Science
At D39C, we are curious about the world around us and question everything. The Scientific laws and theories that make us think, smile, scratch our heads, and ask questions are tested and applied in the real world. We follow a non-linear scientific approach of design thinking to define problems, research and generate ideas, prototype and test, refine along the way, and communicate our findings in a collaborative, interdisciplinary setting. Being creative is a natural part of the human experience and is found at the heart of scientific discovery. Because science is alway changing, we value life-long learning and learn by making, by doing, and through experimentation.
Article: How NGSS Will Revitalize Science Education
Article: Academy for Academic Excellence (NGSS)
“…learning about science and engineering involves integration of the knowledge of scientific explanations (i.e., content knowledge) and the practices needed to engage in scientific inquiry and engineering design. Thus the framework seeks to illustrate how knowledge and practice must be intertwined in designing learning experiences in K–12 science education.”
Cross Cutting Concepts from the Next Generation Science Standards
Patterns: Observed patterns of forms and events guide organization and classification, and they prompt questions about relationships and the factors that influence them.
Cause and effect: Mechanism and explanation. Events have causes, sometimes simple, sometimes multifaceted. A major activity of science is investigating and explaining causal relationships and the mechanisms by which they are mediated. Such mechanisms can then be tested across given contexts and used to predict and explain events in new contexts.
Scale, proportion, and quantity: In considering phenomena, it is critical to recognize what is relevant at different measures of size, time, and energy and to recognize how changes in scale, proportion, or quantity affect a system’s structure or performance.
Systems and system models: Defining the system under study—specifying its boundaries and making explicit a model of that system—provides tools for understanding and testing ideas that are applicable throughout science and engineering.
Energy and matter: Flows, cycles, and conservation. Tracking fluxes of energy and matter into, out of, and within systems helps one understand the systems’ possibilities and limitations.
Structure and function: The way in which an object or living thing is shaped and its substructure determine many of its properties and functions.
Stability and change: For natural and built systems alike, conditions of stability and determinants of rates of change or evolution of a system are critical elements of study.
We are still finding out how the world works. We don't know all the answers.
"When science class only consists of facts and figure that we know to be "true," it communicates to students that we know all the answers, instead of letting them know that our ignorance far outweighs our knowledge. It keeps them from finding out that there are lots of mysteries that we can't begin to answer. Letting students in on the mysteries of the world ignites their curiosity and opens the door to a lifetime of finding out." --Tina Grotzer, Project Zero Harvard Graduate School of Education
"...the skills of the 21st century need us to create scholars that can link the unlinkable. These scholars must be willing to try many combinations before finding the right answer. They must be comfortable with concepts that they can play with in new ways. We want smart-thinking creative people. This is the formula for a better tomorrow." -- Ainissa Ramirez in Save Our Science
"Science does not know its debt to imagination." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
