Never. Stop. Questioning.
In Science EAR employs the 3 Dimensional Learning Approach outlined in the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards).
In our curriculum this calls for students to be able do three things.
The first dimension requires students to understand the disciplinary core ideas, these are content specific knowledge such as explaining what gravity is and how it works.
The second is using science and engineering practices, this could involve designing a lab or approach to measuring and calculating gravity on earth. The whole premise being that students are planning and designing the investigations themselves, because our future scientists and engineers need these skills to tackle bigger questions and problems they will encounter in the real world.
Finally, the third dimension requires students to apply their knowledge and understanding across “crosscutting” concepts. For instance, how does gravity impact activities in earth’s core or how has gravity played a role in how plants and animals have evolved on earth? This approach requires student curiosity to drive inquiry that leads to an investigation. In this model student are explicitly taught core disciplinary knowledge about a phenomena (Gravity), questions and curiosities emerge from this new knowledge, which leads to an investigation using Science and engineering practices and an examination of how that phenomena impacts other areas and interactions in the living and physical world.
At EAR we employ this phenomena based learning approach through our Elevate Science Curriculum (K-5), and Amplify Science (6-8), along with the AP science courses that we offer.