Explain to children that process skills are the tools that scientists use when they are learning about the environment and ways to improve our lives. The most important skill a scientist has is observation. Explain that the major difference between seeing and observing is paying attention to the details. As an observation experiment, show children a sculpture or a piece of art for three minutes. Do not allow them to touch it; look at it for only three minutes. Cover up the artwork and ask them to write down as many things as they remember about the art. Uncover the artwork again and allow children to stand up, walk up to the artwork, touch it and look at it from all angles. Allow them to jot down their thoughts while they are looking at the artwork, being sure that they pay close attention to as many details as possible. The facts gathered while observing will remind them of the major differences between seeing and observing.
Explain that scientists often call on the help of other scientists and previous research when they are conducting experiments. Tell children that sharing observations with others will often help scientists arrive at a solution quickly. Split your class into teams of two or three students. Give each team a different photograph to study. Have the team members write down all of the things they observe when studying the photograph. Give the teams five to 10 minutes to complete this task. Each team will then present its list of observations to the class. Have the teams write in different-colored pencil or marker the things that other teams observed that they did not.
For the purposes of second-grade learning, it will be easiest to begin with binary classification. In this form of classifying, objects are placed in one of two groups. One group will be described as having a certain property, and the other group will be described as not having that property. For example, you can classify animals as vertebrates (with backbones) or invertebrates (no backbones). As a learning activity, break the class into groups of two or three and allow them to work collaboratively. Give each team a list of animals and ask the students to classify the animals as vertebrates or invertebrates.
Measurement in science is just another way to describe an object. Often, the process skill of measurement can go hand in hand with observation. Second-graders may need help deciding how to measure certain objects when conducting science experiments. To keep things simple when explaining science process skills, allow students to measure using two attributes, length and weight. As an activity to enhance learning, give students a list of things to measure using a ruler and a simple scale. For more of a challenge, split your class into two groups and have a measurement race. The first team to measure all the items on its list correctly wins a small prize.
Scientists make predictions, or inferences, based on their observations. For example, a scientist may observe an insect secreting a sticky substance. The scientist may then infer, or predict, that the sticky substance is a self-defense mechanism and the insect was secreting it because it feared being attacked. It can sometimes be difficult to explain the difference between observation and inference to second-graders. In this instance, practice makes perfect. Create a game show style activity in which children have to guess which statements are observations about an object and which are inferences, or predictions.