Literacy and Future Classroom Advice

Today our class had the pleasure of hearing from Dorothy Simpson who is the author of the article “Collaborative Conversations” (NSTA) which the students had read for homework. She visited our classroom so that we were able to ask her any questions that we're wondering about.
First, one of the students asked her about how she provided closure for her students when it sometimes seems hard to “wrap up” a science unit. Simpson said it simply depends on the class. She sometimes had her students work on creating a journal (in which they could reflect on their work and what they learned). She also asked her students to think about the relationship of what they just learned to something they already had some previous knowledge about. She explained how she mostly wanted her students to know that a scientific experiment starts with an observation and works towards a conclusion.
Another student asked, “How do you get second graders to express how they know something, when many kids like to respond with, 'I just know!'?” Simpson suggested having future students predict, observe, talk about their observations, and try to come to conclusions. Ask them to articulate what they saw… then ask the class, “Did we all see the same thing?” Repeat findings. Then draw conclusions.
Lastly, a student asked, “How do you know what the big idea is?” Simpson said that what your scientists consider to be the “big idea” should be what your students' focus is on. She also suggested that you think about what you will want your students to take with them– besides the details. Write lesson plans with the big idea as key.