History of IDEA
Jeannie Oakes, Founder and Former Director
Youth Voice in School Finance
NEW REPORT: Los Angeles' road to A-G for all
Without Dollars and Sense Powerpoint
Past Educational Opportunity Reports
Experts urge earlier start to teaching science
- 01-13-2010
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By Debra Viadero/Education Week
The sand-and-water table in Barry Hoff’s classroom in the Southampton Head Start program on New York’s Long Island, used to be filled with sand on two sides. But water was restored to the table last month as 16 preschoolers stood around it, dipping and pouring water through tubes and funnels, squeezing it through turkey basters, and learning, in the process, something of what it’s like to think like scientists. The change in Mr. Hoff’s room, and in a handful of other classrooms like it around the country, stems from growing interest among academic experts and educators in teaching science to preschoolers. “I think a lot of preschool teachers aren’t aware of the fact that preschoolers can figure out things like they do, or make predictions as they do,” said Mr. Hoff, who’s been teaching preschool for four years. “But some of the things we’re doing now are things that children find a lot of wonder with.” (more...)
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