Helping students to make their thinking visible in primary science

What does it mean to be an active learner? How do we support children to explore and articulate scientific ideas? Can thinking more deeply boost children’s engagement in science? WVS Education are excited to showcase our pedagogical approach which utilises thinking routines to promote deeper thinking in primary science lessons. Worldwide Veterinary Service, WVS, is a charity on a mission to find the next generation of animal champions by bringing the exciting world of veterinary medicine into classrooms. WVS Education has developed a collection of resources to support primary science lessons where active learning is the thread that runs through all activities. We draw on the thinking routines developed by Harvard University Graduate School of Education as part of their Project Zero research project (Ritchhart, 2011). Thinking routines focus on a particular way of thinking, breaking it down into supported steps which help children to develop a strategy they can practise until it becomes routine (Ritchhart & Church, 2020). This equips children with scaffolded structures they can apply when exploring concepts and articulating scientific ideas. Making thinking visible allows teachers to understand students’ thought processes, revealing scientific misconceptions. Participants will take part in a walkthrough of a thinking routine before reflecting on how the process made them more aware of their current scientific knowledge and next steps for learning. We will then showcase lessons from EYFS, KS1 and KS2 where thinking routines promote deeper thinking, using the engaging world of veterinary medicine as real-life contexts for scientific exploration. Our lessons feature issues WVS vets encounter around the world as they help animals most in need. A key part of our education mission is to highlight how curiosity and exploration are important ways of thinking in STEM careers associated with veterinary medicine. Outcomes: Participants understand how the thinking routines support children to engage more deeply with the scientific concepts in our resources, as well as examining how they could be applied to their own lessons. Participants leave the session with practical resources to take back to their own settings to enhance active learning in their science classrooms.