British Journal of Teacher Education and Pedagogy ISSN: 2755-1482 DOI: 10.32996/bjtep Journal Homepage: www.al-kindipublisher.com/index.php/bjtep BJTEP AL-KINDI CENTER FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Copyright: © 2022 the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Published by Al-Kindi Centre for Research and Development, London, United Kingdom. Page | 45 | RESEARCH ARTICLE Planning of Metacognitive Strategy-Based Natural Sciences Learning in Elementary Schools Gamar Abdullah 1 ✉ Ramli Utina 2 , Astin Lukum 3 , Masrid Pikoli 4 , Elya Nusantari 5 , Abdul Haris Odja 6 and Frida Maryati Yusuf 7 1 Department of Primary Teacher Education, Faculty of Education, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo, Indonesia 257 Department of Biology Education, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo, Indonesia 34 Department of Chemistry Education, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo, Indonesia 6 Department of Physics Education, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo, Indonesia Corresponding Author: Gamar Abdullah, E-mail: gamarabdullah.ung@gmail.com | ABSTRACT The present study aimed to explore the antecedent planning of metacognitive strategy-based natural sciences learning in elementary schools in Gorontalo City. It employed an evaluative descriptive approach and the Stake's Countenance evaluation model. The research subjects were the teachers of the selected elementary schools. Further, the data was collected through observation, study documentation, and interviews. Meanwhile, the data analysis technique in this study was carried out in a qualitative descriptive manner. The qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis by comparing data at one stage of the Countenance Stake model. The study found that the metacognitive strategy-based lesson plan arrived at the "adequate" category (68.90%). | KEYWORDS Metacognitive strategies, strategy-based lesson plan, natural sciences learning, elementary school | ARTICLE DOI: 10.32996/bjtep.2022.1.2.5 1. Introduction Students’ success in the learning process is influenced by their thinking process capacity, often referred to as metacognition. In the simplest sense, metacognition is defined by Flavell (1976) as a process of "thinking about thinking”, i.e., an activity to consciously control one's own cognitive processes. Metacognitive activities include the thinking activity to plan, monitor, and reflect on how to solve a problem. Metacognitive strategies refer to the methods to increase awareness of the thinking and learning processes; when one is aware of his/her own thought process, his/her metacognitive skills will arise. Metacognitive skills are essential to be mastered by students as a process carried out in completing or carrying out tasks (Siregar, 2019). The notion of metacognition, as written previously, urges the call for a learning strategy that is able to train and develop students' metacognitive skills. Students who are skillful in metacognitive strategy will be able to plan, monitor, and reflect on their learning process, resulting in increased self-confidence, self-reliance, and learning performance and outcomes. The integration of metacognitive skills in students' learning process is emphasized in the concept of the Pendidikan Merdeka Belajar (lit. "Freedom to Learn" Education) program proposed by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture in 2019. The concept is proposed as a response towards the need for an education system in the 4.0 industrial revolution era. Merdeka Belajar program calls for the independence of thinking, in which the success of this aspect is dependent on the teacher's performance (Romadhon, 2021). In addition, Mardhiyah et al. (2021) state that education in the 21st century focuses on the student-centered approach that aims to develop students thinking skills in;1) critical thinking, 2) problem solving, 3) metacognition, 4) communication, 5) collaboration, 6) innovation and creativity, and 7) information literacy. Teachers and students are expected to apply metacognitive knowledge, by which students will know that they actually know something and know that they actually do not know something. Desmita (2012) asserts that metacognitive is the knowledge and