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When 5-year-old Emma asked her preschool teacher, Ms. Diaz, why leaves change colors, she invited Ms. Diaz to step into language development as well as scientific exploration. When Ms. Diaz accepted this invitation and engaged Emma in exploring why and how leaves change colors, she supported Emma鈥檚 developing language and scientific inquiry skills, which included observation, investigation, and听making predictions.

Well-designed early education experiences integrate and promote learning across developmental domains (McClure et al. 2017). Learning that focuses on doing听science can facilitate language development when children are encouraged to听talk about their experiences, such as describing their observations, making sense of phenomena, and explaining their findings (Bustamante, Greenfield, & Nayfeld 2018). Likewise, promoting strong oral language skills and robust vocabulary knowledge can support children鈥檚 participation in early science learning by providing words that help them understand meanings and concepts, formulate questions, and develop critical thinking skills (Baroody, Bajwa, & Eiland 2009; Sarama et al. 2012; M茅ndez, Crais, &听Kainz 2018).

We, the authors, make up an interdisciplinary research team with expertise in science education, early childhood education, nutrition, and early language and literacy development. With grant funding from the National Institutes of General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health Science Education Partnership Award, we developed the evidence-based Preschool Education in Applied Sciences (PEAS) approach for early education settings (). We mostly conducted our work in Head Start preschool classrooms. PEAS is an integrative approach that emphasizes scientific inquiry, sensory-based learning, language development, and community and family engagement. It is rooted in four areas: Practice science, Engage the senses, Apply science talk, and Support learning. The听P,听E, and听A听focus on the child鈥檚 role in learning, while the听S听focuses on the teacher鈥檚 role. In this article, we focus on the听A, Apply听science talk.

Science talk is a two-way conversation that happens when engaging in science activities (Rosebery, Warren, & Conant 1992; Duschl & Osborne 2002). It can occur during interactions between a child and others in their learning environments, including teachers, classmates, or family members. It is a powerful tool to encourage science learning and language skills, and it presents opportunities for innovative instruction that can be adapted to a variety of early learning settings (Cabell et al. 2013; Nayfeld, Fuccillo, & Greenfield 2013; Greenfield 2015; Bustamante, White, & Greenfield 2018). We share four strategies to promote science talk that have been shown to foster children鈥檚 language and science learning. Framed by multimodal instruction and learning, we discuss how these strategies can benefit all children, including emergent听multilingual learners.

Using Science Talk to Support Multimodal Science Instruction and听Language Learning

It is critical to leverage children鈥檚 curiosity and eagerness to make sense of their world. Educators can support their learning and overall development by providing high-quality, hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) experiences starting in early childhood (NRC 2007, 2012). Active, multimodal, inquiry-based science experiences鈥攕uch as using the five senses to explore new foods or planting seeds to observe under what conditions plants grow best鈥攑rovide rich, multiple, and authentic contexts for learning new word meanings and concepts and for describing actions听and processes.

Additionally, using multimodal instruction while talking about science may support language and science learning for each and every child, including linguistically diverse children. Incorporating words and concepts in a variety of contexts while doing science鈥攆or example, charting observable attributes of objects, engaging in sensory explorations, or using science instruments and tools鈥攃an supplement verbal explanations and offer meaningful experiences for all children to develop听new knowledge.

Four Strategies for the Use of听Science Talk

Effective use of science talk can be supported by four evidence-informed language learning strategies that can be easily incorporated in early childhood听settings, including

• modeling descriptive words:听When teachers model the use of descriptive words, they support children鈥檚 ability to talk about what they observe with their senses, such as the properties of objects (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan 2002). For example, when describing a rock, a teacher might point out some of the rock鈥檚 attributes by saying, 鈥淭his rock is听sharp,听hard, and听heavy.鈥�
• activation of prior knowledge:听When describing a new science word or concept, teachers can connect the new word or concept to children鈥檚 prior knowledge to support word learning (Conrad et al. 2004). For example, when exploring bark and leaves, a teacher might build on children鈥檚 existing understandings by asking where they have seen bark and leaves outside of the classroom.
• asking why, what, when, and how (WH) and open-ended questions:听Asking WH and听open-ended听questions can help children engage in science exploration and in science talk (Walsh & Blewitt 2006). To use this strategy most effectively, teachers can first observe a child to learn what piques their interest as they engage in exploration. Then teachers can ask questions that follow the child鈥檚 lead and interests. For instance, if a child is observing a bucket full of water and rocks, a teacher might ask, 鈥淚 wonder how those rocks got to the bottom of the bucket?鈥�
• using child-friendly definitions:听Teachers can use child-friendly definitions to help children understand science words while using everyday words that children already know (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan 2002; Beck & McKeown 2007). For example, when explaining a science word with a complex meaning, such as the word听observation, a teacher might say, 鈥淲hen we make an observation, we carefully look at the details of the object. We use our senses to explore the object.鈥�

All of these strategies foster vocabulary and language learning in young children (M茅ndez, Crais, & Kainz 2018). In the following sections, we show these four strategies in action as Ms. Diaz and her children use science talk听to听study seeds.

