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Coral Campbell, Wendy Jobling Christine Howitt
SCIENCE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD SECOND EDITION
Essential reading for pre-service teachers eager to develop a deeper knowledge of key areas of science and gain skills to guide children’s learning.
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DATE PUBLISHED: May 2015 FORMAT: Paperback ISBN: 9781107432260
SCIENCE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD Science education in the early years is vital to assist young children to come to know and understand the world around them. In this second edition, Science in Early Childhood has been substantially updated and revised to include comprehensive coverage of the birthto-eight age group. Drawing on the most upto-date research, this edition presents current issues and debates relevant to pre-service teachers of early childhood science, both at pre-school and in the early years of schooling. This text complements the Australian Early Years Learning Framework and the Australian Curriculum: Science. Each chapter develops knowledge of key areas of science and explains how to guide children’s learning. Learning objectives and chapter overviews identify key themes that will be covered, and the theory is enlivened through the use of detailed case studies and practical examples. Written by experts in the field, Science in Early Childhood is essential reading for pre-service teachers.
KEY FEATURES • The unique Australian context, which addresses science education from a relevant perspective while still drawing on international practices and theories • Learning objectives and overviews featured in each chapter, clearly defining the key learning objectives • A focus on The Early Years Learning Framework and the Australian curriculum: Science • Case studies of real situations, bringing to life the underlying theory and encouraging optimal student engagement
• References to current websites, which provide the opportunity for students to access supplementary reading and further expand their understanding
EDITORS AND CONTRIBUTORS Coral Campbell, Christine Howitt, Andrea Nolan, Kathryn Paige, Kate Chealuck, Jane Johnston, Elaine Blake, Wendy Jobling, Jill Robbins, Amy Cutter-Mackenzie
CONTENTS Part I. What Initial Information Should I Know to Teach Science? 1. The place of science in the early years 2. Science in the national early years learning framework 3. Science in the Australian curriculum 4. Learning theories related to early childhood science education Part II. How Can I Enhance Children’s Learning of Science? 5. Approaches to enhance science learning 6. Using play pedagogy in the early years in science education 7. Developing pedagogical practices for science teaching and learning with 3- and 4-year-old children Part III. How Can I Use the Learning Environment to Enhance Children’s Science Understandings? 8. Supporting science understandings through the learning environment 9. Learning science in informal contexts: the home and community
10. Environmental education in natural play spaces Part IV. How Do I Plan and Assess in Science? 11. Planning for teaching science in the early years 12. Observing, assessing and documenting science learning in the early years
ABOUT THE EDITORS: Coral Campbell is Associate Professor at Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, teaching science education in the early childhood and primary pre-service bachelors and masters degree courses. She has an undergraduate science degree, a postgraduate education degree and a PhD in science education. Over three careers spanning 42 years, Coral has contributed significantly to the fields of science, education and educational research. She is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Emergent Science and a Director on the Board of the Australasian Science Education Research Association. Christine Howitt is Associate Professor in Early Childhood and Primary Science Education at the Graduate School of Education at The University of Western Australia, Perth. Christine’s
research has focused on young children’s science learning in both formal and informal contexts, more recently concentrating on the science teaching and learning opportunities provided within early learning centres. Christine is co-editor of the science resource Planting the Seeds of Science. She has been awarded various teaching excellence awards at the state and national levels. Wendy Jobling is Lecturer at Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria. She joined Deakin University in July 2006 after having taught in Victorian state primary schools for more than 20 years. Wendy has a long-held interest in teaching and learning in science education and has published extensively in the field. Since joining Deakin, Wendy has taught undergraduate primary and early childhood teacher education students, and postgraduate primary and early childhood teacher education students in science and design, creativity and technology units.