It is widely argued that Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (NST) is going to affect several aspects of our life. Therefore, students need to develop their nanoliteracy to cope with the everyday issues related to NST. Although there is an increasing interest in introducing NST content to primary school students, the theoretical frameworks for interpreting their learning are still an open issue. Τo fill this research gap, this paper presents a Teaching Learning Sequence (TLS) about NST content that focuses on students’ learning from the perspective of the Framework Theory and the Conceptual Change. The TLS is developed in six units, including concepts related to the size of objects, the observation tools, the lotus effect, the applications of NST as well as the models. The participants (N = 60) were 6th grade primary school students. Α questionnaire was used to capture the students’ progress one week and three months after implementing the TLS. The results provided evidence that shows that students’ conceptions were closer to scientific ones after implementing the TLS. Results are discussed in the light of the Framework Theory and the Conceptual Change. Educational implications for teaching and learning NST concepts at the primary school level are also discussed.

Background: It is stated that it is necessary that students develop their nanoliteracy in order to come up with everyday issues arising from Nanoscale Science and Technology (NST) applications, taking informed decisions and estimating the potential risks and benefits. Even though the inclusion of NST in compulsory education is supported by many researchers, the research on students’ preconceptions of NST concepts and phenomena is in its infancy. Purpose: We aim to identify students’ preconceptions of (a) the conceptualization of size in the context of NST and (b) the explanation of the lotus effect (superhydrophobic materials). Sample: The participants of our research are 250: 5^th and 6^th grade primary school students in Greece. Design and methods: The data collection tool is a written questionnaire. Regarding the coding, both the inductive and deductive qualitative process is followed. Results: Concerning the concept of size, approximately half of the students are aware of non-visible objects. However, their classification of objects based on size is naive and based on vague criteria e.g. ‘Large, Medium, Small objects’. For the lotus effect we identify three categories consisting of thirteen subcategories that reflect students’ ideas about their macroscopic view of the lotus effect explanation. Conclusion: Students see the explanation of the lotus effect as a Direct process (explanations based on an identifiable causal agent). We argue that we could support them shift their explanations to the Emergent process (explanations based on non-identifiable causal agents) using appropriate tasks. Concerning the concept of size, students are aware of two main categories: the visible and non-visible objects. We could help them create the macro-, micro- and nanoworld categories based on qualitative criteria.

Most of the modern technological applications we use in our daily life originate from the progress of Nanoscience–Nanotechnology (NST). The projection, showing the great impact that these advances are going to have on society, exhorts science education researchers to incorporate the modern field into educational contexts. Among the several issues that have to be dealt with, NST’s educational significance comes to the fore. This pilot study aims to examine whether both nano-trained primary school teachers and nano-trained students acknowledge the need for the inclusion of the NST content to school contexts. Fourteen primary school teachers and ten students, after their participation in an NST training course, were interviewed in order to provide their justifications. The results show that the vast majority of the participants acknowledge the educational significance of NST. The main arguments were associated with career possibilities, the relevance of the content to everyday life, and the need for nanoliteracy attainment. The results of this study can be used by NST education researchers in order to formulate a NST content structure for primary school nanoeducation.

This essay synthesizes more than a decade of research, most of which has been published, on the teaching and learning of floating and sinking (FS) phenomena. The research is comprised of the iterative design, development, implementation and evaluation of a Teaching-Learning sequence (TLS) for the teaching and learning of density within FS phenomena. It was initiated within the frame of the European Community supported “Materials Science” project. Due to the many, different aspects of the project, each publication has focused on a particular part of the study (e.g., effectiveness and the iteration process). The didactic transformation for the teaching of FS phenomena is presented and discussed here. In doing so, it is essential to mention: (a) the students’ ideas as the main cause of the scientific knowledge transformation, (b) the scientific/reference knowledge, and (c) the knowledge to be taught and its limitations. Thus, we intend to describe and justify the didactic transformation process and briefly synthesize the published (from previous papers) and unpublished results to show its effectiveness.