Welcome to the fascinating world of science. Science at IDs challenges students to explain the mysteries they find in the world around them and then “prove it.” Our science curriculum emphasizes hands-on learning. Our inquiry-based approach uses lab experiences, projects, technology, and group work to foster excitement and conceptual understanding of science in everyday living.
Students learn how to work in a laboratory setting as collaborative members of a team. Together, students work to research a problem, set up an experiment, construct charts, tables, and graphs, and analyze, conclude and present their results. Throughout the program, students develop confidence working in a laboratory setting, interpreting scientific publications, writing term papers, and completing comprehensive exams. Most importantly, students leave the middle school science program with a deep appreciation of the world around them and enthusiasm for further study.
In sixth grade, the IDS nature trail and campus are used as mechanisms for exploring weather, geology, and environmental science. The community garden is a cornerstone of our curriculum that functions as an outdoor lab where students learn about botany as they plant their own seeds and tend to them. An exciting complement to these lessons takes place off campus when we venture out on the geology of Connecticut field trip. In seventh grade, we focus on the life sciences which includes living things, the study of cells and genetics and the animal kingdom, incorporating a field trip to bring the classroom lessons to life in the real world. In eighth grade, we study the physical sciences, focusing on physics, energy, alternative energy, simple machines, chemistry, and astronomy.