Children's Ideas in Science

Children arrive in their science classrooms with their own ideas and interpretations of the phenomena they are to study even when they have received no systematic instruction in these subjects whatsoever. These ideas and interpretations are a natural result of everyday experience - of practical physical activities, of talking with other people, and of the media.

This book documents and explores the ideas of school students (aged 10-16) about a range of natural phenomena such as light, heat, ...