December 2007

In This Issue


Featured Book
Beyond Ecophobia


Science Nearly Extinct in Bay Area Schools

Science Night
Stargazing

Inventor's Workshop
Winter Camp 2007-08


Bug of the Month Club:
Pill Bugs (Rollie Pollies)
*NEW DATE


 
☼ Featured Book ☼

 
 
Beyond Ecophobia
Reclaiming the Heart in Nature Education
 
By David Sobel
 
available from
 
We take care of that which we love.  This should be the basis of environmental education.  David Sobel discusses this theme in his little gem of a book, Beyond Ecophobia, Reclaiming the Heart in Nature Education.  Sobel writes, "What's important is that children have an opportunity to bond with the natural world, to learn to love it, before being asked to heal its wounds."

 

I have reread this book many times because it resonates so completely with my own ideas about nature and science education.  I began teaching science indoors, offering after-school science programs.  Soon I realized that to teach dynamically about nature, you have to be outside experiencing it first hand.  Now, during the summer when the weather is nice, all of our programs are outdoors.  Kids have the opportunity to pick up bugs, lizards and snakes, build forts, smell the forest, and breathe in the fresh air.  That's how they learn to love nature.  And I know that when they are old enough to take on social responsibility, they will protect these wild places where they have experienced so much joy.

 

I recommend this immensely readable book to any adult who interacts with children - parents, teachers or health professionals.  Sobel presents a profound philosophy and great ideas for getting kids into nature. 

 
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Shop Amazon.com
 
 

Shop at Amazon.com and support This Land Is Your Land Summer Day Camp scholarships. All purchases made at Amazon.com through the above link will generate 4%-10% referral fees, which will be used by Sarah's Science to provide scholarships to children who would otherwise be unable to attend. Thank you.

 
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Cool Links
 
During the elephant seal breeding season, December through March, daily access to the reserve is available via guided walks.
Call 650-879-2025
 
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Founded by educators interested in developing resources for enhancing science and outdoor learning experiences, Acorn Naturalists catalog offers resources for teachers, naturalists, camp counselors, parents and their children.
 

 

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Sarah's Science™

 
21525 Knoll Way
Castro Valley, CA 94546
Phone (510) 581-3739
Fax (510) 581-6144
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
Greetings!
 
I'm so excited about our Science Night: Stargazing this Saturday, December 15, from 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm. Along with fantastic projects, dinner and storytime, a guest astromoner will be sharing some fascinating secrets about our starry sky. We hope parents will take advantage of this special evening with a quiet dinner on their own or to finish up last minute holiday shopping.
 
Our lead article is a follow-up to the release of a recent study by the Lawrence Hall of Science that demonstrates what I've known for several years; that science education is sadly lacking in our schools. This situation is one of the key factors that drives the mission of Sarah's Science - to provide children the opportunity to learn about science and nature in a fun and meaningful way.
 
You'll find detailed information below on our upcoming
Inventor's Workshop Winter Camp in Oakland and Berkeley on December 26, 27, 28 and 31, 2007, and January 2, 3 and 4, 2008. We still have space available in both locations, so give us a call as soon as you've finalized your winter break plans. 
 
Please note our January Bug of the Month Club has been re-scheduled from January 19 to January 26. I hope this change doesn't inconvenience any of our regular bugsters.
 
On behalf of the staff of Sarah's Science, I want to extend my sincerest wishes to all of you for a happy, healthy and peaceful holiday season.
 
                                     Sincerely,
                               Sarah Shaffer
 
Photo of Sarah courtesy of SF Chronicle

  

 

Science Nearly Extinct
in Bay Area Schools

By Sarah Shaffer
 

Science is not merely a body of facts, and it's not only a method for understanding the world; underlying all this is the desire to know the world - curiosity about the world. Curiosity is abundant in childhood. Curiosity is fragile. It must be encouraged and developed. If every time a child asks "why?" or "how come?" she is told "You learn that in high school or college," the curiosity begins to wane. The child gets the message that the world is not really knowable - at least not by her or him.

 

I'll never forget how shocked and delighted I was to read The Double Helix, by James Watson during my junior year in high school. Before that, science was "boring" to me. It meant nothing - just lists of facts to memorize, facts that rarely made sense. I failed biology the first time - just hated it (and this the girl who collected and raised bugs, toads, wildflowers and who wanted to be an oceanographer at 8 years of age). But something important shifted in me after reading Watson's book. It was my first insight into what science really was, in the real world. These scientists struggling (often viciously competing) to figure out the very nature of life - DNA - gave me my first glimpse that science was still alive.

