Super Powers of Observation

Young children are eager to explore the world around them. The authors of Unlocking the Power of Observation do an excellent job of sharing their successes in building inquiry skills.... See More

Young children are eager to explore the world around them. The authors of Unlocking the Power of Observation do an excellent job of sharing their successes in building inquiry skills. Their plan began with goal setting and ended with children developing skill in observation and communication. The young learners explored shells with such depth that other students could identify the shells by their written observations. The game factor of trying to match the shell with the observation card would encourage students to use precise details. The rubric included with the article would be very easy to adapt to any observation lab experience. I found the teacher directed questions to be thought provoking for the students. The Primary process skills were further developed by introducing scientific tools for the exploration. I could see this experience being used with a variety of objects. I am thinking about fall leaves, squash, and various cones. This is an excellent resource.

Observation and Communication

Young students can benefit from developing powerful powers of observation and communication. This article contains activities that do just that. These tools are as simple as using one’s s... See More

Young students can benefit from developing powerful powers of observation and communication. This article contains activities that do just that. These tools are as simple as using one’s senses and being able to verbally and visually represent those observations. The article also includes an assessment rubric that makes it easy to record the successful completion of these skills in a classroom full of students with a simple check on a chart as you walk through students at work.

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Using our Senses to Observe

This article gives several suggestions on how to help young children learn to use their powers of observation. They learn what is fact and what is opinion. Using their senses helps with ob... See More

This article gives several suggestions on how to help young children learn to use their powers of observation. They learn what is fact and what is opinion. Using their senses helps with observation. The students also uses tools to help with observation such as graph paper. A rubric is included to help evaluate students.

Observation training

In order to do "inquiry," we must be able to make observations. But what constitutes a good observation? In this article, the author discusses the use of all our senses, and recording the re... See More

In order to do "inquiry," we must be able to make observations. But what constitutes a good observation? In this article, the author discusses the use of all our senses, and recording the results. Quantification and graphical depiction, as well as other methods of observing, are discussed. Methods for assessing observation, including a rubric, are also included.