• ELEMENTARY SCIENCE CURRICULUM 

    Our teachers are using hands-on, investigative science kits - FOSS and Science 21 - in our classrooms.    

    FOSS – Full Options Science System - is a research-based science curriculum for grades K–8 developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley.  It is also an ongoing research project dedicated to improving the learning and teaching of science. The FOSS program materials are designed to meet the challenge of providing meaningful science education for all students in diverse American classrooms and to prepare them for life in the 21st century. Development of the FOSS program was, and continues to be, guided by advances in the understanding of how youngsters think and learn.  The best way for students to appreciate the scientific enterprise, learn important scientific concepts, and develop the ability to think critically is to actively construct ideas through their own inquiries, investigations, and analyses. The FOSS program was created to engage students in these processes as they explore the natural world.

    SCIENCE 21 is an integrated K-6 science curriculum developed locally and regionally at the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES. It is a science program designed by teachers for teachers. It is linked to the New York State Learning Standards for Mathematics, Science and Technology.
    The program's major emphasis is on investigations that are student directed and relevant to students' everyday lives. The program's main focus is on hands-on, inquiry-based science, and math, language arts and technology are integrated at points where they fit naturally. SCIENCE 21 achieves a balance between process and content, and is supported by kits and staff development.