Poster #16 - Green Eggs and Ham: Preschoolers Learning About Germs as Causal Agents of Food Spoilage

• In Event: 35.081 - MTCC Poster Session Eight
  In Poster Session: 35.081-2 - Early Childhood Poster Session 2

Abstract

Preschool-age children are constantly reminded of desired or undesired behavior. For example, they are told to wash their hands before mealtime; brush their teeth before bedtime, and cover their mouth when sneezing. However, they are seldom explained biological rationale for such behavior. We developed a curriculum in which preschoolers learned “germ biology” that emphasized germs as causal agents of food spoilage. Children who received our lessons showed significant gains in explaining what caused food spoilage in comparison to those who learned the same content using commercially available materials. The results show that young children have the capacity to reason biologically when given germ biology in a manner understandable to them.

Authors

• Yukari Okamoto, University of California - Santa Barbara

• Laura F. Romo, University of California - Santa Barbara

• Terry Au, University of Hong Kong

• Patrick Pieng, California State University - Sacramento