REFLECTIVE JOURNEYS

“Since the research undertaken on child-initiated science, we have seen a substantial increase in children’s scientific interest and enquiry in the Early Years. Due to this success, we have now extended the approach throughout the primary school and children in all year groups are given more opportunities to find things out for themselves, e.g. devising their own investigations to decide which fabric would create the most weatherproof shelter. Inevitably the children make mistakes, but this leads to them considering alternative approaches often using higher order thinking skills. Discussions, led by children and facilitated by their teachers, on how to refine their investigations are helping children develop awareness and understanding of scientific enquiry.”