Please click on each of the links below and complete the online form in the Comments on 2018 Science SOL link and share some of your comments with the rest of the class in your blog response:
Review & Revision of the 2018 Science Standards of Learning
Comments on 2018 Science Standards of Learning
During our last class while learning different scientific sketching practices, Dr. Stohr-Hunt provided a handout of the current 2018 Science SOL for Living Systems and Processes. The SOL were shown for Kindergarten through Grade 4. She asked us to look over them and asked us what we observed. While the majority is about plants and animals, she touched on the fact that in Grade 1, SOL 1.5, TSW investigate and understand that animals, including humans, have basic life needs that allow them to survive. Key ideas include, and it goes on to discuss animals. As she mentioned, students learning about their own bodies, hygiene, health, etc. is not included in the current science SOL.
Kindergarteners learn about their five senses and how they relate to specific human body structures and how they’re used in our daily lives. Then they learn about living and non-living things, plants and animals and life cycles.
As the current science standards in Virginia come up for review and revision, what changes would you make to the content? Is there anything you would add, discontinue, or combine? Would you argue for or against to include human life needs that allow them to survive? What grade level would be appropriate to introduce learning about human life? Can it gradually be introduced in elementary school along with their ages, stages, and phases that the students are experiencing for themselves?
I remember learning about the heart, bones, CPR, etc., in middle school during Health class when we were not doing physical education (PE). In private schools, they learn about the changes in their bodies, hygiene, healthy eating, mental health, healthy friendships (social), etc., during Personal Growth class in middle school during one of their trimesters. I would advocate for something like this in public schools. As a parent, I wanted a heads up beforehand, so I could be prepared for questions or conversations, regarding the content they were teaching, with my daughter to coincide with what they were being taught in school Each family is different and have their own values.
Hi, Angela! I appreciate your decision to further our conversation from the last class about the life science standards. I was surprised to see how life science included little about human life/needs, relying fully on their physical education to supplement that component of the content. In an ideal world under the current curriculum, students would be learning about human life/needs in PE, life science content outlined by the standards in their standard classroom, and those teachers would reference and draw from one another for students understanding. However, that assumes a level of content collaboration and understanding beyond one’s own class that probably isn’t happening. As we’ve mentioned in class before, elementary students spend most of their time with their classroom teachers. It makes sense that that person would be teaching them human life/needs with the rest of their content because it relates to the life science content and they are more likely to have the opportunity to weave it into their classroom instruction. In comparison, students see their PE teacher probably 1-2 times a week for a short time. I do think it is valuable that health is a part of the PE curriculum and I know that is something educators who teach that are passionate about. When you think about elementary classroom teachers teaching life science, you almost assume they also include humans to a greater extent than the standards suggest. Based on the life science standards we looked at in class, humans should be considered in tandem with other content that falls into that category.
Hi Angela! I’m so glad you chose to continue this discussion from class in the blog post this week! I do think there is definitely a gap in the science SOLs by not including a lot about human life and needs. Since PE teachers do not get students for very long or often and do not have the same relationship with the students that their main classroom teachers do, I think PE is not the place for this to be taught, and rather in the classroom, because realistically, topics of hygeine, eating well, and change in bodies are important, and should be coming from their classroom teacher from a place of science. I know topics in health such as making a healthy plate and why you need to shower, or covering your mouth when you sneeze are things that are important for children to know, and can be made fun really easily, with tours to the school cafeteria and work with the chef, and through videos and quick lessons. I think topics of health should be incorporated into the science curriculum for elementary schoolers, because like animals, humans have our needs, and knowing information about our personal health is often very interesting to children because they can easily apply it.
Hi Angela, I also was shocked after that class discussion on how limiting the life science section actually is. There is not enough talk at a young age about healthy eating and WHY it is important. I remember learning at a young age learning about a proportionate plate with protein, carbs, fruits, and vegetables and just how much to eat but dont remember ever learning why. The boy I babysit is very picky and we have conversations about what each food does for his body. There is not a limit to his diet and he knows sugar is okay but not too much because it can make him tired. We talk about fruits and vegetables fighting off the sick bugs and protein helping make him strong, once he learned the important effect of each of these foods he makes healthy choices all by himself, eventhough he is still a picky eater. For example, we went to get chickfila the other day and he had a tummy ache the day before so he chose to get chicken nuggets and fruit instead of french fries because he knew the fruit would help kill the sick bugs in his body. All of this being said, we usually teach kids not to eat junk food and of course just telling them no is going to make them want to eat them. I think we should teach the benefits of healthy choices and how sugar and junk food can make you sleepy and unmotivated if you eat too much of it so that they learn to make these choices for themselves.
Hey Angela, I love that you decided to continue the class discussion. I do agree that there should be content on the human body including hygiene and healthy habits physically and mentally. I do remember learning about the human bodies in middle school very briefly but I think that the content should start with elementary school. I think it is important to teach students about their bodies and how to take care of them physically and mentally because these are skills they will need daily. I also believe it is important to teach them about it as early as possible because some students start developing earlier than others and it is important that they understand the reasoning behind their actions. It is easy to be an adult and you just tell your student to do something but it is even better when you can teach them why it is important to do it. I think it would resonate with the child way more once they have a complete understanding about the topic. For example, one of my first graders was musty after having 30 minutes of outside recess. I am pretty sure her mother did not have the conversation with her, so I am sure she does not know why she has an unpleasant smell and what she can do to help it. As a teacher, it is my job to help students navigate these things which would be so much easier if we had time throughout the school year to talk about it as a class. As a person who has worked in a school building for a while now, it is to my understanding that some of these topics are supposed to be learned during physical education. But, if you have ever been in the gym while the students are there, all they do is run around. It is basically free time for them. Maybe that is something else that needs to be discussed. How can the PE teachers help support homeroom teachers in teaching this content?
Hi Angela, these are great questions and most definitely ones that should be considered and discussed among a variety of areas of people and disciplines. I think that when considering revision to be made to the VA SOL’s I would want to advocate for a more integrated approach that connects scientific concepts with real-world applications which would give students a better insight into the interconnectedness of the natural phenomena that surrounds us while helping students understand such large concepts on an individual, smaller scale. Additionally, by emphasizing the importance of human life needs in relation to broader scientific concepts, students can develop a more holistic understanding of how science impacts their daily lives and the world around them. Introducing the concept of human life needs could be appropriate at any grade level but I think introducing some concepts in younger grades could be beneficial as it could be aligned with the students’ natural curiosity about themselves and the world that comes with growing up, learning, and experiencing new things!
Hi Angela, thank you for your post! For me, standards of learning, while valuable, should not be followed in a cut and dry way. I think in order to avoid doing this, teachers need to be creative in their methods of teaching, including using real world experiences, as they are invaluable to students to see how their world works around them. I also disagree strongly with the fact that personal hygeine is not something that is mandated to learn. Children should not grow up and be unaware of how to take care of themselves in terms of mental health as well. I think for the revised SOLs, personal hygeine and mental health should be incorporated into the curriculum, because if a child does not know how to appropriately care for their body and mind, it will no doubt negatviely impact their learning.