Deliberative Democracy in an Urban Elementary Science Classroom

Abstract

Over a one-week period a fourth-grade class is investigating the question: What things does a bean seed need to germinate? The students created a list of items such as water, dirt, light, and, air that the bean seed will need to germinate. Each student placed their bean seeds in a plastic cup covered by wet cotton balls and observed the seeds grow for a week. The following week students shared their observations and discussed the outcomes.