Intent

At Stubbins Primary School, we believe that teaching and learning in Science will inspire children, encourage them to be inquisitive about the world, nurture their innate curiosity and enable them to develop a range of skills that are useful across their learning. We aim to develop enthusiastic and motivated learners, who achieve highly and reach their full potential.

At our school, Science offers opportunities for children to build a foundation of key knowledge and concepts, as well as develop skills in scientific enquiry and questioning. We actively encourage children to be inquisitive and develop their natural curiosity, whilst increasing pupils’ knowledge and understanding of our world.   The aim is for scientific enquiry to form a common thread through the curriculum, helping children to understand that Science is just as much about what they do as about what they know.

At Stubbins Primary School, we aim to maximise the opportunities for every child so that they know more, remember more and understand more about Science. We aim to develop life-long learners of Science with deep knowledge and conceptual understanding; who, through rational explanation, recognise the power of the scientific method and acquire a sense of excitement and curiosity about natural phenomena.

Implementation

All the children are taught the knowledge and skills of Science as outlined in the National Curriculum document (2014) for Science.

Our Science curriculum is designed to enrich our children’s lessons using outdoor learning, educational visits, expert Science visitors, scientific resources, books and the internet. 

Units of lessons are sequential, allowing children to build their skills and knowledge, applying them to a range of outcomes. Key skills are revisited again and again with increasing complexity in a spiral curriculum model. This allows pupils to revise and build on their previous learning.

Our progression of skills and knowledge identifies the knowledge and skills taught within each year group and how these skills develop ensuring that attainment targets are securely met by the end of each Key Stage. It also shows how knowledge and skills are built upon through the year groups. Differentiation and scaffolded learning ensures that lessons can be accessed and enjoyed by all pupils and opportunities to stretch pupils’ learning are available when required.

Wherever possible children will be given opportunities to explore Science within the local environment through visiting local places of interest, Science museums and meet or work will with visitors.

Impact

Our science curriculum is designed in such a way that children’s learning is well thought out and is planned to demonstrate progression.  Pupils will leave primary school equipped with the skills and knowledge to form a strong foundation for their Science learning at Key Stage 3 and beyond.  

Children will: 

• Meet the end of key stage expectations outlined in the national curriculum for science. 

Our high-quality science curriculum is well thought out and is planned to demonstrate progression. Its impact is measured by: 

• Comparing what children knew at the start of the topic to what they know at the end. KWL grids and mind maps. After the topic has been taught, we ask children to add what they have now learnt using a different coloured pen. This allows us to see how much the children have remembered and how much progress they have made. 

• Summative assessment of pupils’ skills (termly data is put on our iTrack tracking system and is analysed by the subject leader) 

• Images and videos of the children’s practical learning; 

• Discussions with pupils about their learning (pupil voice); 

• Drop ins / book looks, and feedback given by subject leader 

• Annual reporting to parents about their child’s achievement and effort within science; 

• Children are questioned about their current and previous learning; 

• Children are encouraged to question each other and discuss their knowledge whilst completing their scientific learning; 

• Displays of children’s work are in classrooms and around school, celebrating learning and demonstrating progression across the school; 

•  We celebrate outstanding science by using stickers and class Dojo’s