Teaching Science: Grades 4-6

Learn how to increase your effectiveness as a science teacher for the middle grades. This course will equip you with engaging experiments, practical worksheets, winning lesson plans, and direct instruction methods you can use immediately in your own classroom.

6 Weeks / 24 Course Hrs

Starting May 14, 2025

Offered in partnership with your preferred school

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Learning method

Self-Guided

$180

No instructor. Study on your own schedule

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Instructor-Moderated

$165

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Starting May 14 | June 11

Details + Objectives

Course code: sci

Want to increase your effectiveness as a science teacher for the middle grades? Come learn about the nature and history of science as well as how to help students in this age group grasp the scientific method. You'll receive lots of worksheets and specific examples of some great experiments you can use in your own classroom. You will discover the principles of direct instruction and many different learning and organizational tools that will benefit your students. You'll even learn how you can use science class to improve the emotional climate in your classroom!

All through the course, you will discover worksheets and checklists you and your students can put to immediate use. You'll see how helpful they are in the lessons on the scientific method, writing a research paper, and producing a science fair. You will cover foundational content in both physical science and life science. You will learn how to use a study of the earth's atmosphere to teach students how to make and interpret a variety of graphs—an important skill for standardized testing. You will learn about some of the best websites available. By the end of this course, you will have many new skills that will benefit both you and your students.

What you will learn

Learn the different types of scientific research
Learn how to use the scientific method to design great experiments
Learn the differences between models, theories, and laws
Discover some special projects to use in your classroom
Learn what direct instruction involves and how it lays a strong foundation for higher-level thinking skills
Discover a valuable concept call the Zone of Proximal Development
Discover successful steps for students to follow when they learn new information
Gain a helpful guide to help your students write successful research papers
Discover how to create a positive emotional climate in your classroom
Explore the different roles of organ systems and gain activities to use to teach these concepts
Learn to teach the essential concept of homeostasis
Gain ways to help your students master the ability to read and interpret graphs
Learn how to put on a successful science fair by giving students worksheets and checklists to guide them every step of the way

How you will benefit

Increase your effectiveness as a science teacher for the middle grades
Gain worksheet and specific examples for experiments to use in your classroom
Improve the emotional climate in your classroom
Gain knowledge about both science and teaching methods

How the course is taught

Instructor-Moderated or Self-Guided online course
6 Weeks or 3 Months access
24 course hours

Outline

In this lesson, you'll go over the challenges and joys of teaching science to this age group. You'll learn why this subject can be so difficult to teach and some specific ways to overcome those difficulties. The lesson will also discuss how you can help your students use their textbooks most effectively and teach you some great tricks to help your students improve their memories.

You'll begin this lesson with a short history lesson. You'll learn about some of the wrong beliefs scientists held just a few centuries ago and how some courageous scientists challenged those beliefs. There will then be a discussion about different types of scientific research where you'll learn the distinctions between correlational studies, demonstrations, and experiments. You'll next focus on using the scientific method to design great experiments and become an expert at identifying control and experimental groups, and control, independent, and dependent variables. Most importantly, you'll be able to convey that knowledge to your students!

For most of human history, people believed that the sun and other planets orbited the earth. To help you gain a firm understanding of the nature of science, this lesson will discuss the lives of four scientists who challenged that conventional theory about the solar system. You'll see how humanity's understanding of the solar system changed over time, an important illustration of the development of scientific thought. After you learn about the differences between models, theories, and laws, the lesson will walk you through a lesson plan that will help your students understand the nature of science, and give you some suggestions for special projects your students might enjoy.

Research shows that using direct instruction increases achievement in the science classroom. This lesson will explain exactly what direct instruction involves and show you how it lays a strong foundation for higher-level thinking skills. You'll learn about a valuable concept called the Zone of Proximal Development, freeing you to meet the needs of the individual children in your classroom. The lesson will also discuss scaffolding, a great technique related to this concept. To demonstrate these principles, you'll go through a lesson plan step-by-step that you can use as a model.

