Science

‘Bringing science to life for our young scientists of today’

Purpose and Aims

At NET, our science curriculum aims to ensure that all pupils:

• Children will be taught the knowledge and skills to provide a secure foundation in ‘Understanding the World’ through the disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics.
• Science is fundamental to understanding our lives and our futures and as such, it is a core subject.
• As scientists, children will develop their natural curiosity, questioning and evaluation of the world they live in.
• Children are ‘progressively’ taught skills to develop scientific enquiry to enable them to plan, predict, conduct and conclude investigations independently.

At the end of KS2, pupils will be able to:

• Ask and answer questions about scientific enquiry.
• Make predictions based on their prior scientific learning.
• Carry out investigations, observing over time; pattern seeking; identifying, classifying and grouping and conducting comparative and fair testing.
• Interpret evidence and explain findings using their science knowledge and technical vocabulary

Organisation of the Curriculum (Implementation):

We aim to teach children conceptually in order to develop a deeper level of understanding throughout the children’s time at school. Teachers will impart essential knowledge that has been planned progressively, through the NET curriculum, beginning in EYFS and across key stage one and two.

Scientific Strands:

Strands in science continue throughout the whole curriculum: Biology, Chemistry, Physics

This planned knowledge will include vocabulary and concepts. The concepts will build upon one another year after year and refer to one another over time.

The progression of skills is illustrated in our Skills document. This document lists all the scientific skills that are covered in each of the units and shows how they are developed though a child’s learning journey. It also lists the rationale of the units – why that knowledge and those skills are taught at that time of the academic year, and at that stage in the child’s schooling. 

The skills are split into 4 different domains: Questioning, Planning and Enquiring; Investigating; Observing and Recording; Concluding and Evaluating. 

Planning and Assessment (Impact):

Pupils regularly retrieve knowledge from memory to help them remember and organise their knowledge. This is coupled with feedback. Teachers think carefully about what pupils are being asked to retrieve and whether this prioritises the most important content. 

Systems are in place to support teachers to make accurate decisions when assessing pupils’ work. This includes supporting teachers with statutory teacher assessment of science at key stage 1 and 2.

Quizzes undertaken at the beginning and end of each topic, to monitor knowledge gained throughout the unit.

KWL activities.

Recap and Recall at the beginning of each lesson, to recall knowledge learnt in previous lessons, units and year groups.

Mini Plenaries during lessons to assess knowledge gained.

‘Plenary’ at the end of each lesson to challenge children to question beyond their learning and discuss what they could be learning next – how could they extend their knowledge further?

Book monitoring/Pupil Book Studies.

Enrichment:

• Science focuses on developing scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding through the specific disciplines of Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

• All children have many opportunities to develop their understanding of the nature, processes and methods of science through different types of scientific enquiries; encouraging curiosity. This culminates in an annual Science Week.

• Students are equipped with the scientific knowledge required to understand the uses and implications of science, today and for the future – including many interdisciplinary opportunities.

• Developing a culture of science as a creative learning process, enabling children to approach unfamiliar real-life problems with confidence and resilience. 

Knowledge Organisers