Observation in schools by college supervisors indicates a gap between what a teacher knows on a theoretical level and what is actually done in classrooms on a practical level. This study was to determine where teachers perceived encountering encouragement or discouragement for lessons involving hands-on activities in science. A questionnaire was developed and administered to 135 teachers. The results indicate that a teacher's early experiences and feelings of personal success have a direct impact on the continued or discontinued use of hands-on science activities in their classroom. The source of the strongest encouragement to use hands-on experiences were identified as the areas of Teaching Experience and Self, yet, the source of the strongest discouragement were the areas of Teaching Experience and Administration. Many teachers indicated that they had received strong encouragement and had enough knowledge of the teaching style, but they were not teaching in a style compatible with their science methods class. If teachers had positive teaching experiences with these methods and felt confident about themselves, they were more likely to use hands-on experiences in their classrooms. (There are 7 tables and 15 references.) (YP)