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.
At St. Mark’s, children are taught following the areas of study set out in the National Curriculum (2014)
Key knowledge is taught throughout these units. The main focus, however, is on teaching the scientific skills which can be applied across all areas of science.
In Years 3 and 4, these are as follows:
| Scientific Enquiry | Observing and Measuring | Recording results | Reporting results | Making conclusions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ask relevant questions and use different types of scientific enquiry to answer them; Set up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests |
Make systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, take accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers | Gather, record, classify and present data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions; Record findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts and tables |
Report on findings from enquiries, including oral and written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions | Use results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions; Identify differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes; Use straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support findings |
And in Years 5 and 6:
| Scientific Enquiry | Observing and Measuring | Recording results | Reporting results | Making conclusions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessarys | Take measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision | Record data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables and bar and line graphs | Report and present findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations; Use test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests |
Use simple models to describe scientific ideas; Identify scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments |