Science

Subject Knowledge Overview

 

science elg ks1.pdf

 

science knowledge overview.pdf

 

 

 Subject Roadmap

road map science.pdf

 Progression of Skills

progression of skills and knowledge in science.pdf

 How do we teach Science?

Intent:  

At Bromham Primary School, science should be fully inclusive to every child. Our aims are to fulfil the requirements of the National Curriculum for science; ensuring progressive development of knowledge, skills and vocabulary and for the children to develop a love of science.  We aim to inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination for science through the IPROF criteria. At Bromham Primary, we call this ‘Thinking Scientifically’.  

• Identifying and classifying  
• Pattern seeking  
• Research 
• Observing over time 
• Fair and comparative testing 

We intend for the pupils to become passionate scientists who collect, use, interpret, understand and evaluate evidence from scientific processes and will do this through ‘Working Scientifically’.  We aim to encourage the children to develop their own knowledge through questioning, planning, observing and performing a range of tests of which will be accurately measured. The children will be encouraged to predict, explain and report on these thus developing their knowledge, understanding and love for the subject.  

The aims of teaching science in our school are to: 

• Inspire the children and build on their enthusiasm and natural sense of wonder about the world 
• Develop through practical work the skills of observation, prediction, investigation, interpretation, communication, questioning and hypothesizing, and increased use of precise measurement skills   
• Develop aspirational learners with an awareness of the key role that science plays within our community and the world  
• Encourage and enable pupils to offer their own suggestions, and to be creative in their approach to science, taking lines of enquiry in a way that interests them and is relevant and meaningful 
• Teach scientific enquiry through the enrichment of visits and visitors 
• Enable children to appreciate that we do not always know the answers when carrying out scientific enquiry as the world around them is continually changing and developing  
• Equip children with the language to be able to discuss their learning and confidently explain their scientific understanding  

Special Educational Needs Disability (SEND) / Pupil Premium / Higher Attainers

All children will have Quality First Teaching. Any children with identified SEND or in receipt of pupil premium funding may have work additional to and different from their peers in order to access the curriculum dependent upon their needs. As well as this, our school offers a demanding and varied curriculum, providing children with a range of opportunities in order for them to reach their full potential and consistently achieve highly from their starting points.

Implementation:

To ensure high standards of teaching and learning in science, we implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school. Science is taught in discrete lessons and we ensure that teachers have the same expectations during Science lessons that they would have when teaching English or Mathematics and that any mathematical task (such as measuring or drawing graphs) is pitched at an age-appropriate level to ensure sufficient challenge. It is vital that any mathematical or English barriers should not impede a child’s scientific learning, meaning dialogic learning is a central part to our science teaching.

The science curriculum at Bromham Primary School is based upon the 2014 Primary National Curriculum in England, which provides a broad framework and outlines the knowledge and skills taught in each Key Stage.  All of the lessons are designed around learning questions to begin their line of enquiry. The children are also provided with Knowledge Organisers and learning strips to enhance the embedding of knowledge, with the use of dual coding to help with retention and building up of schema in their knowledge. We use unit quizzes with a ‘teach-test’ approach from Y2 onwards to highlight key learning, which we introduce and revisit as the topic progresses. All lessons have a vital vocabulary page, with a specific focus on T2 and T3 vocabulary being introduced throughout the topic. Core texts from Curriculum Visions and other texts are used to enhance knowledge and reading within the science curriculum. The skills of working scientifically are specifically planned into each unit.

Science assessment is based on teacher’s assessment. This is then recorded on Insight and the percentage of children at, above and below the expected standard are identified. At the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 the results are submitted. 

Science provides excellent opportunities to enhance the learning of more able pupils through planning lines of enquiry, asking opened ended problems, analysing results and drawing conclusions based on scientific findings.

At Bromham Primary School, we provide a variety of opportunities for science learning inside and outside the classroom. The school grounds and parts of the local area, like Bromham park and mill, provide a resource for delivering areas of the curriculum such as plant identification, investigating micro habitats and looking at different seasons in nature.

We also recognise that science plays a vital role within our school community, with many parents having professional careers within scientific fields and industries.  We therefore embrace their expertise and recognise the valuable contributions that families can make to the delivery of an engaging science curriculum.  Particularly during key events such as National Science Week we have parents in to talk to the children and run workshops specific to their field of work.  This engages and inspires our children further in this subject area as well as broadening their understanding of the role of science in everyday life. 

Impact:

Within science, we strive to create a supportive and collaborative ethos for learning by providing opportunities for children to question and investigate to discover answers for themselves.

The impact of our curriculum is that:

• Children will become resilient, independent and curious scientists who ask questions and find things out for themselves.  
• Science will be a high profile subject throughout the school. 
• Children will be enthusiastic and motivated scientific learners. 
• The outdoor classroom will be utilised regularly throughout science lessons. 
• Parents and the wider community will support science learning through trips and visits.
• Children will leave for secondary school equipped with the science knowledge and skills needed to succeed in their further education.

We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods:

• Ongoing unit quizzes, which are also revisited later in the year through revisit sessions.
• Assessing children’s understanding of topic linked vocabulary throughout their learning.
• Images of the children’s practical learning.
• Pupil book studies, where children are interviewed about their learning, and what they can recall. (Pupil Voice)
• Learning walks of the environment and photographs of sequences of learning are taken, this is then discussed during staff meetings, where sequences of learning are scrutinised and there is the opportunity for a dialogue between teachers to understand their class’s work.
• Annual reporting of standards across the curriculum to parents.
• Formal reporting of standards at the end of each Key Stage
• Marking of written work in books.