Stories
Cultivating a sense of wonder: science instruction in the Lower School
April 17, 2025
April 2025 message from Head of Lower School Adam Hancock
Teaching science should be much more than the rote memorization of theories, formulas, and vocabulary. It should be an education in problem solving and collaboration. Harvard’s Graduate School of Education recognizes the important human element of engaging science instruction, and at Aspen Country Day School, we embrace this approach. Guided by Lise, Rachel, Brett, and the other talented educators in our division, the young scientists in the Lower School are enthusiastically learning about the how and why of how the world works through engaging, project-based instruction.
The Preschool through Eighth Grade learning journey at ACDS catalyzes a lifelong interest in learning. A powerful early science education can inspire a career in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), medicine, or a related field. In addition to introducing students to the dynamic fields of science and technology at ACDS, we believe, at its core, that science instruction should stoke curiosity about the interconnectedness of the world. Science is taught at ACDS in a hands-on, minds-on, experiential manner. Interdisciplinary projects weaving the arts, math, natural science, and creative methods of presentation are found throughout the Lower School. Instead of rote memorization of scientific facts, science educators at ACDS seek to nurture passion and curiosity in young minds.
“In addition to introducing students to the dynamic fields of science and technology at ACDS, we believe, at its core, that science instruction should stoke curiosity about the interconnectedness of the world.”
With our youngest learners, Preschool through Third Grade, Lise guides students through projects on the science of snow, animal classification, paleontology, the human body, and other engaging topics. These learning experiences are connected to the general education curriculum, and many are integrated into our outdoor education trips as well. In the Fourth and Fifth Grades, science instruction is delivered as a part of the general curriculum by Rachel and Brett. In Fourth Grade, a deep understanding of concepts including animal adaptation, electromagnetics, anatomy (including nutrition), plant biology, and earth science, specifically geology, is fostered. As scientists summit the peak of the Lower School in Fifth Grade, they apply their knowledge and environmental stewardship through a citizen science partnership monitoring the health of Castle Creek with the Roaring Fork Conservancy. This ongoing project supplements hands-on learning explorations of weather, climate, and landforms.
Throughout our Lower School science curriculum, a meaningful thread focuses on nurturing a sense of place. Our mountain campus provides ample opportunities for our students to learn by doing in an inspiring outdoor environment. This place-based approach to instruction roots our students intentionally in this place, the lower Castle Creek Valley. Our students know the campus deeply. They have hiked the trails, explored the woods, felt the bracing waters of the creek. In doing so, ACDS students have a reverence for the natural world that is modeled and taught in the classroom, and brought to life in outdoor settings on campus and beyond. In the Lower School, our science education instills in our students an environmental ethic. This is foundational to a lifelong sense of responsibility, stewardship, and reverence for nature.