Additional information
by Cary I. Sneider (Editor)
How to engineer change in your elementary science classroom
With the implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards, your students won't just be scientists--they'll be engineers. But that doesn't mean you need to reinvent the wheel. Respected science educator Cary Sneider has done the groundwork for you, collecting a full range of time-tested curriculum materials to seamlessly weave engineering and technology concepts into your math and science lessons.
In this volume, you'll find descriptions of instructional materials specifically created for--and tested in--elementary science classrooms. Features include:
- A handy table that takes you straight to the chapters most relevant to your needs
- In-depth commentaries and illustrative examples that demystify engineering curricula at the PreK-5 level
- A vivid picture of what each curriculum looks like in the classroom, the learning goals it accomplishes, and how it helps address the NGSS
- More information on the integration of engineering and technology into 21st-century science classrooms--and why it will make a difference
One of the most well-respected science educators in the country, Cary Sneider was an NGSS Writing Team Leader and is an associate research professor at Portland State University.
"Knowledge and confidence to teach engineering in the elementary science curriculum comes with access to high quality instructional materials. Without question, this book provides the information teachers and curriculum specialists need to make well-informed decisions that will give students the opportunity to use the engineering design process to both apply and develop their knowledge of science. With elementary engineering in the STEM spotlight, this book is timely and much needed!"
-Page Keeley, Corwin Author and Science Education Consultant
"Dr. Sneider's book is a just-in-time, much needed resource for elementary teachers, administrators, and teacher educators. With the advent of the Next Generation Science Standards, many practicing elementary teachers are in great need of support. They need to know that there are high-quality, well-thought-out curricular options that they can use to scaffold engineering in their classrooms. This book provides exactly the introduction that they need. The curricula are thoroughly described, and the book includes everything that a teacher or an administrator needs to evaluate a curriculum for potential classroom use. This book is an extremely valuable tool in the quickly changing field of education."
- Laura Bottomley, Directory, The Engineering Place
Author Biography
Cary Sneider is currently Associate Research Professor at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon, where he teaches courses in research methodology for teachers in a Master of Science Teaching (MAT) degree program. He is also currently working with Achieve as a writing team leader for the NGSS. He is also the principle investigator for a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to develop a formative evaluation component to a new physics curriculum, and Co-Principle Investigator on an NSF grant to Stevens Institute of Technology to develop engineering activities to complement high school biology and chemistry courses. Dr. Sneider also serves as a Consultant on STEM Education for the Noyce Foundation, the Stephen D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation, and on several Advisory Boards.
Regarding standards and assessment, Dr. Sneider served on the Working Group for the National Science Education Standards (NRC 1996) and on the Planning Committee for the Science Framework for the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). He served as facilitator for the revision of the Washington State K-12 Science Standards in 2008-2009, as Technology and Engineering Lead for the Conceptual Framework for K-12 Science Education for the NRC in 2010, and as Co-Chair of the Planning Committee for the Technology and Engineering Literacy Framework for the 2014 NAEP. He is currently a member of the National Assessment Governing Board, which sets policy for NAEP in all subject areas.
From 1997 to 2007 Dr. Sneider was Vice President for Educator Programs at the Museum of Science in Boston, where he led development of a high school engineering curriculum, which is now published by It′s About Time. Prior to that, he served as Director of Astronomy and Physics Education at the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California. Over his career he has served as the principle investigator or director of more than twenty grant projects involving curriculum development, teacher education, and science center exhibits and programs.
Dr. Sneider′s research interests have focused on helping students unravel their misconceptions in science and on new ways to link science centers and schools to promote student inquiry. He has taught science at the middle and high schools in Maine, California, Costa Rica, and Micronesia.
In 1997 he received the Distinguished Informal Science Education award from the National Science Teacher Association and in 2003 was named National Associate of the National Academy of Sciences.
