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There is growing interest in stories as potentially powerful tools for science learning. In this mini-review article, we discuss theory and evidence indicating that, especially for young children, listening to and sharing stories with adult caregivers at home can make scientific ideas and inquiry practices meaningful and accessible. We review recent research offering evidence that stories presented in books can advance children’s science learning. Nonetheless, most of this work focuses on middle-class European-American U. S. children and involves narrative story books. Given the national imperative to increase Latine 1 representation in STEM education and career pursuits in the U. S., we argue that it is vital that we broaden the definition of stories to include oral narrative storytelling and other conversational routines that Latine families engage in at home. Cultural communities with firmly rooted oral traditions, such as those from Latin American heritage, rely frequently on oral storytelling rather than book reading to convey world and community knowledge to young children. Therefore, we advocate for a strengths-based approach that considers Latine families’ everyday practices around science and storytelling on their own terms instead of contrasting them with European-American middle-class practices. We offer support for the view that for young children in Latine communities, culturally relevant oral practices, including personal narrative storytelling, can engender significant opportunities for family science learning at home.
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Powering Up Preschool Science: A Home–School–Community Partnership to Support Science Learning with a Focus on Emergent Multilingual Learners
All children, including emergent multilingual learners (EMLs), are primed to engage with science from an early age. Yet preschool educators traditionally have not been offered in-depth professional learning (PL) in science, how to teach it effectively to young EMLs, and how to communicate its importance to families. This quasi-experimental study investigated a partnership model designed to engage early educators, children’s families, informal science educators, and STEM role models at an informal science learning environment (ISLE)in collaboratively supporting high-quality science experiences for young EML children at school, at home, and in the community. The study examined the effects of a multi-faceted PL program on educators’ beliefs and attitudes toward science and their classroom instructional practices. Caregivers were surveyed and interviewed to assess their beliefs and attitudes around early science learning. Results indicated that educators in the treatment condition gained confidence in supporting science with EMLs and showed significant increases in instructional quality relative to comparison classrooms. Caregivers rated themselves as more confident in supporting science with their children. Promoting partnerships between preschools and ISLEs can be an effective way to power up educators’ and families’ capacities to activate young EMLs’ science inquiry, learning, and language development across multiple contexts.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1949266
- PAR ID:
- 10615424
- Publisher / Repository:
- Educations Sciences
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Education Sciences
- Volume:
- 14
- Issue:
- 7
- ISSN:
- 2227-7102
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 785
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14070785
