When I examine myself and my method of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing knowledge.
—Albert Einstein
Science
Natural curiosity shaped into systematic exploration…a greater understanding of our complex world and their eventual role within it.
Formulating Hypothesis and Experimentation
A central principle of Caedmon’s science program is the idea that children possess an innate desire to explore. This is the structuring principle of and the departure point for every class meeting, experiment, and inquiry. As children process their experiences, the science faculty challenges them to make hypotheses about their observations. Students apply the scientific method to gradually reveal the rules by which the world operates. Their questions, observations, and experiments enable them to draw conclusions about the role that science plays in their every day lives. They learn that a failed experiment can contain as many clues as a successful one, and that everyone can actively engage in the scientific process.
Science classes are based on a Montessori approach to learning, which allows children to absorb information through hands-on experiences. In all grades, students engage in hands-on activities. An example for younger children is an exploration of the properties of water. In the older grades, activities include: designing, building, and testing model bridges.
Communicating Results
Students’ ability to record and communicate what they have learned is essential to full conceptual understanding. Students are asked to share their knowledge verbally, in writing, and artistically. Often they communicate their results in a specified manner, such as in a lab report, while at other times they are invited to design their own methods of sharing their ideas.
Technology
In Caedmon's science program, technology is used to assist a student's inquiry of the scientific method. Students use laptops to research how to make a sturdy model bridge or to create a web site; Lego WeDo software to design and build robots; and Snap Circuits, an educational tool for the study of electricity, to examine the subject of sustainable energy. In addition to traditional microscopes, all students can view a magnified image on a SmartBoard using a digital microscope.
Field Explorations
Frequent field explorations include surveys of wildlife in the Hudson River at such educational institutions as the Beczak Center in Yonkers, New York, and visits to local zoos and museums. Each year the fourth and fifth graders attend an overnight trip at the Nature’s Classroom campus in Connecticut where Caedmon’s students enjoy science class outdoors. Nature’s Classroom provides hands- on educational activities in a natural environment.
