26 TEACHING SCIENCE IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL


 CHAPTER III.

 USING FLORIDA ENVIRONMENT FOR
 TEACHING ELEMENTARY SCIENCE

Interpreting Science Principles in Familiar Florida Settings
 It is the purpose of this section of the bulletin to indicate
the wealth of opportunity for interpreting science principles in-
volved in familiar Florida settings. Every locality abounds in
examples of applied science. Science cannot become an abstract
or mechanical subject if the pupil learns to "see science" in the
familiar happenings of his daily living. He learns to use his
information in seeking relationships among events.
 Furthermore, for their own protection and for their under-
standing of the way we live, children must be thoroughly ac-
quainted with science as it influences the lives of average people
today. Children need to accept as a part of their thinking the
idea that our ways of living evolve in part through the applica-
tion of scientific discoveries; that change is therefore normal
and not to be feared. The anticipation of gradual change and
the willingness to make adjustments make it possible for per-
sons to feel secure even in the presence of change.
 The study of science is one of the most promising means of
taking up the lag between what has been discovered to be de-
sirable and what is still commonly practiced. Many examples
could be drawn from the field of health to show that the bene-
fits of research do not automatically influence the health prac-
tices of people. Thus, smallpox could have been eliminated years
ago if vaccination had been accepted more readily.
 Each paragraph below is a real life application or illustra-
tion of a concept appearing in the Scope and Sequence Chart
pages 18-23. In the chart the concept necessarily is stated as
a generalization or abstraction; but children will understand it
most readily in terms of familiar experiences. Many of the
paragraphs contain suggestions and references for further
learning.
 Each paragraph is keyed to the chart in the following
manner: In addition to its identification number, the paragraph
has an Arabic number showing which of the six major areas is
involved (reading down the chart) and a Roman number show-
ing the grade level (reading across the chart). For example,
the first paragraph, Beach Erosion, has in addition to its iden-
tification number (1) the number 2-III which helps locate it
on the chart immediately. The 2 refers to the second area, The
Earth and Its Changing Conditions, and the III to third grade.