At the elementary level, science instruction takes place during several blocks per week taught within students’ regular classrooms. The units of study are aligned with the grade-level content prescribed in the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks. Instruction during the science blocks are hands-on, inquiry-based, and exploratory, with the goal of developing in students the knowledge, skills, and habits of scientists.
The curriculum in Westwood is aligned to the Massachusetts learning standards for Science, Technology, and Engineering. Elementary teachers, with the support of science specialists, are guided by the following vision for science learning:
- Students in the Westwood Public Schools engage in an inquiry-based approach to science: they ask good questions, and the systematic pursuit of answers leads them to more questions.
- Students work in teams to observe and analyze, design and refine, and they use a wide array of technologies and tools to support their creations and investigations.
- Students discover and draw on the connections among the sciences as well as the connections between science and other disciplines. In addition to learning science concepts, they learn to think, listen, read, write and speak like scientists.
- Most importantly, students enjoy exploring their world and universe through science. They follow the trail of their curiosity as they investigate questions and problems that matter both locally and globally.
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Our elementary classrooms use both the STEM Scopes and Mystery Science programs to support our science curriculum.
