Police use deductive reasoning as they gather facts and collect evidence for criminal cases and make accurate decisions based on what they see, hear, smell or touch. They use charts, tables, books and other facts to help make decisions and use computer technologies for such tasks as DNA and fingerprint identification.

Clothing designer – In this year’s Winter Olympics, speed skaters wore clingy suits made of a high-tech material designed to decrease wind resistance. The material was the work of industrial researchers. However, it took designers with creative visions of how that technology could be applied to enhance the performance of skaters like American gold medalist Derek Parra.

Musician – Although musicians are traditionally thought of as creative and not scientific, many of the skills they use are based in science. Musicians, particularly composers and song writers, use creative ways to solve problems and organize or group items. Many musicians use computer software to compose and edit their music. Others (both in the recording studio and on stage) use computer software to enhance their vocals and digitized music to add to the music performed on actual instruments.

The goal of science education today is to encourage students to go beyond memorization of facts to develop the ability to understand, apply and communicate the concepts. Because students learn best by doing, not just hearing and reading, science education during the elementary years is active, "hands-on" learning that is taught as part of all of the subject areas (language arts, math, history) so that students can see the connections between science and other subjects.

Kindergarten-Grade 2 – From their first day in school, students will be involved in learning to view the world scientifically. They will be encouraged to ask questions about nature and to seek answers, collect things, count and measure things, make observations, organize collections and observations, discuss findings, etc. Getting into the spirit of science and liking science are what count most in the primary grades.

Some of the varied ways that science explorations are woven into the curriculum include:

• Kindergartners conduct a year-long study of the change of seasons, which involves observing what is happening in the natural world through walks, collecting natural objects for a hands-on classroom nature table, writing/illustrating a class book on the change of seasons and creating charts that include their predictions about when the first crocus will appear or major snowfall will occur based on what they are observing.

• First and second graders take part in a detailed study of how things grow by helping plan, plot, dig, plant and harvest a school garden.

Grades 3-5 – As their ability to use tools to gather information and to reason scientifically increases, students will be asked to use their skills to make more sophisticated predictions about what will happen, to test answers and to come up with new solutions for old problems in science. Some examples of the way science skills are used in the upper elementary grades are:

• Using common cleaning solutions (such as Borax and baking soda, vinegar and soap powder), students make predictions and experiment to come up with new ways of using these chemicals (i.e., a combination of white glue, Borax, food coloring and water yield homemade silly putty).

• Using computer software, fifth graders learn about the undersea environment and humpback whales. During the course of this study, students learn to use computer-based tools such as maps for navigation and charts and graphs to collect and analyze information about what they are studying.

The natural world is a wonderful place to learn about all sorts of scientific concepts. Here is a sampling of books, websites and other resources that you and your child can use to learn about science right in your own backyard. The librarian at your local library can help guide you and your child to other books that suit your child’s specific interests.

Janice van Cleave’s Play and Find Out about Science: Easy Experiments for Young Children and Janice van Cleave’s Science Around the Year (Science for Every Kid Series) by Janice Pratt van Cleave

National Geographic Animal Encyclopedia by Jinny Johnson

DK Science Encyclopedia (Revised Edition) by DK Publishing – This includes fascinating facts, detailed illustrations and eye-catching photographs on everything from atoms to zephyrs and also shows how real scientists work.

I Took a Walk written and illustrated by Henry Cole – A walk through the woods, across a meadow and along a stream provides opportunities for readers to see all kinds of events occurring around them in this lovely natural setting.

Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden by George Levenson – How plants grow is shown through the amazing cycle of nature unfolding in a backyard pumpkin patch.

Girls Who Looked Under Rocks: The Lives of Six Pioneering Naturalists by Jeannine Atkins – Easy-to-read biographies of six women whose interest in nature began as young girls.

A Handful of Dirt by Raymond Bial – A down-and-dirty tour through photographs of one of the earth’s most precious resources.

Spectacular Spiders by Linda Glaser – This book tells of a day in the life of a common garden spider as she spins her web, hunts for prey and explores.

National Audubon Society First Field Guide – This series includes books with detailed photographs and descriptions on such topics as wildflowers, birds, insects and rocks and minerals.

Cloud Dance by Thomas Locker – One of a series of photographic books on natural topics by Thomas Locker, this book includes beautiful illustrations and brief information about clouds.

http://www.kidsgardening.com/primer.asp – Everything you need to know about creating a garden with your kids.

http://school.discovery.com/students/ – This link to the Discovery Channel’s website provides parents and kids with science learning adventures, games and lots of great clip art.

http://yucky.kids.discovery.com/ – This link within the Discovery Channel website includes yucky fun and games, unusual activities and icky experiments.

Although test tubes and the Periodic Table play an important role in the study of science, the type of reasoning you use daily (like taking stock of natural clues such as frost, sun and rain before you choose what to wear) is just as important a part of this study. The New York State Standards in Science and Technology (which help guide what students learn in the classroom) include the following:

• Analysis, inquiry and design –using scientific questioning and experimentation to develop answers and come up with solutions.

• Technology/information systems – using a range of technologies (computers, calculators, etc…) to access, understand and transfer information.

• Science ideas – understanding how scientific ideas and theories relate to our world and other environments. This includes an understanding of the history of major ideas in science.

• Common themes – teaching science in conjunction with other subject areas to help students learn how they relate to one another.

• Problem-solving – using the knowledge of science and technology to make decisions and find solutions to real-life problems.

For permission to reprint this article, please contact the Capital Region BOCES Communications Service by e-mailing dbushsuf@gw.neric.org.

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