Math and Science in Preschool: Policies and Practice, a National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) Preschool Policy Brief, says that teachers usually do not plan and support science and math learning in pre-K. How does that happen when young children are so curious about the world and so interested in who has more, is taller, or older?
Some preschool teachers bring their own curiosity into play, in school and out, such as early childhood teacher Sue Hewitt who went out of her way to see a novel (for her—and me!) sight—a big field of sunflowers. Because science activities are full of possibilities for math and language development, they can be the basis for across-the-curriculum learning. Sue talked about how investigating a milkweed seed pod with her class of two-year-olds included sharing a history of children collecting the pods during World War II to use in making life vests for service personnel, and, upon opening the pod, the discovery of how the successfully the seed is dispersed—in the classroom! I’m sure that gave the children a lot to talk about!
Does anyone have a story to share about a science activity that became the vehicle for language development or math operations?
Or about a moment when you realized that teaching science in your classroom is essential?
Peggy

I picked up an almost intact dog skeleton from the side of the road. One of my students spotted it from her bus window! I need help with preservation and wiring it together. Any suggestions? I did put the skeleton in a laundry bleach bath for approximately six hours and left it outside to dry. My husband varnished the bones, but now it has a mildew problem. It may be too late for the proper preservation of this skeleton, but you never know what I might find this school year. Thanks for your help.
—Susan, Myrtle Beach, SC
I must admit I haven’t had any experience in preserving and mounting skeletons, but it was a fascinating topic to investigate. I found two websites on the topic of cleaning and bleaching bones, both of which recommend hydrogen peroxide as a bleaching agent: The Boneman and Cleaning and Preserving Animal Skulls.
Mounting the skeleton appears to be a challenge. How to Mount a Small Skeleton has some step-by-step directions. I’m wondering if a museum curator or naturalist at a nature center would have any suggestions for you on how to mount the skeleton for display.
You mentioned the possibility of finding other specimens. I’d suggest you contact your state Game Commission or local animal control agency to learn about any permits or licenses you would need to collect or possess roadkill or other remains of wild animals.
My middle school students were fascinated by skeletons, too. These specimens can provide excellent learning opportunities for observations, comparisons, and classifications. Our school had purchased some smaller ones preserved in blocks of Lucite. The bat and turtle were the most popular ones, and our collection also included a mouse skeleton because many students (as well as some adults) have a misconception that mice have no bones. I usually had a few skeletons and bones on the “museum table” in my classroom, along with other interesting objects for the students to explore. The students would look at them with magnifiers or under a stereomicroscope and were surprised at how vertebrate skeletons are so similar in structure. The high school biology teacher had a nice collection of specimens (legally acquired) he would share with us, too. I also know teachers who tap into the resources and collections of local colleges and wildlife centers. You can expand your collection electronically with sites such as the Skull Site and the eSkeletons Project.
Students like to share what they find themselves, but I’d set some parameters as to what kinds of things can be brought into the classroom. I learned this the hard way when a student brought back a baby shark she found on the beach several hours away from the school. When she opened the cooler—before I knew what was in it—the stench was overpowering! My students were also very eager to bring in baby animals they thought had been abandoned or orphaned, especially rabbits and birds. I would commend them for their concern and then urge them not to remove them from their surroundings. I included these parameters in the syllabus at the beginning of the year so parents would also be aware.
Did you see the article Roadkill Data Analysis: Using Spreadsheets to Integrate Math and Science in the March 2009 issue of Science Scope? It describes a project in which students gather data about roadkill (without removing it) and upload the data to a regional database. They can then pose questions and explore the data.

Having been a technology coordinator in a previous career, I saw two different interpretations of the theme.
Several of the articles deal with connecting students to the technology in their lives. For example, Breezy Power–From Wind to Energy and How Do Windmills Generate Power? show how students (and teachers) can learn about this renewable energy source. For more background information and ideas for student activities, enter “wind” as a keyword in SciLinks. The author of the article Designing Payloads describes how an elementary classroom connected with university faculty and their resources to study the atmosphere, using high-tech tools and applications.
I was visiting a class where the students defined the word technology as the “tools and strategies that people use to solve problems.” The teacher posed the questions: Can the tools be simple and non-electronic to be considered technology? Do the strategies have to be brand-new, or can they be tried-and-true ones? If your answer is in the affirmative, then two articles in this issue definitely relate to technology! Larger Than Life: Introducing Magnifiers discusses ways to introduce this essential tool to younger children (or older ones who have never used one before). Older children may be interested in how magnifies work (a great introduction to a unit on optics), so check out these resources on lenses in SciLinks. And studying plants (Flower Power) is a tried-and-true strategy for helping students learn about scientific processes such as observation and classification. Use “plants” as a SciLinks keyword for more ideas.
Another interpretation of the theme can be using technology to connect students with each other and the world around them. If you’ve never tried Wonderful Wikis and Internet Forums, read about how a fourth-grade teacher uses these to engage students in thinking and writing, to foster writing skills, and as a formative assessment of learning. If your district does not allow the use of these tools, show this article! Likewise for YouTube in the Science Classroom. (This author shows how to access and use the videos, even if the site is blocked in your school.)
For more info on using the newest technologies in the classroom, check out the website of the EdTech Innovators, two science teachers with lots to share.
Science and technology are human endeavors. So be sure to wrap up your reading with Teaching the Human Dimension of Science and Finding a Place for Girls in Science. I love the cover of this issue–forty years after a teacher told me that “little girls” did not belong in science. But I’m curious as to why–in 2009–we’re still trying to find a place for girls.