Science

Intent

Science teaching at Tubbenden Primary School aims to give all children a strong understanding of the world around them whilst acquiring specific skills and knowledge to help them to think scientifically, to gain an understanding of scientific processes and also an understanding of the uses and implications of Science, today and for the future. At Tubbenden Primary School, scientific enquiry skills are embedded in each topic the children study and these topics are revisited and developed throughout their time at school. Topics, such as Plants, are taught in Key Stage One and studied again in further detail throughout Key Stage Two. This model allows children to build upon their prior knowledge and increases their enthusiasm for the topics whilst embedding this procedural knowledge into the long-term memory. All children are encouraged to develop and use a range of skills including observations, planning and investigations, as well as being encouraged to question the world around them and become independent learners in exploring possible answers for their scientific based questions.

Implementation

The Science curriculum at Tubbenden Primary School has been planned to incorporate all of the elements of our intent. In using the Kent Scheme to support our planning, we have ensured that the children cover a variety of skills and knowledge throughout their time here that complement each other without being repetitive. Using these as building blocks, we have developed exciting lessons that give children the knowledge and understanding they need to move forward with this subject. Each Science topic starts off with a title page, containing the knowledge and skills they will be taught. This is followed by a key vocabulary sheet which they complete at the start to show if they know the meaning of the key scientific vocabulary. This vocabulary is then taught and discussed at the start of a weekly lesson before finally completing the vocabulary sheet at the end of the topic to assess their understanding of the words. Every half term the children complete one Science topic with a revision topic in the second part of the Summer Term. Where ICT, Maths and other curriculum links are made to a Science topic, these are embedded to support the Science curriculum.

Impact

The impact of our Science Curriculum is that our learners are equipped with the scientific skills and knowledge that will enable them to be ready for the secondary curriculum and for life as an adult in the world outside the classroom. Children will be able to demonstrate their ability to interpret scientific thinking and suggest ways in which they might explore a scientific principle. Children’s learning is assessed in every lesson by teachers asking probing questions and by their use of scientific vocabulary when answering and writing conclusions about scientific investigations they have carried out.