What was your favorite book as a child? Whatever your answer, it's safe to say it probably was not your 4th grade science textbook!
My students actually love science.
They are 4th grade kids who live in the city. They don't often get a chance to stick their hands in dirt, organize various types of rocks, or encounter lizards. Science class gives them the opportunity to explore, imagine, create, and inquire.
They are fortunate enough to get a full hour of science everyday, and we spend that hour exploring the world through hands on science investigations. We get messy, we make mistakes, and we learn from each other. While science investigations are crucial to science understanding, students also need the opportunity to read and write about their experiences.
My Project
These 57 books will give the students a chance to make connections and build understanding as they read about Hurricanes, Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Rocks, Butterflies, and more intriguing topics. The text books available to my students were published in the 90's. We rely heavily on images found on the Internet and our old text book in order to supplement our science investigations. However, it can be difficult to provide students with the technical vocabulary and ideas associated with the concepts with investigations and a modge podge of images and information.
Having engaging and memorable books will help my students make the connection between their experiences and print information.
Making these connections will not only help them become more knowledgeable scientists, it will also build their literacy skills. The spark ignited by a great book has been known to lead to some pretty remarkable things!
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. McGreal and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.