SCIENCE
INTENT
'The scientist is not the one who gives the right answers but the one who asks the right questions.'
Claude Levi-Strauss.
At Bartley, we offer a science curriculum that provides the foundations for understanding the world, explaining what is happening, predicting how things will behave and analysing cause. Pupils enjoy planning, running and evaluating meaningful investigations in most units and have opportunities to raise and investigate their own questions about the world around them. Our high-quality science education combines statutory and non-statutory objectives to allow pupils to access a broad curriculum; by ensuring a progression of skills as they move through the year groups, pupils are well-prepared for science at Key Stage 3. The principal focus of teaching in Lower Key Stage 2 is to enable pupils to broaden their scientific view. They 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. The principal focus of teaching in Upper Key Stage 2 is to enable pupils to develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of scientific ideas. They do this through exploring and talking about their ideas; asking their own questions about scientific phenomena; and analysing functions, relationships and interactions more systematically. All pupils will discuss how science has shaped our world and current scientific advances, and will develop their knowledge of key scientific figures.
Pupils and staff at Bartley benefit from access to our woodland and extensive environmental area, both as part of our learning and during extra-curricular activities. As part of our robust science curriculum, year groups undertake an additional unit to the national curriculum that uses the resources available in the environmental area. Pupils are able to investigate different elements of the natural world while practising the skills taught in the statutory units. To complement our curriculum, Bartley also runs a very popular gardening club, open to pupils across the year groups.
IMPLEMENTATION
Science is taught each week for an extended lesson. It focusses on knowledge and skills in the national curriculum and covers statutory and non-statutory objectives. There are around 5 units of work for each year group set out in the national curriculum. The length of each unit varies, depending on the breadth of knowledge the pupils require. Each year group also undertakes a non-statutory unit using the resources available in Bartley’s environmental area.
Knowledge sheets, placed into science books at the start of each unit, give pupils an overview of the key vocabulary and knowledge they will learn in that unit. These are then referred to throughout the sequence of lessons and pupils can use them to consolidate vocabulary.
Lessons start with a flashback task where pupils answer questions from previously taught units, both from their current year and previous years. This enables pupils to revisit and recap learning. Teachers use this to assess what knowledge pupils have retained and where some consolidation may be necessary.
Pupils will undertake several investigations and experiments throughout the year. These have been carefully planned to ensure pupils are practising and building on specific skills and knowledge taught throughout their time at Bartley.
Short assessment tasks are completed towards the end of each unit of learning. These are closely matched to the national curriculum objectives, giving teachers an immediate and comprehensive view of how well each concept has been understood. These tasks have been designed so a majority of pupils can access them independently, with task style varying as pupils progress through the school. Assessment tasks are recorded in a separate book, which the pupils keep throughout their time at Bartley.
LONG-TERM OVERVIEW
MEDIUM-TERM OVERVIEW
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| Science Medium Term Overview.docx | Download |
Other outdoor experiences are being used to support a variety of scientific concepts. One topic uses the outdoor extensively and has formed a prototype for other projects of this kind. This project is called 'Grow Your Own Potatoes'. It is a topic that is taught in Year 5 where children are each given a seed potato to grow. Children learn about the life cycle of potato plants, how potatoes are grown commercially and how to look after them in the garden. Once the potatoes have grown, they are harvested and used in a soup recipe.
