The cycle of development in educational resources for the experimental teaching of science in primary school: foundations, process, and products

The teaching of science at the earliest age is widely recognised as essential for the development of scientific literacy. The concern to make this possible is visible in various educational initiatives aimed at providing suitable educational resources for teaching science during the early years of schooling in Portugal. The purpose of this article is to describe the process of development in science resources designed for the first four years of primary school. These resources were developed according to Educational Design Research, based on iterative cycles. Through a multi-disciplinary team, resources were developed for 120 primary school science activities. A content analysis of data from teacher responses to the questionnaires was used. The results highlight the suitability and originality of resources that support exploration of the practical science activities that were suggested.