This lesson will continue to discuss different teaching methods. First, though, you'll examine the steps that successful students follow when they learn new information. You'll see how excellent instruction helps students go through these steps and how you can meet four distinct objectives when teaching new material. You'll then move on to using outlines, charts, and concept maps. You'll view an example of an assignment checklist that you can give your students to help them stay organized. The lesson will also include a teacher's checklist to help you plan your chapter and unit studies.

Students must write research papers throughout their educational careers. Now is a great time to help them acquire great writing skills through direct instruction. To help your students succeed, you'll take a look at a guide that was developed to help them, which includes pages to help them organize their notes, a set of questions they should answer, a way to record the references they used, and templates for their bibliographies. For further assistance, you can give them a checklist to keep them on track. The lesson will also talk about why you should reduce your support during subsequent papers so that your students will become more independent.

You know those teachers who seem to possess a special magic? Their students love them, yet they aren't pushovers. Successful teachers understand the importance of a positive emotional climate in the classroom. They know it fosters learning, encourages students' efforts, and builds great relationships. This lesson will discuss specific ways you can be one of those teachers. It will even address the special needs of this age group, since many will begin puberty during this time.

In this lesson, you'll concentrate on the driving force that exists in both chemistry and physics—the drive for equilibrium. You'll start by reviewing some basic principles of chemistry, including the structure and behavior of atoms, ions, and molecules. Then, the lesson will cover the states of matter and the differences between their shape, volume, structure, molecular movement, and energy level. By the end of the lesson, you'll have a good understanding of thermal, mechanical, and chemical equilibrium and you'll know how to teach those concepts to your students. As a bonus, the lesson will also include some fun activities you can share with your students that they'll really enjoy.

Amazingly, all living creatures, no matter how different, share some common characteristics. Once your students understand these characteristics, they'll have a greater appreciation for all living organisms. This lesson will go over these characteristics and talk about the way all living creatures are organized. You'll learn more about the different roles of the organ systems and about modern cell theory. Throughout the lesson, you'll receive some ideas for activities you can use to teach these concepts to your students.

Everything that happens inside living organisms, and much of their behavior, is driven by the need to maintain homeostasis. Homeostasis is the maintenance of a stable internal environment, no matter what's happening in the environment. It's an essential concept for both you and your students to understand, so you'll spend some time on it in this lesson. You'll then move on to a discussion about equilibrium in ecosystems. You'll also look at a unit study that your students will love—the development of an environmental notebook.

As you probably know, school districts put a big emphasis on standardized tests. Students are expected to master the ability to read and interpret several different types of graphs. This lesson will use a topic in earth science, the atmosphere, to show you ways to help your students master this skill. You'll learn how to construct graphs one step at a time so that you can pass that skill on to your students. When students can construct their own graphs, they're more likely to accurately interpret those that others have made. The lesson will also cover pie charts, single- and multiple-bar charts, single- and multiple-line charts, and scatter plots.

If your school puts on a science fair, you know that it's something teachers, parents, and students often greet with a mixture of fear and dread. It doesn't have to be that way. This lesson will give you worksheets and checklists to guide you and your students every step of the way, making the process more manageable. You'll also receive a guide on oral presentations and a sample judging sheet. You'll soon come to see the value of science fairs after you finish with this lesson!

Instructors & Support

Holly Trimble

Holly Trimble earned a bachelor's degree in Physical Therapy from the University of Colorado, a master's degree in Pediatric Physical Therapy from Boston University, a master's degree in Biology from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, and a doctoral degree in Physical Therapy from Arcadia University. After working as a physical therapist for many years, Dr. Trimble transitioned into teaching. She has lectured on health-related topics to all age groups and has taught middle and high school science courses in both private and public school settings. She currently teaches Anatomy and Physiology for a local community college system, where she has taught for the past 15 years. Holly received the Adjunct Faculty Excellence Award both of the years she was nominated and is the author of the eBook, "College Success Now!"

Instructor Interaction: The instructor looks forward to interacting with learners in the online moderated discussion area to share their expertise and answer any questions you may have on the course content.

Requirements

Prerequisites:

There are no prerequisites to take this course.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

PC: Windows 8 or later.
Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

FAQ

Instructor-Moderated: A new session of each course begins each month. Please refer to the session start dates for scheduling.

