I think most people acknowledge the importance of science and math education. Yet, article after article depicts a gloomy picture of scientific literacy, particularly in the United States. What’s so ironic is that young children love science. Somewhere in grammar school or middle school that inquisitive nature seems to fade. It’s unclear whether this is due to natural brain development, or because kids are instructed to sit passively in their classroom seats, or whether exposure to television by its very nature encourages kids to be merely passive observers.
To keep kids interested in science, I think we need to introduce chemistry in the first, second, and third grades. I see no reason that young children cannot be asked why the sun moves in the sky and why there are four seasons. They should be able to understand how the earth, along with every other planet, revolves around the sun, and that stars in the night sky are simply distant suns.
To keep kids interested in science, I think we need to introduce chemistry in the first, second, and third grades. 
Once youngsters understand the solar system, it’s only a short stretch to understanding the structure of the atom. Getting them to speculate about what would happen if electrons flowed onto their bodies, and getting them to appreciate that electrons repel each other because they have a negative electrical charge, and are attracted to things with positive electrical charges, are perfect ideas to show in classroom demonstrations. Comparing electrical forces to magnetic forces should be great fun, too.
The format I use is not particularly special or unique. The audiovisual teaching techniques I use are well known. I assume the students know nothing about the subject, I introduce the material with simple questions about things the students have already experienced, I slice the information very thin using a question and answer format, I try to relate the material to the students’ everyday experiences, I provide an overview of what the curriculum is about and where each topic fits in, and I test often because tests are great motivators to organize, summarize, analyze, and memorize the material.
If a student does poorly on a test, I assume it is because I did not explain the material clearly enough or I did not make it interesting enough. Over the years, I have permitted students to retake tests without a penalty, because that they learn is more important than when they learn. Very few patients have ever asked me when I learned how to treat a particular illness.
To me, education is a neurologic issue. In the future, I will be highlighting relevant scientific articles that explain how the brain learns. I welcome your thoughts and look forward to discussing and testing new ideas in math and science education.
The Fascinating Body:
How It Works
“The Fascinating Body does not contain a lot of microscopic detail or sophisticated chemistry, not because they aren’t important, but because they are unnecessary for a day-to-day understanding of how the body works.”
Learn Science online in an easy and fun way! The Fascinating Education series will engage the learner in a way that makes sense…and when things make sense, they stick! Dr. Margulies has a method of condensing complex subject matter into its essentials and relating it to the world around us.
Learn the four ways that atoms bond to each other to create molecules, and how each bond helps determine the properties of the resulting molecule. Learn how these special molecular properties explain our everyday world — from water freezing to nuclear energy to food to metals to weather, and more.
Learn the basic principles of biology, including the components of life: cell membranes, taking in nutrients, creating chemical energy, growing and repairing, reproducing, maintaining a stable internal environment, and adapting to a changing external environment.
Study the laws of nature governing movement, energy, and sound. Learn about the forces of electricity, magnetism, gravity, and the atomic nucleus. Understand how mathematical formulas summarize and predict events around us.
