Students learn about Earth's rotation.
There are many national science standards that must be covered in the classroom. Additionally, each state has more specific science standards that need to be taught. In order to effectively teach science to students, teachers must adjust their teaching methods to fit the lesson--smaller classrooms for interactive learning and larger classrooms for lecture or observational learning.
Elementary Science Standards
The sun warms the Earth.
Students in early elementary grades K to 4 will learn basic facts about objects in the sky, including the sun, moon and planets. Starting in kindergarten, students learn about the sun and how it warms our planet. Later in elementary school, they learn about the sun's role in photosynthesis. Grade-schoolers also learn about changes in the sky, including day and night, stars and constellations. A field trip to a planetarium is common in early elementary school.
Middle School Science Standards
Planets orbit around the sun.
Middle school students in grades 5 to 8 expand on the space science learned in elementary school. During these grades, students learn more about sunlight as energy and how our place in the solar system is important. Students also learn about asteroids and meteors. Students will have an understanding of Earth's axis and rotation in space and how it affects our environment. Asteroids may also be explored. A common middle school space science lesson is creating a model of the solar system.
High School Science Standards
Older students learn about space exploration.
In high school, space science becomes more complex and often involves math. The origin and evolution of Earth and the entire solar system are explored. Students learn about the Earth's atmosphere and compare it with other planets. Solar energy is explored. Students will understand the physics of gravity. The history of space exploration and its future are studied. Common themes include galaxies, space weather, solar cycles, chemistry and the chemical components of Earth's atmosphere.
Classroom Size
High school students learn what makes Earth habitable.
There is no one-size-fits-all ratio for classroom size and student-to-teacher ratios. Using the correct teaching approach for the class activity is more important. For a science lecture involving little student interaction beyond note taking, a right student-to-teacher ratio can be effective. In a class where students are learning through experiments, individually or in groups, a lower ratio is desirable.
Tags: learn about, students learn, elementary school, solar system, space science
