Science
Programs, philosophy, and school life
The goal of the science curriculum at Mustard Seed School is scientific literacy. Children's thinking advances from the concrete to the abstract as they accumulate experiences and ideas. Scientific content is introduced through firsthand experiences--with magnets, gears, fish, crickets, and a wide range of other living and non-living materials. In the course of their classroom investigations, children engage in observation, measurement, interpretation, prediction, and other processes essential for the development of scientific literacy.
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The learning units are based on topics organized into three sequences: physical science, life science, and earth science. Each year Mustard Seed students explore at least one topic from each of these three areas. Within the "concrete jungle," special effort is made to observe much of the natural world at close range. Annual hikes along the Hudson River, visits to the Meadowlands Environmental Center, the New York Aquarium, the Liberty Science Center, the planetarium, botanical gardens, zoo, navigational sails, and an outdoor school program in the Pocono Mountains provide the enriching activities that help students understand the natural world. Mustard Seed is proud of the tremendous effort the staff makes to actualize "life science" for urban children.
As a preparation for secondary school science courses, Junior High students are introduced to lectures, demonstrations, the internet and a textbook as major sources of scientific content.
