Investing in the pretend: A drama inquiry process to support learning about the nature of science

This article describes findings from a study concerning students’ experiences of being in-role as atmospheric scientists and discusses how these experiences facilitated learning about the Nature of Science. Twenty-seven Years 5 and 6 children, their teacher—recently returned to the classroom after a teacher fellowship experience in a local crown science research institute—and teacher educators participated in a drama inquiry process over 4 half days. Working in the pretend, students collaboratively designed investigations, interpreted and evaluated data sets, and applied and defended their claims about carbon emissions. The data for this case study was gathered from student interviews throughout the process. Findings indicate that being and investing in role, and a well-scaffolded inquiry process, support children to engage in meaningful and connected tasks, make and critique claims, and think about how scientists worked in collaboration.