This research deals with the teaching of science in the first years of elementary school, taking to research aspects relevant to the teaching of the discipline from the implementation, in 2009, of new policies aimed at Municipal Secretary of Education of the city of Rio de Janeiro. These policies refer to the inclusion of the discipline of Science in large-scale evaluations, to the formulation and distribution of teaching materials at schools and to the implementation of programs in partnership with Civil Society Organizations of Public Interest (OSCIP), which lasted until 2013, the Programa Cientistas do Amanhã and the Programa Ciência Hoje de Apoio à Educação. This is a qualitative research, which uses semi-structured interviews as methodological procedures, in addition to consulting public documents and visits to schools. At the public policies axis, the main analytical framework is Ball and Bowe s policy cycle approach (1992), which understands the processes from their macro and micro perspectives. In the axis of the teaching of Sciences, the analysis is made from the point of view of the concept of Scientific Literacy, defended by authors like Chassot (2000 and 2003), Lorenzetti and Delizoicov (2001), Krasilchik and Marandino (2004), Carvalho and Sasseron (2011). From the perspective of the educational actors, it is sought to know the current practice in teaching science and the process of policy development in the different contexts of analysis, perceiving its influence on teaching. The study demonstrated that the performatic policies influenced the teaching of Sciences, establishing differences between the school years, and that, although they have given compulsory discipline to the 4 th and 5 th years, they did not promote Scientific Literacy, turning primarily to the production of performance indexes and the stimulation of practices consistent with a traditional conception of education. The partnership programs were considered adequate by teachers in relation to teaching materials and teaching strategies, such as the use of research activities and scientific texts. The caveat is that they were implemented without considering the reality of the schools and in dissonance with the other proposals, hindering its full realization. Accomplished as partnership projects of the Municipal Secretary of Education and not of the schools, the programs did not leave significant legacy after its end. It is concluded that a reassessment of the current educational policies is necessary so that the teaching of Sciences contributes effectively to the Scientific Literacy and that these can only be successful if developed in accordance with the reality of schools and if the rulers seek means to include the participation of teachers in the whole process.