Rancho Santa Fe students to receive new science program

Several hundred Rancho Santa Fe pupils will experience a new science curriculum in the coming academic year.

The Rancho Santa Fe School District Board of Directors voted 5-0 on Thursday, July 11, to purchase the Full Option Science System for the kindergarten-through-eighth-grade school.

The curriculum will be instituted for kindergarten though sixth grades in the coming school year and phased in the seventh and eighth grades over the following two years.

District Superintendent Donna Tripi said she had experience with FOSS when she worked within the San Diego Unified School District, which has used the system for years.

She said the program emphasizes hands-on learning.

“It’s a phenomenon-driven curriculum using an inquiry approach to learning,” Tripi said

Impetus for adopting the curriculum stems from the district’s need to comply with mandates known as Next Generation Science Standards.

Tripi said a staff committee reviewed nine applications for a new program and eventually settled on FOSS as the best.

“It’s really a great experience for the kids and very engaging,” Tripi said.

Purchase of the system will cost about $31,000 this year. There will be additional costs over the next two years when the seventh and eighth grades start using the system.

“It’s so exciting,” RSF School District Board President Sarah Neal said. “I’m looking forward to seeing how this improves all of our kids’ science minds and skills.”