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email: admin@sheriffhutton.n-yorks.sch.uk
We understand the need for all pupils to develop their scientific ability as an essential component of all subjects and as a subject in its own right. A good understanding of scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding helps to support pupils work across the curriculum.
We believe that a high quality science education provides the foundations for understanding the world through the specific disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics. Science has changed our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity, and all pupils should be taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, processes and uses of science. Through building up a body of key foundational knowledge and concepts, pupils should be encouraged to recognise the power of rational explanation and develop a sense of excitement and curiosity about natural phenomena. They should be encouraged to understand how science can be used to explain what is occurring, predict how things will behave, and analyse causes.
Science in our school is about developing children’s ideas and ways of working that enable them to make sense of the world in which they live through investigation, as well as using and applying process skills. We ensure that all children are exposed to high quality teaching and learning experiences, which allow children to explore their outdoor environment and locality, thus developing their scientific enquiry and investigative skills. They are immersed in scientific vocabulary, which aids children’s knowledge and understanding not only of the topic they are studying, but of the world around them. We intend to provide all children regardless of ethnic origin, gender, class, aptitude or disability, with a broad and balanced science curriculum.
In ensuring high standards of teaching and learning in science, we implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school.
Planning for science is a process in which all teachers are involved to ensure that the school gives full coverage of, ‘The National Curriculum programmes of study for Science 2014’ and, ‘Understanding of the World’ in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Science teaching at Sheriff Hutton Primary School involves adapting and extending the curriculum to match all pupils’ needs. Where possible, Science is linked to class topics. Science is taught as discrete units and lessons where needed to ensure coverage, the science units are taught on a two-year rolling programme. Teachers plan to suit their children’s interests, current events, their own teaching style, the use of any support staff and the resources available.
We ensure that all children are provided with rich learning experiences that aim to:
Science may be taught discretely but also in different contexts throughout all areas of the curriculum. For example, writing a biography of a famous scientist’s life etc.
Our science plans are adapted to the needs of the children in our school and include links to appropriate vocabulary and other curriculum themes.
Updated Science Long Term Planning
Science Vocabulary Progression
Understanding the world involves guiding children to make sense of their physical world and their community. The frequency and range of children’s personal experiences increases their knowledge and sense of the world around them – from visiting parks and museums to meeting important members of society such as police officers, nurses and firefighters. In addition, listening to a broad selection of stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems will foster their understanding of our culturally, socially, technologically and ecologically diverse world. As well as building important
knowledge, this extends their familiarity with words that support understanding across domains. Enriching and widening children’s vocabulary will support later reading comprehension
We feel that as children are taught in a 2 year rolling programme, there is a need to ensure that children can access their Science Curriculum successfully irrespective of whether they join in Year A or B. We want to ensure that there is a clear progression of learning for each topic and opportunity to build and recap, across the two years. Therefore, Materials and Plants will be studied each year in KS1 with a clear progression having being thought through. Throughout KS1, children will be encouraged to be curious and to ask questions about what they notice. Seasonal changes will be observed regularly, throughout KS1, so by the end of KS1 children will be familiar with how the seasons vary; although there will be a key focus in the Spring term to ensure all key knowledge is covered.
In lower key stage 2 pupils will broaden their scientific view of the world around them. A clear link between Year 3 and 4 objectives has been made and that has determined the order in which the units are being taught in LKS2, throughout the two year rolling programme. We decided that biology, physics and chemistry units would be taught each year, with cross curricular links providing context to scientific learning.
In upper key stage 2, pupils will develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of scientific ideas. They will explore and talk about their ideas; ask their own questions about scientific phenomena; and analyse functions, relationships and interactions more systematically. They will encounter more abstract ideas and begin to recognise how these ideas help them to understand and predict how the world operates. They will begin to recognise that scientific ideas change and develop over time. They will 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 will conclusions based on their data and observations, use evidence to justify their ideas, and use their scientific knowledge and understanding to explain their findings. We decided to have a greater emphasis on biology units in one year of the two year rolling programme to support depth of learning, the sequence of chemistry and physics units in the alternative year helps to build upon key skills and knowledge.
The impact and measure of this teaching is to ensure children not only acquire the appropriate age related knowledge linked to the science curriculum, but also skills which equip them to progress from their starting points, and within their everyday lives.
All children will have:
