Science
Intent
At Corinthian Primary School, we aim to develop children’s interest and enjoyment in Science. Science education should be fully inclusive to every child. We want our children to recognise the importance of science in everyday life and the world around them. Our aims are to fulfill the requirements of the National Curriculum for science by providing a broad and balanced curriculum. Our curriculum ensures progression of knowledge, concepts, skills and vocabulary from EYFS to Year 6 allowing children to build on previous learning whilst developing curiosity and positive attitudes towards the subject. We aim to inspire children to ask questions about how and why in order to acquire and develop a deep conceptual understanding of science. We ensure that the Working Scientifically skills are built-on and developed throughout children’s time at school so that they can apply their knowledge of science when using equipment, conducting experiments, building arguments and explaining concepts confidently. We hope this will ensure their scientific mindset will be taken beyond primary school.
The 2014 National Curriculum for science aims to ensure that all pupils:
- develop scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding through the specific disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics;
- develop understanding of the nature, processes and methods of science through different types of science enquiries that help them to answer scientific questions about the world around them;
- are equipped with the scientific skills required to understand the uses and implications of science, today and for the future.
We understand that it is important for lessons to have a skills-based focus, and that the knowledge can be taught through this.
Implementation
All children will receive quality first teaching through a varied and demanding curriculum that is well scaffolded and adapted to provide a range of opportunities in order to allow all children to achieve and reach their full potential. Science is a fully inclusive subject. Teachers eliminate any barriers to learning for all pupils as they take into account the needs of all pupils.
At Corinthian, the subject leader is responsible for the curriculum design and long term planning of the schemes of work. The schemes are well thought out and carefully planned in line with the National Curriculum to ensure that the curriculum successfully builds on prior knowledge and previous learning in other year groups and also takes into account the future learning that will take place. Progression documents in knowledge and working scientifically taken from PLAN, PLAN knowledge matrix resources are used to effectively support the planning process and these are shared with teachers to provide a strong basis underpinning the teaching.
Within the planning, subject leaders ensure that teachers have the necessary subject knowledge needed to teach the unit and provide teachers with an understanding of the relevant prior and future learning. Key vocabulary for the unit is clearly listed.
Each unit of work is encompassed in an open enquiry question known as the ‘big’ question. The unit begins with a discussion around the question. Science is taught discretely each week in both key stage one and key stage two. Every lesson begins with retrieval practice to activate previous knowledge and understanding of key concepts or specific vocabulary. This is to ensure children become efficient and fluent in their understanding. This often takes the form of a short quiz. Lessons are planned to teach key concepts and knowledge whilst working scientifically skills are embedded within the sequence of lessons. The unit is sequenced to ensure children have opportunities to apply new knowledge learnt. Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual knowledge and skills, and assess pupils regularly to identify those children with gaps in learning, so that all pupils keep up.
Lessons are organised in a way to avoid cognitive overload. They are based on principles of educational research. Teaching is carefully chunked into small steps to allow children to successfully digest new knowledge and allows time for children to develop their skills.
Direct teaching of key science vocab is crucial to ensure children have a clear understanding of scientific concepts and children are encouraged to apply scientific vocabulary in their science work. Vocabulary is displayed within the environment and children are taught to become confident when using this language.
Curiosity is amplified through scientific reasoning and questioning, supported through scientific investigations. Throughout each unit, children are exposed to engaging ‘hands on’ science where they have lots of opportunities to work practically. There are many opportunities to explore the 5 types of scientific enquiry which build on their subject-knowledge and working scientifically skills:
- Fair and Comparative Testing
- Pattern Seeking
- Changes Over Time
- Secondary Sources
- Identifying, Classifying and Grouping.
Teachers demonstrate how to use scientific equipment, and the various Working Scientifically skills in order to embed scientific understanding. Teachers find opportunities to develop children’s understanding of their surroundings by accessing outdoor learning.
Through the teaching of science teachers have high expectations of all children, believing that all children can achieve. Teachers expect children to apply high standards of literacy and numeracy in their work. When applying skills taught from these subject areas through a science lesson, teachers ensure age appropriate tasks are given e.g. when drawing graphs to show results, the expectation is applicable to that year group programme of study within mathematics.
Assessment takes place during every lesson so that children are moved on quickly in their learning. End of topic assessments are used to identify any gaps in learning which then inform future planning.
Impact
Impact will be measured through:
- assessment of children’s understanding of the topic and the vocabulary before and after the unit is taught
- book monitoring
- learning walks and lesson visits
- Standardisation and moderation to allow a dialogue between teachers in order to gain a common understanding of expectations of Science across year groups.
Through our science teaching and learning, pupils should confidently be able to recall knowledge, use scientific vocabulary and develop scientific skills. Children will be able to question ideas and reflect on knowledge. They will work collaboratively and practically to investigate and experiment, finally explaining processes taken and reason scientifically. The impact of carefully planned and sequenced units of work will ensure knowledge taught is retained by the children and continually revisited so that learners are able to apply the skills they have been taught showing independence with their learning. At Corinthian we want children to experience a fun and engaging science education that provides children with foundations for understanding the world.