Science

Science Lead – Mrs Snowdon

 

Science Intent, Implementation and Impact

 

Mapping Progression across KS1 to KS2

 

“Science has changed our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity, and all pupil’s should be taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, uses and processes of science.” National Curriculum 2014

The children in Saints Peter and Paul enjoy participating in all aspects of the science primary curriculum from starting in Nursery until they leave us in Year 6.

In line with the National Curriculum 2014, the children in each year group cover the topics that link to the Learning Objectives for their year.

Early Years

The Early Years Framework is structured very differently to the National Curriculum as it is organised across 7 areas of learning rather than subject areas. ‘Development Matters’ (new Early Years Curriculum 2020) develops prerequisite skills for Science within the National Curriculum. These skills start in our 2 year old provision ‘Little Saints’ and are found within the areas Communication and Language, Personal, Social and Emotional Development and Understanding of the World.

The principal focus of science in the Early Years is to enable children with the skills to be able to comment and asks questions about aspects of their familiar world, recognising similarities and differences in relation to places, objects, materials and living things. To show care and concern for living things and the environment, make observations of and talk about some of the things they have observed such as plants, animals, natural and found objects.

To be able to talk about why things happen, how things work and explain why some things occur.

Understanding the world involves guiding children to make sense of their physical world and their community.

Years 1 and 2

The principal focus of science teaching is to enable pupils to experience

and observe phenomena, looking more closely at the natural and humanly constructed world around them. They should be encouraged to be curious and ask questions about what they notice. They should be helped to develop their understanding of scientific ideas by using different types of scientific enquiry to answer their own questions, including observing changes over a period of time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple comparative tests, and finding things out using secondary sources of information. They should begin to use simple scientific language to talk about what they have found out and communicate their ideas to a range of audiences in a variety of ways. Most of the learning about science should be done through the use of first-hand practical experiences, but there should also be some use of appropriate secondary sources, such as books, photographs and videos.

Years 3 and 4

The principal focus of science teaching in lower key stage 2 is to enable pupils to broaden their scientific view of the world around them. They should do this through exploring, talking about, testing and developing ideas about everyday phenomena and the relationships between living things and familiar environments, and by beginning to develop their ideas about functions, relationships and interactions. They should ask their own questions about what they observe and make some decisions about which types of scientific enquiry are likely to be the best ways of answering them, including observing changes over time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple comparative and fair tests and finding things out using secondary sources of information. They should draw simple conclusions and use some scientific language, first, to talk about and, later, to write about what they have found out.

Years 5 and 6

The principal focus of science teaching in upper key stage 2 is to enable pupils to develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of scientific ideas. They should do this through exploring and talking about their ideas; asking their own questions about scientific phenomena; and analysing functions, relationships and interactions more systematically. At upper key stage 2, they should encounter more abstract ideas and begin to recognise how these ideas help them to understand and predict how the world operates. They should also begin to recognise that scientific ideas change and develop over time. They should select the most appropriate ways to answer science questions using different types of scientific enquiry, including observing changes over different periods of time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out comparative and fair tests and finding things out using a wide range of secondary sources of information. Pupils should draw conclusions based on their data and observations, use evidence to justify their ideas, and use their scientific knowledge and understanding to explain their findings.

Each individual class page will give more information into what Science aspects the children will be covering each half term on their ‘Curriculum Outline’.

 

Science LTP