PS 112: A Place for Learning
P.S. 112 Jose Celso Barbosa
EILEEN REITER, PRINCIPAL
535 EAST 119 STREET, MANHATTAN, NY 10035Phone: 212-860-5868
School Name, Number, or Address
Advanced Search
SCIENCE
Science instruction is aligned withthe New York State and New York City Learning and Performance Standards. The New York State Elementary CoreCurriculum guides science instruction in our school. The program focuses on conceptual understanding and isconsistent with the approaches in the National Science Education Standards andBenchmarks for Science Literacy: Project 2061. Our scienceprogram emphasizes a hands-on and minds-on inquiry approach to learning. We believe that students learn most effectively when they are activelyengaged in the discovery process, often working in small groups. Experiences are provided to students sothat they can interact directly with the natural world to constructexplanations about their world. This approach allows students to practice problem-solving skills,develop positive attitudes towards science, learn new science content andincrease scientific literacy.
Students are provided withopportunities to have direct experience with common objects, materials, andliving things in their environment. Good instruction focuses on understanding important relationships,processes, mechanisms, and applications of concepts. We expect students to be able to explain, analyze interpretscientific processes and phenomena rather than recall specific facts. We teach science for understanding notfor memorization.
Inquiry based lessons include thefollowing process skills (as developmentally appropriate): classification;communication, compare/contrast; creating models; gathering, organizing andinterpreting data; generalizing; classifying; identifying variable; inferring;making decisions; manipulating materials; measuring; observing; andpredicting. Many of these skillsare developed across the content areas (including English Language Arts). Through read alouds, literature is usedto teach science concepts. Students read non-fiction leveled books for guided reading andindependent reading during the literacy block to support the instruction ofscience.
Our science specialty teacherprovides enrichment to all classes in grades Pre-K-2 to enhance and support theclassroom program. Science isintegrated into the curriculum and instruction.