Modeling听Descriptive Words

Science talk occurs when teachers like Ms. Diaz explicitly use words that describe the properties and physical characteristics of objects, plants, or animals when engaging children in science exploration. By modeling the use of language to name attributes (such as听hard/soft, long/short, thin/thick, heavy/light, pointed/curvy), educators can support children鈥檚 abilities to describe objects and processes based on how they perceive the world through their senses. In addition, by modeling the use of prepositions (such as听front, back, behind,听and听on top), they can reinforce children鈥檚 spatial thinking. For instance, while the children in Ms. Diaz鈥檚 class observe seeds germinating, Emma notices part of the plant coming out. Ms. Diaz remarks, 鈥淟ook! What do you see at the听top听of听the seed?鈥�

Teachers can set up engaging science explorations that will help children use descriptive words and support the language needs of learners, including linguistically diverse learners (Evans 2019). These explorations might include activities听where children

• use all five senses to explore seeds and classify them based on their similarities and differences
• explore the observable properties of nonliving things (human-made objects)
• distinguish between materials that represent nature (rocks, samples of soil, fruits, seeds, branches, bark, leaves) and human-made (plastic, wooden, metal, cloth) objects

Activation of听Prior Knowledge

Teachers can tap into children鈥檚 prior knowledge as a springboard to engage in exploration and science talk. At the very beginning of the class鈥檚 inquiry into seeds, Ms. Diaz spent time learning about the valuable insights the children already bring to their educational journey based on their everyday experiences, including their cultural and linguistic knowledge, or funds of knowledge (Moll et al. 1992). Children鈥檚 existing knowledge, such as word knowledge in their home languages, can scaffold the learning of new words and science concepts by connecting the 鈥渘ew with the known鈥� (Tscholl & Lindgren 2016; M茅ndez, Crais, & Kainz 2018). For example, a teacher might ask a child whose home language is Spanish, 鈥淒id you hear that word?听Germinate听o听germinar听en espa帽ol?鈥�

Later in the unit, when the children investigated the seeds by exploring and naming their attributes, they collectively developed knowledge that Ms. Diaz recorded on the chart. While referring to the class chart that documented their learning, Ms. Diaz encouraged the activation of prior knowledge by asking, 鈥淲hat are seeds?鈥�; 鈥淲hat do they look like?鈥�; 鈥淲here can they be found?鈥� Then she engaged them in learning new science concepts about seeds, including that seeds need water to germinate and that wind, animals, and bodies of water can help听seeds move.

Asking WH and听Open-Ended Questions

Asking questions as children engage in science practices supports their use of language to help them understand the meaning of new science concepts, explain their thinking, and elaborate on their observations. Questions can also prompt children to engage in scientific processes,听such as

• predicting how something may turn out:听鈥淲hat happens when the seeds don鈥檛 get light?鈥�
• testing their predictions:听鈥淲hat do seeds need to grow?鈥�
• supporting their explanations of phenomena:听鈥淗ow much water do seeds need to grow?鈥�

Ms. Diaz can use WH and open-ended questions to revisit prior concepts taught and discussed in class, to make connections across concepts, and to solidify children鈥檚 understanding of听new concepts.

Teachers can use these types of questions to clear up misconceptions as well. For example, in the above vignette, Simmone responded, 鈥淪eeds don鈥檛 have babies.鈥澨鼿er statement reveals a common misconception that living things only reproduce by having 鈥渂abies.鈥� In this case, Simmone applied what she knew about reproduction to the seeds and came to a logical conclusion. Simmone鈥檚 comment prompted Ms. Diaz to ask, 鈥淚f seeds do not have babies, where do new plants come from? How do we get so many different plants?鈥� Her follow-up questions opened a new avenue for inquiry, which helped children gain a deeper understanding of how living听things reproduce.

Using听Child-Friendly Definitions

When creating child-friendly definitions, Ms. Diaz uses words that the children already know to explain the meaning of more abstract and unfamiliar concepts (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan 2002). (For a list of听child-friendly听science words and definitions used in lesson plan examples, visit听.)听This way of defining new concepts and words encourages science talk most effectively when children are also directly engaged in听hands-on听scientific exploration with the related concepts in action. For example, engaging in observation of a seed鈥檚 physical changes as it germinates can promote children鈥檚 understanding of the听word听germination.

Conclusion

Science talk is not prescriptive in nature; rather, it is a flexible instructional approach that promotes conversations about science while affording children multimodal engagement to learn science and language content and skills. By promoting and participating in conversations during science experiences, preschool teachers can integrate instruction across various domains and content areas, such as language and science. We encourage early childhood educators to include the main strategies of science talk鈥攎odeling descriptive words, activating prior knowledge, asking WH and open-ended questions, and using听child-friendly听definitions鈥攖o their existing language and science teaching tool kit. (See 鈥淚ntegration of Four Strategies to Apply Science Talk鈥�.) This will widen the purpose and scope of science talk while engaging all children as they learn听and grow.

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Photographs: courtesy of the authors
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