NASA’s
Kids Science News Network™
Mathematics,
science, and technology matter
for young children because they
matter to young children. The
knowledge required for these
subjects is formal, orderly,
and based in reality whereas
the way young children learn
is often informal and embedded
in fantasy. All young children
are naturally curious. That
curiosity increases as they
encounter and interact with
their world, as they search
for explanations, and as they
seek to learn how the world
works. So how best is the curiosity
of young children nurtured and
encouraged? Even without the
formal teaching of mathematics,
science, and technology, and
the teaching of logical reasoning
and problem-solving, young children
learn intuitively through their
interactions with people and
things. Young children want
to know; they want to understand.
Often they will turn to a parent,
a relative, a care giver, or
a sibling for the explanation.
(What adult has not encountered
the infamous "why"
question from a young child?)
In the absence of an explanation,
they will create their own explanation
for their world and its workings
and given wrong explanations,
they form misconceptions. So,
if mathematics, science, and
technology are (1) ever-present
in our society, (2) gateways
to future careers, (3) the foundation
for life-long learning, and
(4) essential for survival in
a world that is increasingly
technological, how should young
children be introduced to these
subject?
NASA’s
Kids Science News Network™
(NASA’s KSNN™) is
one of five programs offered
by the NASA
Center for Distance Learning
that span the education horizon
from grades K-12, post secondary,
to adult (life-long) learners.
NASA’s KSNN™ builds
upon children’s natural
curiosity to introduce students
in grades K-2 and 3-5 to the
world of science, technology,
engineering, mathematics, and
NASA. NASA's KSNN™ uses
animated characters (for grades
K-2) and web and video technology
(for grades 3-5) to help children
understand the everyday phenomena
of our world and answer their
frequently asked questions.
This web, animation, and video-
based program is designed to
- enhance and enrich the
teaching of mathematics, science,
and technology at the elementary
school level;
- inspire and nurture student
(especially female and minority)
interest in science, technology,
engineering, mathematics;
- correct misconceptions;
- introduce students to science
as inquiry, reasoning, and
problem-solving; and
- introduce young children
to careers in science, technology,
engineering, mathematics,
and NASA.
Visit the K-2 portion of NASA's
KSNN web site where you will
find a series of 60-second animations,
activities, and resource links
covering such topics as "magnetism"
and "states of matter."
The grades 3-5 portion of the
NASA KSNN™ web site features
a series of 60-second (video)
news breaks featuring students
answering questions such as
"Why is the sky blue?"
and "What makes popcorn
pop?" and presenting NASA
Facts such as “How do
you tell time in space?”
and “What is the coolest
gas in the universe?”
Each news break includes a follow-up
written explanation, inquiry-based
activities, related print and
electronic resources, and a
computer-graded quiz.
Sponsored by NASA’s
Office of Biological and Physical
Research (OBPR), NASA’s
KSNN™ is the Agency’s
only award-winning (e.g., Parent’s
Choice and Telly), bilingual
(English & Spanish) distance
learning program for children
in grades K-2 and 3-5, that
is research-, inquiry-, and
standards-based; that addresses
the “Ready-to-Learn”
requirements of the No Child
Left Behind legislation; and
uses children to explain mathematics,
science, technology, and NASA
to other children.
Available in English and Spanish,
NASA's KSNN™ invites anyone
who wants to know how things
work or what makes thing happen
to experience a new real adventure
in learning. |
