Intent
At St Joseph’s RC Primary School, it is our intention to recognise the importance of
Science in every aspect of daily life. We give the teaching and learning of Science the
prominence it requires. The Scientific area of learning is concerned with increasing
pupils’ knowledge and understanding of our world, and with developing skills
associated with Science as a process of enquiry. It will develop the natural curiosity of
the child, encourage respect for living organisms and the physical environment and
provide opportunities for critical evaluation of evidence. We intend to build a Science
curriculum which develops learning and results in the acquisition of knowledge and
build a Science curriculum which, enables children to become enquiry-based learners.
Implementation
In ensuring high standards of teaching and learning in science, we implement a
curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school.
Planning for science is a process in which all teachers are involved to ensure that the
school gives full coverage of, ‘The National Curriculum programmes of study for
Science 2014’ and, ‘Understanding of the World’ in the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Where possible, Science is linked to class topics. Science is taught as discrete units
and lessons where needed to ensure coverage. Due to mixed year group classes in
our school, Science units are taught on a two-year rolling programme, Year A and
Year B. This ensures progression between year groups and guarantees topics are
covered. Teachers plan to suit their children’s interests, current events, their own
teaching style, the use of any support staff and the resources available.
We ensure that all children are provided with rich learning experiences that aim to:
- Prepare our children for life in an increasingly scientific and technological world
today and in the future. - Help our children acquire a growing understanding of the nature, processes
and methods of scientific ideas. - Help develop and extend our children’s scientific concept of their world.
Build on our children’s natural curiosity and developing a scientific approach to
problems. - Encouraging open-mindedness, self-assessment, perseverance and
developing the skills of investigation: observing, measuring, predicting,
hypothesising, experimenting, communicating, interpreting, explaining and
evaluating. - Develop the use of scientific language, recording and techniques.
- Develop the use of computing in investigating and recording.
- Make links between Science and other subjects.
Science is taught consistently, once a week for up to two hours, but is discretely taught
in many different contexts throughout all areas of the curriculum.
At St Joseph’s we aspire to promote and encourage children to take ownership of their
learning. The tasks we use enable the children to articulate scientific concepts clearly and
precisely, assisting them in making their thinking clear, both to themselves and others.
Impact
The impact of Science being taught in this way at St Joseph’s is to ensure that children
not only acquire the age-related knowledge linked to the Science Curriculum but also
that children will retain knowledge that is pertinent to Science with a real-life context.
Children will develop their skills to question ideas and reflect upon new knowledge as
well as work collaboratively with their peers using practical approaches to investigate
and experiment. Children will have high aspirations, which will support them through
further study, work and adult life.
SJP Science progression of disciplinary and substantive strands
SJP Science Progression of Learning