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Primary Subjects Department: Young Scientists Keep Growing!

April 24, 2020

After studying online for a couple of months, we believe that all the students, parents and teachers have formed their own philosophy on E-learning. The Internet has successfully brought us closer but has failed to bring us close enough to have face-to-face communication, which is a great challenge to our young scientists in primary school. We all know that studying from textbooks is only one part of learning science—we need to participate in hands-on experiments as well. In order to offer more hands-on activities in the E-learning format, our science teachers restructured science class.

Teachers recorded demo experiments to show students both what to do and what not to do in these activities. These very detailed instructions helped our young scientists get on the right track in exploring science and allowed them to conquered the challenges they faced.

The first graders have started to learn that everything is made up of different materials, which can be man-made or created naturally! To test out their new knowledge of materials, they used the scientific method—the same one scientists use—to complete a scavenger hunt to find items made from a list of materials, which included wood, metal, brick, plastic, and many more!

Under the teachers’ instructions, the third graders made edible representations of the layers of soil out of cookies to help them better understand that each layer is unique and has its own characteristics. The students especially enjoyed this experiment because they not only had a chance to get their hands on it but got to eat it as well!

The other challenge our young scientists faced was that their teachers weren’t able to supply them with the materials needed for experiments, many of which are not easy to get. In order to keep our young scientists growing, the science teachers redesigned the experiments to incorporate materials commonly found at home. Our students were surprised at how easy it was to turn their homes into a lab.

The second graders completed many STEM activities and experiments with help from their teacher’s demonstration videos. They created Lunar Landers with paper cups, plastic bags, paper towels and chopsticks, all of which can be found in almost every kitchen. With a jar and a cup of water, these scientists created their own tornados. And they even made Moon Craters with some regular flour to celebrate the Author’s Week story, Midnight on the Moon.

The fourth graders used their own knowledge about weather and information they found on the Internet to finish their own weather maps. Scientific terms such as high pressure, low pressure, warm front, cold front and stationary front are no longer cold words from books . They are now living knowledge in our daily lives. Making real-world connections from science class helps us to enjoy our lives even more.

Though they are stuck at home, our young scientists never stop working. With the help of teachers and parents, they kept learning and growing. What’s most important is that through this E-learning experience, students realized where there is a challenge, there is a solution. It is the reason we need science.

(Written by Wu Xiaodong Pictures by Primary Science Teachers)