Science Curriculum Statement

Science Intent

At Castlefort JMI School, our children are SCIENTISTS! Our intent is to give every child a broad and balanced science curriculum that enables them to confidently explore and discover what is around them so that they have a deeper understanding of the world we live in.

We want our children to love science. We want them to remember their science lessons in our school, cherish these memories and embrace the scientific opportunities they are presented with, even choosing careers in science when they leave education!

To achieve this, our lessons include exciting, practical, hands-on experiences that encourage curiosity and questioning. Our aim is for these stimulating and challenging experiences to help every child secure and extend their scientific knowledge, understanding, and vocabulary, as well as promote love and thirst for learning.

We have planned a coherent and sequenced curriculum. We want to equip our children with not only the minimum statutory requirements of the Science Primary National Curriculum but to prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.

Science Implementation

At Castlefort, science topics are taught within each year group in accordance with the National Curriculum.

• Topics are blocked and build upon learning from previous year groups so that children develop a deeper knowledge and understanding as they move through the school. 
• In order to support children in their ability to ‘know more and remember more’, there are regular opportunities to review the learning that has taken place in previous topics as well as previous lessons.
• Teachers promote enjoyment and foster interest in the scientific disciplines: biology, chemistry and physics.
• Children learn and develop key scientific skills of: exploration, questioning, prediction, planning and carrying out investigations, observing and concluding their findings.
• Children are encouraged to use science-specific language.
• Opportunities for staff CPD ensure that our teachers are confident in their subject knowledge and teaching.  
• To support teaching and learning, teachers access a range of planning and resources.
• Educational visits and visitors into the school enrich and enhance pupils’ learning experiences.
• Teachers consistently use assessment for learning to ensure that misconceptions are highlighted and addressed.
• Teacher modelling, support, scaffolding and challenge are features of all lessons and allow all children to reach their full potential. 
• Cross-curricular links are planned for with other subjects including English, mathematics and computing.
• Formative and summative assessments allow us to track achievement in science. 

EYFS

The Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum supports children’s understanding of science through the planning and teaching of ‘Understanding the World.’ Children find out about objects, materials and living things using all of their senses, looking at similarities, differences, patterns and change. Both the environment and skilled practitioners foster curiosity and encourage explorative play. Children are motivated to ask questions about why things happen and how things work. They are encouraged to use the natural environment around them to explore. Children enjoy spending time outdoors exploring mini-beasts and their habitats, observing the changing seasons, plants and animals. They regularly participate in cookery and baking sessions which allow them to experience changes in state as ingredients are mixed, heated and cooled.

Science Impact

The impact of our curriculum design will be excellent pupil progress over time, across all key stages. Children will leave Castlefort reaching at least age-related expectations for science. Through exciting lessons, workshops, trips and interactions with experts, our pupils will be enthusiastic learners of science, understanding how it has changed our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity. We aim to empower our children so they understand they have the potential capability to make changes for the good of our world, for example, climate change.

Science is taught as a weekly two-hour lesson. We use two ‘core programs’ to deliver the Primary National Science Curriculum – Collins ‘Snap Science’ and Pzaz. Each topic within the scheme offers a sequence of lessons which enable ‘working scientifically’ to become embedded and scientific language to be developed.  Teachers endeavour to include a ‘practical learning element’ within every lesson.  Each year group also has the opportunity to study ‘Our Changing World’ units. These allow the children to observe changes happening in the environment around them.  For example, Year 1 will look at seasonal changes.

All year groups complete scientific investigations linked to their science topic and this allows the children to further develop their practical and written recording skills.

The school has achieved the Primary Science National Quality Mark (Silver) in recognition of its provision for science.

*See Science Long-term Plan

If you want further information about the curriculum content your child is covering please call the school office to arrange an appointment to see the subject leader.