Science

Lower School Science Philosophy

The Lower School Science program seeks to create an awareness of the importance of science in all aspects of life through hands-on exploration. The enjoyment of science is stressed throughout the curriculum. The curriculum correlates with the developmental stages of young children. Pre-Primary and Grade One follow the first part of the curriculum over two years, while Grades Two and Three follow the second part of the curriculum over two years. This two-year curriculum allows time for students to explore topics in depth. Science concepts, skills, and approaches are taught to students through active involvement and guided discovery. An exciting process of inquiry is also used to promote independent thinking and problem solving. Basic primary scientific skills are introduced: observing, communicating, comparing and contrasting, classifying, measuring, and predicting. Basic primary scientific skills are introduced: observing, communicating, comparing and contrasting, classifying, measuring, and predicting. The scientific process of conducting an experiment is introduced to older students. Students develop a question, set up tests, record results, and draw conclusions. Students are encouraged to think critically and creatively. They learn the important roles note-taking, drawing, and labeling diagrams play in science by keeping journals throughout the year. Field trips to Black Rock Forest, science museums, and Central Park bring the experiences of the classroom to life. There is a Lower School Science Exhibition for grades two and three.

Middle School Science Philosophy

The Middle School Science Program at Browning develops an awareness of science as a way of exploring the world, connecting seamlessly to the Lower School philosophy. Students expand their abilities to manipulate the tools of science. Reading and report writing skills receive emphasis while the major focus remains firmly with direct experience (laboratory investigations). Targeted units and general discussions enhance students’ consciousness of sustainability issues in local, regional global senses.

The Middle School Math-Science Research Night, held in February, is an integral part of the curriculum in each grade and form. Each student designs and carries out an interdisciplinary experiment over a period of six weeks. At each step of the process, the boys discuss their progress with their science and math teachers. When the project is complete, boys are expected to submit and paper, construct a display and present their investigations to parents and other students on Math-Science Night.

Finally, by the end of the Middle School, each boy should be able to identify and demonstrate competence in the use of the following: compound microscope, triple-beam balance, graduated cylinder, metric rule, thermometer, and the standard metric units of measure.

Upper School Science Philosophy

The Upper School Science Program builds upon the foundation provided by science studies in the Lower and Middle Schools. The Upper School student has gained competence in the use of the basic tools of science and is able to employ a variety of scientific methods to answer questions about events in the world around him. Experimental skills developed prior to Form III are used extensively in laboratory investigations. Practical applications of science, such as environmental sustainability, bioethics, engineering projects, and alternative fuels, are explored in every course.

Following completion of the Upper School science requirement, students should be able to organize and master a large amount of information. They should be able to pose questions to serve as the basis for an investigation, carry out an experiment to find out more about the object of the inquiry, and write a report which presents findings and suggests avenues for future experimentation and research.

Browning’s membership in the Black Rock Forest Consortium provides an excellent resource for science studies as well as an opportunity for interdisciplinary work.