Inquiry skills are universally recognised as being integral to a contemporary science education where students need to understand the nature of scientific practices as well as concepts. Although inquiry learning is a common practice among primary educators, the development and assessment of inquiry skills is far less practised. There is a need for…

This paper details a digital technology solution to a problem that arose during a science lesson in an early years class. The teacher used the opportunity to enable the children to apply their knowledge and skills of a software application developed in a recent ICT class. Using the age-appropriate app, the students could communicate their learning…

An invitation to be part of a small research project with science teacher educators focusing on the Australian Curriculum--Science as a Human Endeavour strand provided an opportunity for professional learning in science for an early career teacher working with Year 1-2 students. This article explores how the use of students' photography of local…

It is often claimed, by science teachers at least, that whatever else science teaching in the future will consist of, it will certainly be representative of all science in mood and temper even if not in data presented. It will be taught to all students at the primary and secondary levels, be they girls or boys, be they intelligent or…

Managing classroom discussions that maximise learning through the phases of inquiry in primary science requires a rich repertoire of teacher knowledge and skills. Twelve teachers participated in a professional learning program focussed on building teachers' knowledge, confidence and self-efficacy for managing classroom discourse and using puppets…

In teaching science, small group work is often recommended and frequently used. In this study, we asked 130 students about their personal goals and views (appraisals) of small group work in science. We found significant relationships between students' personal goals and their views of doing science in small groups. We discuss the practical…

Seventeen Grade Six students were divided into small groups to study the concept of forces in the context of magnets and their properties. The researcher, a pre-service primary school teacher, encouraged the students into conversation about magnets and it was found that, without hesitation, they talked about their prior experience of magnets. The…

By the age of seven, many children would have eaten jelly and many would have experienced its preparation by watching adults. This small scale study explores the use of different levels of thinking skills and language in discussing the process of jelly making among Grade 2 students. Semi-structured, one-to-one interviews with fifteen students were…

Australia has one of the highest rates of incidence and mortality due to skin cancer in the world. Exposure to the sun also has a beneficial side. The beneficial effects are relatively few, but they are essential to a person's well being. It is well known that exposure to small amounts of UV radiation are beneficial for the human body and…