Self-Guided: Your course begins immediately after you enroll.

Instructor-Moderated: Once a course session starts, two lessons will be released each week for the 6 week duration of your course. You will have access to all previously released lessons until the course ends. You will interact with the instructor through the online discussion area. There are no live sessions or online meetings with the instructor.

Self-Guided: You have 3 months of access to the course. After enrolling, you can learn and complete the course at your own pace, within the allotted access period. You will have the opportunity to interact with other students in the online discussion area.

Instructor-Moderated: The interactive discussion area for each lesson automatically closes two weeks after each lesson is released, so you're encouraged to complete each lesson within two weeks of its release. However, you will have access to all lessons from the time they are released until the course ends.

Self-Guided: There is no time limit to complete each lesson, other than completing all lessons within the allotted access period. Discussion areas for each lesson are open for the entire duration of the course.

Instructor-Moderated: Students enrolled in a six-week online class benefit from a one-time, 10-day extension for each course. No further extensions can be provided beyond these 10 days.

Self-Guided: Because this course is self-guided, no extensions will be granted after the start of your enrollment.

Reviews

I really enjoyed the content of the course and the way it was presented. I gained a lot of scientific knowledge that I perhaps had forgotten. I also gained valuable techniques in conducting not only a science class, but will be able to integrate them into my other contents. Thank you.

I really enjoyed this class! The instructor's teaching style was very clear, direct, and methodical. She covered all of the topics thoroughly, and wrote in a very friendly and interesting style. As I finished each lesson, I was already looking forward to the next! Also, the supplementary materials and resources at the end of each lesson are so valuable and will be very useful to me. I am sure I will refer to all the materials in this course over and over again.

I got a lot more from than course than I expected. I am not a science teacher by training, and taking this class gave me a lot of foundational information that I did not have. Also, as a special education teacher, I really appreciated this instructor's heart for students with disabilities. She presented very useful information for the general education teacher and provided different approaches so special education students could also be given the opportunity to learn. The resources for science fairs are gold to me.

The instructor, Holly Trimble, is very good at getting to the core of instruction. In the past, I had felt like I was teaching bits and pieces of scientific information. It was not until I read the chapter on the drive for equilibrium that I saw it all tied together. But, I had never been able to put that into words to let my students understand that concept. I teach high school science and math, and I found this course invaluable. I will use what I learned in these lessons every day in class!

This was the best education course I have ever taken. The lessons were great and the resources given at the end of each lesson were terrific. I wish I had taken this course many years ago - my students would have benefited from it!

This was a very helpful course and the instructor was wonderful! She broke down the information into manageable chunks and included real classroom stories. She also included a ton of supplementary information to help us research anything we might need to use in our classrooms. I made a notebook of all the lessons, and I know it will be a very useful guide for me this year!

I have taken many science courses in my teaching career, but no course has really taught me science and how to use it in my classroom like this one! It has been previously hard for me to teach science because I never understood it myself. Science concepts were never explained in a way that I could understand them until now. I will never again dread teaching science. Thank you so much!

This was a great course to not only refresh one's science knowledge, but also to gain a ton of great science teaching ideas, both in terms of content and execution. The instructor provides lots of great checklists and worksheets for both the students and teacher. I highly recommend this course. If you still rely on just worksheets and the "occasional" activity or experiment this course will change how you approach teaching science and make science the most exciting part of the day for your students.

The instructor did an outstanding job of presenting a comprehensive, insightful science class for teachers of fourth to sixth graders. She truly led by example. The class has been such a boost for me, and I'm sure for the others who've taken it. I am more knowledgeable and have more tools to start using with my students tomorrow! Her willingness to share such complete resource lists and expertise tell of her love for students and teachers alike. Thank you!

I was so pleased with this class. So much was covered that helped me to become a better teacher: science concepts, lesson planning, organizing units, classroom management. and more. I appreciated the knowledgeable, common-sense approach of the teacher and am excited to share this love of science with my students in a more coherent way this fall. Thank you!!

Teaching Science: Grades 4-6

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