What matters most here
| Rank | Practice | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Teach experiment design directly before open investigations (principle 2) | Evidence grade: Strong Strong; in a classic study of 3rd and 4th graders, 77% mastered it after direct teaching (Klahr & Nigam(opens in a new tab)) |
| 2 | Science units linked to reading time (principle 10) | Evidence grade: Strong Strong in principle; the Core Knowledge sequence includes science |
| 3 | Quizzing and spaced review of science content (principles 6, 7) | Evidence grade: Proven in classrooms Proven across school levels |
| 4 | Labeled diagrams explained part by part (principle 1) | Evidence grade: Strong Strong (lab) |
A lesson in this room
Quiz on last week's states of matter. Teacher explains and shows a fair test with ramps: change one thing, keep the rest the same. Students design one together, then one in pairs. Exit: "Which of these two tests is fair, and why?"
Leader look-fors
- Was the method taught before students used it?
- Can students say what idea the activity is about?
Stop doing
Open-ended "discover it yourself" labs as the first exposure to an idea students haven't been taught.
Where the evidence runs out
The Klahr studies were short and specific to experiment design. Larger trials of full elementary science programs are scarce.