• FOSS Science Curriculum

    FOSS stands for Full-Option Science System.  It is a rich, research-based science curriculum program that we are using in the School District of Clayton.

    What is FOSS?

    FOSS is a research-based science curriculum for grades K–8 developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley. FOSS is also an ongoing research project dedicated to improving the learning and teaching of science. The FOSS project began over 20 years ago during a time of growing concern that our nation was not providing young students with an adequate science education. 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.

    Science is an active enterprise, made active by our human capacity to think. Scientific knowledge advances when scientists observe objects and events, think about how they relate to what is known, test their ideas in logical ways, and generate explanations that integrate the new information into the established order. Thus the scientific enterprise is both what we know (content) and how we come to know it (process). 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.

    In third classroom in firs grade, students will explore:
    --water,
    --sun, moon, and stars,
    --physics of Sound, and
    --measurement

    Two of our units (Water and Sun, Moon, and Stars) wil be taught in our new science lab.  Mr. Tom Sprengnether, our Science specialist, will co-teach these units.  The remaning units will be taught in our classroom.

    FOSSWeb

    Please quick on the link below to go to FOSSWeb, a highly informative website about this program, with tips, at-home activities, and more.
    http://www.fossweb.com/