At the end of the school year, there are certain conceptual understandings that we want our students to have. Achieving these learning goals lays the groundwork for more sophisticated understandings as students proceed through their learning experiences. Furthermore, developing instruction around particular learning goals can increase the effectiveness of instruction by helping instructors focus on what they really want students to understand. The Understanding Science Conceptual Framework is an effective tool for identifying a sequence of age-appropriate conceptual understandings (K-16) to guide your teaching. See the complete conceptual framework for all grade levels.

The Framework is divided into five strands:
What is science | How science works | The social side of science | What has science done for you lately | A scientific approach to life

What is science: concepts for 3-5

Science is both a body of knowledge and the process for building that knowledge. Scientists ask and address questions. Scientists base their ideas on evidence from the natural world. Scientific ideas may change with new evidence. Answering one question often leads to other questions.

Scientists observe, explore, discover, and communicate with one another. Scientific observations can be made directly with our own senses or may be made indirectly through the use of tools. Scientists look for patterns in what they observe. Scientists don't always agree with one another.

Scientists explain their ideas and evidence to one another. Scientists work together. The scientific community is diverse. Anyone can do science. Scientists are creative.

People benefit from knowledge gained through science.

Problem-solving and decision-making benefit from a scientific approach.

Introducing the Science Flowchart

Modifying your current lessons

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