NSTA Releases New Guides to Argument-Driven Inquiry for Elementary School Students

April 3, 2019 |

3 min read

A new NSTA Press book supports elementary students as they learn to use argument to construct, support, and evaluate scientific claims. Argument-Driven Inquiry in Third-Grade Science: Three-Dimensional Investigations emphasizes “figuring things out” instead of “learning about things.”

ARLINGTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A new NSTA Press book supports elementary students as they learn to use argument to construct, support, and evaluate scientific claims. Argument-Driven Inquiry in Third-Grade Science: Three-Dimensional Investigations emphasizes “figuring things out” instead of “learning about things.” Also coming soon is a new guide especially for fourth grade.

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Argument-Driven Inquiry in Third-Grade Science: Three-Dimensional Investigations book cover (Graphic: Business Wire)

Both books provide information and instructional materials for elementary teachers who want to use argument-driven inquiry (ADI) but aren’t sure how. All lessons are designed to be easy to use. They come with teacher notes, investigation handouts, and checkout questions. The investigations support the Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core State Standards. With their tips for teaching English language learners, the books can also help emerging bilingual students meet the English Language Proficiency Standards.

The contents of the two new ADI books and their coordinating student workbooks are as follows:

Argument-Driven Inquiry in Third-Grade Science provides 14 field-tested lessons. Investigations cover motion and stability, molecules and organisms, heredity, biological evolution, and Earth’s systems. Students will explore questions ranging from why wolves live in groups to how the climate changes as one moves from the equator toward the poles. Browse free sample pages at the NSTA Science Store website. The 584-page book is priced at $47.95 and discount-priced for NSTA members at $38.36. (Stock # PB349X7; ISBN: 978-1-68140-517-9)

The Student Workbook for Argument-Driven Inquiry in Third-Grade Science: Three-Dimensional Investigations will be printed in May. It’s priced at $19.95 and discount-priced for NSTA members at $15.96. (Stock #: PB349X7S; ISBN: 978-1-68140-567-4)

Also due for publication later in 2019 is Argument-Driven Inquiry in Fourth-Grade Science (and its Student Workbook), which provides 15 field-tested lessons. The lessons cover energy, waves and their application in technologies for information transfer, molecules and organisms, and Earth’s place in the universe and systems. Students will explore questions ranging from how to make an electric car move faster to why big waves block the entrance to some New Zealand harbors. (Stock #: PB349X8; ISBN: 978-1-68140-520-9; Student Workbook: Stock #: PB349X8S; ISBN: 978-1-68140-570-4)

The books are part of NSTA’s best-selling series about ADI. Additional ADI books are available for high school chemistry, biology, and physics and for middle school life science, physical science, and Earth and space science.

For additional information or to purchase any of the editions in the argument-driven inquiry series or other books from NSTA Press, visit the NSTA Science Store. To order by phone, call 800-277-5300 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET weekdays.

About NSTA

The Arlington, VA–based National Science Teachers Association is the largest professional organization in the world promoting excellence in science teaching and learning, preschool through college. NSTA’s membership includes approximately 50,000 science teachers, science supervisors, administrators, scientists, business representatives, and others involved in science education.

NSTA Press® produces 25 to 30 new books and e-books each year. Focused on the preK–college market and specifically aimed at teachers of science, NSTA Press titles offer a unique blend of accurate scientific content and sound teaching strategies. Follow NSTA Press on Facebook for the latest information and new book releases.