- Each grade has fewer topics, and students will go into them in more depth.
- There is more emphasis on the processes of science and less on memorization.
- Every grade level will do some engineering design projects.
- Students will learn not just content, but also science and engineering practices and cross-cutting concepts that recur through grade levels. They will be able to develop models, argue from evidence, and explain how things work in the world around us. In short, they will do just what real scientists and engineers do.
We’ve had to rewrite all our science curriculum documents, and get ready for the transition. Our 6th graders started using their new curriculum this year, and grades K through 5 will switch in September. To see the details of our curriculum, click the “K-6 Curriculum” link under the “Our School” part of the OPS web page.
In the lab lately, our Kindergarteners have been planting sunflower seeds that will be transplanted into the garden soon, our first graders are learning about clouds and weather, second graders are finding out how animals pollinate flowers by going on a special hunt in the garden, third graders are observing the habitats of insects, fourth graders are using skits and props to show how animal and plant life cycles work, fifth graders are making spectroscopes to get information from light, and sixth graders are using models to show how different parts of our solar system interact with each other.
Last week, we said good-bye and thank you to Jacob, a high school senior from Bergen County Academies who was an intern in the science lab this year. Every Wednesday since February, Jacob helped us out, and learned about what it’s like to be a science teacher. We wish him all the best as he heads off to Princeton University to study computer science.