 

Earlier this year staff at the Center for Research, Evaluation, and Assessment at the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley and at WestEd conducted a study of the status of science education in Bay Area elementary schools. The results of this study offer some insights about why students are not performing well in science in this region.

 

Study findings suggest two interdependent reasons for these achievement results.

  • First, the current status of science education is weak: science education is of inconsistent and often poor quality; Bay Area schools spend too little time teaching the subject; and many teachers are unprepared to teach science.
  • Second, the current status of the efforts to improve science education is also weak: public educational policy (national, state, and often local) does not adequately address the importance of science education and often presents structural barriers to the improvement of science instruction.
Fortunately, many schools and communities would like to improve these conditions.
 

This is my plea to all the powers that be - we must keep science education in elementary school. If we wait until high school to present science, we risk losing a child's natural curiosity. As in my initial experience in high school biology, children will find science a boring set of facts, disconnected from their lives and the world around them.

 

Yes, children must learn to read and decode the written word, but they must also learn to read and decode the world. It doesn't have to be either/or - either we teach reading or we teach science. I offer two solutions:

  1. Stop the tests - they take up too much time and they stultify good teaching.
  2. Train elementary teachers how to teach science vibrantly.

In the meantime, while we are waiting and fighting for a sensible system of education, don't sacrifice your curious child.

  • Take them out into nature.
  • Ask questions with them, wonder with them.
  • Read them cool science books.
  • And send them to us - we at Sarah's Science will do our part.
Check out these links:
 
Lawrence Hall of Science Study for more detailed information on the study.
 
Lawrence Hall of Science Video for a delightful children's "commercial" highlighting the lack of science education.
 
SF Chronicle Article for reaction to the study from the Bay Area community.
 
 

 
Science Night: Stargazing
 
During this special evening edition of Sarah's Science, we will explore the universe of stars and planets through unique astronomy projects and direct observation of our starry sky. Dinner will be served and kids can bring their jammies and sleeping bags for story time. (Parents, this is your chance to enjoy an evening out!)
 

Saturday, December 15, 2007

Hours: 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Cost: $65 

Location: Lake Merritt United Methodist Church

              1255 First Avenue, Oakland (Directions)

 
 
 
For more information, call (510) 581-3739
or visit our website at www.sarahscience.com
 

 

 
 

Inventor's Workshop

Winter Camp 2007
For Children ages 5-11; CIT ages 11-15
 
  
 
Dates: December 26, 27, 28, 31, 2007
          January 2, 3, 4, 2008
Hours: 8:00 am - 5:30 pm
Fees: $95/day 
         $80/day if registering for five or more days
Oakland: Lake Merritt United Methodist Church
              1255 First Avenue, Oakland
(Directions)
Berkeley: Black Pine Circle School
               2016 7th Street, Berkeley (near corner of 7th/University) 
 
We will explore the forces of electricity, magnetism and gravity while inventing an array of cool contraptions and toys. Our projects are designed to inspire imagination, the source of all invention.
 
In addition to creating contraptions, we'll do fun and creative art projects, play outdoors, watch science movies and take hikes. A professional circus tightrope walker will demonstrate the physics of gravity and balance.
 
For more information, call (510) 581-3739
or visit our website at www.sarahscience.com

 
         You meet the best bugs at-
 Bug of the 
   Month Club
 

In monthly classes, children explore the bizarre and fascinating world of insects. Each class features a different insect, its habitat and its unique role in our world.

"Calling all Bugsters!"
(Ages 4 - 12)

Featuring Pill Bugs on January 26*

*note new January date
 
 
 

This month we will:

  • Explore the natural history of these fascinating isopods.
  • Examine the life cycle and unique adaptations of pill bugs.
  • Create a habitat for your pet pill bugs (you get to take home some adults and some babies), and learn to raise them at home.

Date: Saturday, January 26, 2008
Time: 10:00 am - 11:30 am  or  12:30 pm - 2:00 pm

 (same class repeated twice)
Where: Lake Merritt United Methodist Church
           1255 First Avenue, Oakland (Directions)
Fee: $25.00 (includes all materials and a snack)

Mark your calendars for upcoming Saturday Classes:

  • February 16, 2008
  • March 8, 2008
  • April 26, 2008

For more information, call (510) 581-3739
or visit our website at www.sarahscience.com