Why Let’s Think through science! is useful in the classroom

Let’s Think through Science! 8 & 9 is the latest addition to a family of materials that help
teachers to promote pupils’ thinking abilities. However, it is also a stand-alone programme, and
teachers need no experience of previous books in the series to use it to its full potential.
Designed for use with eight- and nine-year-old pupils (Year 4 in England and Wales, P5 in
9 has two main aims:
Scotland), Let’s Think through Science! 8 &
• to help pupils develop their general ability to think;
• to help them further to develop this thinking within the context of science.
9 combines the development of general thinking ability with
Let’s Think through Science! 8 &
attention to the particular types of thinking required to ‘reach inside’ the science topics typically
included in curricula for eight- and nine-year-olds: this is a powerful approach. Science is as
much a ‘way of thinking’ as it is a body of knowledge. Focusing on scientific ways of thinking
will give pupils a deeper level of access to the content material.
Focus on science
The first Let’s Think! programme (Adey, Robertson and Venville, 2001) helps five- and six-
year-olds to develop their general thinking ability. The more recent additions to the series set
cognitive acceleration more clearly in the context of science subject matter. Let’s Think through
Science! for seven- and eight-year-olds (Adey et al., 2003) helps pupils to develop their thinking
via science. Let’s Think through Maths! (Shayer, Adhami and Robertson, 2004) helps five- and
six-year-olds to develop their mathematical thinking.
Science in the early years of primary education has had a rocky history. There have been many
good intentions and much excellent material produced. However, the impact of such materials on
the practice of primary science education has, at best, been patchy. The prescription of science
content in the form of national science curricula has probably done little to encourage high-quality
constructive teaching of science. Teachers who have little background in the subject may have
come to see the content as a set of details to be learned, rather than as an opportunity for
exploring scientific thinking. The Let’s Think! programmes set out to redress this balance,
showing teachers a new way of working whilst still meeting the requirements of the curriculum.

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