Dear Lower School Parents of Young Scientists,

Did you know you can conduct electricity through bananas to control a video game? Or create a homemade kazoo with wax paper? Our Lower School students are wowing us with these innovative discoveries as they participate in our newly expanded science program. We are pleased to share that our students are experiencing additional science programming this school year, organized into rotations. Each grade level now has six science rotations across the year, which offers a significant increase in science learning! Students have opportunities with our Next Generation Science Standards-based Science curriculum and Technology and Engineering (T&E) with Mr. Simeon, and Innovation Hub learning with Ms. McBeath (two rotations of each area across the year).

Science and T&E

Integrated goals of our Science and T&E curricula offer learning about the following big ideas:

• 1st Grade: Living Things, Light and Sound, and Biomimicry (T&E)

• 2nd Grade: Chemistry (materials and substances), Plants and Robotics and Coding (T&E) 

• 3rd Grade: Birds, Weather, Forces/Physics and Turtle Art Coding (T&E)

• 4th Grade: Energy, Simple Machines, Landforms, Ecosystems, Skeletal System and Circuitry (T&E)

Innovation Hub

Amazing creative learning is already taking place during Innovation Hub rotations, where students have made birdhouses, created carnival games, learned to code with Scratch and Microsoft Makecode, and designed and fabricated unique objects using our 3D printers and 3D carving machine. Our overarching Innovation Hub goals include layering the trade of “making” to supplement and enhance existing classroom learning, providing opportunities for the hands-on application of content, and allowing the space, time, and guidance for students to develop agency in directing their own construction of knowledge. Throughout the year, we will aim for students to become fluent in the STEM skills of the iterative design process, collaborative inquiry and invention, programming, circuitry, and physical computing.

See the schedule below to learn when your children will be in each science rotation. During the “OFF” rotation, students are gaining expanded literacy and social studies learning in their general studies classes.

We look forward to showcasing cutting-edge science learning throughout our year!

LOWER SCHOOL SCIENCE ROTATION SCHEDULE

Warmly, 

Karen Leavitt,
Head of Lower School