Facilitating Inquiry  Investigations By First Graders  by Jane
Bresnick  a publication of Synergy Learning  Imagine stepping
into a classroom buzzing with scientific activity. You see
children working in small groups on the floor, at tables, in all
parts of the room. Heads are bent together in deeply-focused
observation or discussion. The language meaningful, occasionally
punctuated by the thrill of discovery, "Oh, that's so
interesting!" When asked what they are doing, children say: "I'm
trying to see if this big ball can knock the blocks down," or,
"I want to see which ball can roll the farthest," or, "I wonder
if I can make the ball go up the ramp."  These are first graders
independently exploring the laws of physics, or, as they
experience it, experimenting with balls and ramps. While many
educators may be doubtful that children as young as five or six
years old have enough background knowledge, skills, stamina, or
initiative to engage in independent investigations in science, I
have found that they can a