Classroom and Laboratory Programs in the Pfizer Foundation Science Discovery Center

The Connecticut Science Center has been working with a team of exemplary science teachers to develop programs based on the CT Science Frameworks.  In the first year of operation, programs addressing the following content standards will be available for students during school field trips to the Science Center. 

The programs below include a visit to the Pfizer Foundation Science Discovery Center. These programs include an additional charge to the general student admission fee. Programs include teacher access to pre visit, visit and post visit materials such as classroom lessons, literature links, integrated lessons, performance tasks, embedded tasks, career connections, websites and more. As program development continues, the Science Center will add new offerings.

It is recommended that teachers planning a field trip to the Science Center first attend one of our professional development workshops for field trips. These workshops are opportunities for teachers to learn about the field trip programs at the Science Center and the pre and post visit materials for use in their classroom.  These resources compliment the exhibit experiences and align with the Connecticut State Science Framework Standards.

The field trip programs are listed below by CT Science Framework content standard

These programs have been developed to complement some of the core themes, content standards and expected performances of the CT Core Science Frameworks, as well as the National Science Education Standards. They are a supplemental series of “hands-on” investigations that are inquiry-based and designed to engage students as well as to enhance and build upon their prior content knowledge. They may be integrated with other subjects or they may be taught in their entirety within the science classroom.

Kindergarten
K.3  Weather conditions vary daily and seasonally.

Grade 1
1.1 The sun appears to move across the sky in the same way every day, but its path changes gradually over the seasons.

Grade 2
2.3  Earth materials have varied physical properties which make them useful in different ways.

Grade 3
3.1 Materials have properties that can be identified and described through the use of simple tests.
3.4  Earth materials provide resources for all living things, but these resources are limited and should be conserved.

Grade 4
4.3  Water has a major role in shaping the Earth’s surface.
4.4  Electrical and magnetic energy can be transferred and transformed.

Grade 5
5.1  Sound is a  form of energy.
5.1  Light is a form of energy.

Grade 6
6.3  Variations in the amount of the sun’s energy hitting the Earth’s surface affect daily and seasonal weather patterns.

Grade 7
7.3  Landforms are the result of the interaction of constructive and destructive forces over time

Grade 8
8.1  An object’s inertia causes it to continue moving the way it is moving unless it is acted upon by a force to change its motion.

Grade 9
9.1  Energy cannot be created or destroyed; however, energy can be converted from one form to another