Reviewed by Ralph Peterson
Everyday Science Mysteries embeds inquiry experiences into stories that elementary students will enjoy. They are much like the stories that students this age love to read or hear read to them, featuring children, families, and animals--except they lack the final solutions. These contexts not only make the problems authentic but as the author suggests, help students to "care about science."
There are five stories each in the areas of life, Earth, and physical science. As I went through the introductory sections of the book, I was impressed by the attention given to scientific detail. Then I went through some of the stories and was even more impressed. The book is well-written and put together. For each area there is a coherent content review for teachers, correlations to the National Science Education Standards and other NSTA publications (such as Curriculum Topic Study Guide and Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volumes 1, 2, and 3. There are also suggestions for using the stories at both lower and upper elementary/middle school levels.
Teachers will especially love the section called "Don't Be Surprised" for each story. One of the secret reasons many teachers hesitate to open their classrooms to true inquiry is fear that something will come up (either a question or an experimental result) that they won't be able to explain. These sections will provide "Aha" moments to even veteran teachers, as they explain misconceptions students might harbor or questions that may arise during the stories and related explorations.
This collection provides a good source of examples for teachers to use to enrich content. Even elementary teachers with limited science backgrounds should be able to use the book and improve science education in their classrooms. I liked the suggestions for both younger and older grades. This book would be a great resource in any elementary classroom. It's a good reference for teachers at this level.
Review posted on 6/11/2008
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