Mr. Weiss says he and the other volunteers help teachers by providing hands-on expertise.

DAVE WEISS: "In this experiment, I think it might be confusing to the kids that we're dealing with two masses."

He notes that science is an area in which many elementary school teachers have limited experience.

DAVE WEISS: "In elementary school, for the most part, your regular classroom teacher is responsible for teaching science, along with reading and math, and if they don't have a strong science background, just by nature, they're going to tend to underrepresent science in the curriculum."

Fred Tenyke agrees. He just started teaching science classes a few months ago.

FRED TENYKE: "A lot of time I'll spit out information I learned in the book, or things that are part of the curriculum. Dave helps me learn how to supplement that information so that it's more relevant to them, so that it will be more relevant to their work experience later on in life."

American fifteen-year-olds scored about average in science among countries that took part in testing by the OECD in two thousand nine. The OECD is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Dave Weiss says he is concerned about such results, but hopeful for the future for American students learning science.

DAVE WEISS: "In elementary school I try to just give them a solid foundation. I hope they'll develop a curiosity about what's going on around them."