Science

Our vision for science is ambitious, challenging and aimed at developing our pupils’ science capital. Science has the power to change the world! We want science, alongside STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), to excite and inspire our pupils. We want children to make connections, take risks and have a go.

By planning and delivering interesting, impactful lessons and investigations, our pupils will be enthused to find out more and inspired to follow a scientific career path. They will be able to explore and discover the world around them. Through hands-on and enquiry-focussed learning, they will develop the joy of having ideas, exploration, and investigation. Throughout their time in school, children will be introduced to a range of focus scientists from different ethnicities, countries, genders and backgrounds, allowing children to see that a career in science can be for everyone. We recognise that in an increasingly scientific and technological age, children need to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes to better prepare them for modern life. It is vital to ensure our pupils become scientifically literate adults, who are equipped to cope in a world increasingly shaped by science and technology.

Our science curriculum is cumulative and progressive. It focuses on the sequential development of essential knowledge underpinning Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Over time, these building blocks of component learning are transformed into a deep understanding of the real world. Each year group deepens their understanding of key concepts, adding new core knowledge to existing schema. For example, the Biology strand of ‘plants’ is revisited multiple times throughout the year groups, with the component learning of basic plant structure in Year 1 transforming into the composite learning of water transportation within plants in Year 3.

Science is taught discretely, with a focus on knowledge-rich content and the development of essential science enquiry skills. The National Curriculum programmes of study and Early Years Foundation Stage framework are therefore fully adhered to and then supplemented with additional knowledge-rich content. This provides a coherent science curriculum that both prepares children extremely well for future learning and gives them the tools to independently investigate and explore the world further.

Our science curriculum encourages children to be curious about natural phenomena and to be excited by the process of understanding the world around them. Importantly, we want our pupils to remember the concepts they learn. Procedures and concepts that underpin scientific methods are therefore developed carefully. Every unit of work contains opportunities to sequentially and coherently develop the skills of asking questions, predicting, observing, measuring, fair testing, classifying, thinking critically and drawing conclusions. Thus, essential science concepts are developed whilst children investigate the world around them.

In the Early Years, pupils learn about the natural world and explore the environment, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants. They also build an understanding of the similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class. They also begin developing knowledge of some of the important processes and changes in the natural world, including the seasons and an introduction to the changing states of matter.

In Key Stage 1, their journey continues, with Biology foci incorporating initial studies of plants, animals and their habitats. In Chemistry, children learn about everyday materials and their uses, and in Physics, they focus on an introduction to magnetism, electricity and seasonal changes.

In Key Stage 2, this knowledge is revisited and deepened. ‘Living things’ continues to be a Biology focus for all year groups, with foci including animal classification, plants, insects and life processes. The journey through the fundamentals of Chemistry moves onto securing a deeper understanding of matter, including states of matter, the properties of rocks and a focus on how materials change. Physics knowledge also continues to be developed, with children building their understanding of forces, light, sound, electricity and the Earth and space.