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At Sheriff Hutton Primary School, we want every child to develop a curiosity about the world around them and the confidence to think and work like a scientist.
Science enables children to understand themselves, the natural world and the wider world in which they live. Through practical investigation, observation, discussion and questioning, children develop the knowledge and skills they need to make sense of the world and make informed decisions about it.
We use the Kapow Primary Science scheme of learning to support our curriculum. It provides a clear progression of scientific knowledge, vocabulary and investigative skills from Reception to Year 6, while allowing teachers to adapt learning to our children, our mixed-age classes and our local environment. The scheme fulfils the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum for Science.
Our Science curriculum develops three interconnected areas:
We want our children to become curious, inquisitive and analytical thinkers who are able to question the world around them and seek answers using evidence.
Our Science curriculum aims to develop children who:
We want children to understand that science is not simply a collection of facts. It is a way of thinking, questioning and finding out about the world.
Science is taught regularly throughout the school and is planned progressively using the Kapow Science scheme of learning. The curriculum is structured as a spiral curriculum, meaning that important knowledge and skills are revisited over time with increasing depth and complexity. This allows children to build on what they already know rather than starting again.
Our mixed-age planning ensures that children experience the full National Curriculum while avoiding unnecessary repetition and ensuring that scientific knowledge and investigative skills develop systematically across the school.
Lessons begin by activating prior knowledge and revisiting important vocabulary and concepts. Children are then introduced to new scientific knowledge through a combination of teacher modelling, discussion, practical investigation, observation, research and independent work.
We place particular importance on learning through doing. Where appropriate, children investigate scientific questions themselves rather than simply being told the answer.
Working Scientifically
Working scientifically is at the heart of our Science curriculum.
Children progressively develop their ability to:
These skills are taught alongside scientific knowledge rather than as a separate topic. This enables children to understand how scientific knowledge is developed and tested. Kapow’s curriculum similarly integrates working scientifically throughout its units so that children progressively develop these disciplinary skills.
Scientific Knowledge
Children develop their knowledge across the key areas of the Science curriculum, including:
These areas are revisited throughout children’s time at Sheriff Hutton Primary School, allowing them to make connections between different areas of scientific knowledge.
Children are encouraged to link new learning to what they already know and to recognise how scientific ideas connect together.
Science in the EYFS
In Reception, Science begins with children’s natural curiosity about themselves and the world around them.
Through Understanding the World, children explore living things, materials, seasons, weather and their local environment. They observe changes, ask questions, investigate and talk about what they notice.
Children have opportunities to explore our school grounds and local environment, developing the foundations of scientific observation and enquiry.
As children move into Key Stage 1, these early experiences provide a foundation for increasingly structured scientific investigation. Kapow’s Reception curriculum is designed to build on children’s natural curiosity and exploration before progressing towards more formal scientific learning.
Science in Our Local Environment
We make use of our school grounds and local North Yorkshire environment wherever possible.
Our children have opportunities to observe seasonal changes, plants, animals, habitats, weather and materials in real-life contexts. Learning outside the classroom helps children to understand that science is all around them and not simply something that happens in a lesson.
Our location in a rural North Yorkshire community provides valuable opportunities to connect scientific learning with the natural environment, agriculture, local habitats and the changing seasons.
We encourage children to become responsible stewards of their environment and to consider how human activity affects the natural world.
Science in Action
Science has a significant influence on our everyday lives. We want children to understand how scientific knowledge is used to solve problems, develop new technologies and improve people’s lives.
Children learn about significant scientists and scientific discoveries and explore how science has contributed to developments in areas such as health, medicine, technology, energy, transport and the environment.
Kapow’s Science curriculum explicitly includes Science in action, helping children understand the uses and implications of science today and in the future.
We also want children to understand that scientific knowledge continues to develop and that scientists do not always have all the answers.
Vocabulary and Scientific Communication
Scientific vocabulary is explicitly taught and revisited throughout the school.
Children are encouraged to use increasingly precise scientific language when talking, writing and explaining their ideas. Key vocabulary is introduced at the beginning of units and revisited throughout lessons.
We want children to be able to explain scientific ideas clearly, rather than simply recall scientific facts.
Children communicate their learning in a variety of ways, including:
We believe that every child can be a scientist.
Our Science curriculum is designed to be accessible, inclusive and ambitious for all children, including children with SEND and those who require additional support.
Teachers adapt activities and resources to remove barriers while maintaining high expectations. This may include:
We also promote equality and representation within Science. Children learn about scientists from different backgrounds, cultures and periods of history and are encouraged to recognise that scientific achievement is not limited by gender, disability, race, ethnicity, religion or belief or socio-economic background.
We challenge stereotypes about who can become a scientist and encourage every child to see themselves as someone who can question, investigate, discover and contribute.
By the time children leave Sheriff Hutton Primary School, we want them to:
Ultimately, we want our children to leave Sheriff Hutton Primary School as curious, knowledgeable and confident young scientists, equipped with the skills to understand the world around them and make informed decisions about their future.
Our Science curriculum is supported by Kapow Primary’s progressive Science scheme of learning, including its progression of scientific knowledge, working scientifically skills and scientific vocabulary. The curriculum is regularly reviewed to ensure that it remains current and supports high-quality scientific teaching.
Long term science plan (transition)
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