Bringing Hands-on Investigative Science to Elementary Students
In 2002, we began exploring how the Monsanto Fund could make a greater difference in the St. Louis community. Community leaders, key influencers, educators, and members of the public told us to focus on science education. We learned that many elementary schools lack the resources and capacity to teach inquiry-based science education. With this information, we put together an experienced team to create a science education initiative to address that issue.
The team included Washington University's Science Outreach Program, the St. Louis Science Center, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the St. Louis Zoo, the University of Missouri- St. Louis, and teachers from various districts. After 18 months of planning, a new program, MySci Hands-on Science for Elementary Students, was born. This program is a collaborative effort among partner institutions that share a commitment to foster early interest in the sciences.
The MySci curriculum covers inquiry-based science for kindergarten through second-grade students in three topic areas - plants, animals, and the earth. Program materials help the districts and teachers plan activities to be completed before, during, and after a visit from the MySci Investigation Station. Inside the Investigation Station, students see a tree that demonstrates its parts and growth cycle and an environmental wall depicting prairie, ocean, and desert ecologies. Students study live and preserved plant and animal specimens. In addition, they investigate stalactites, stalagmites, rock formations, and subterranean animals.
The program is free to schools in the St. Louis area. Two-thirds of MySci's visits are made to schools with underserved or low-achieving student populations. The Investigation Station's programs on biology, botany, and geology have become an important asset for schools in the St. Louis community.
$3.9 m
The MySci program used a $3.9 million grant from the Monsanto Fund to collaborate with educational, research, and science organizations to bring science to St. Louis classrooms.
