In Carol Petusky’s fifth grade classroom at Enka Intermediate School, science isn’t something you just read about in a textbook - it’s something you experience.
On any given day, you might find students huddled around lab tables with safety goggles slightly askew, carefully measuring liquids, recording observations, and excitedly whispering predictions to their lab partners. In the classroom, curiosity leads the way, and every lesson is an opportunity to explore, test, and discover.
Mrs. Petusky creates an environment where mistakes are simply part of the discovery process. She encourages students to make predictions, test their ideas, and try again if things don’t go as planned. Her classroom buzzes with the language of science - words like hypothesis, variable, observation, and evidence - but more importantly, it’s filled with confidence as students realize they are capable of solving complex problems.
By the end of each experiment, students aren’t just walking away with new content knowledge. They’re building critical thinking skills, teamwork, and a genuine love for exploration.
