Primary Science Quality Mark GILT has been awarded to Stainton C of E Primary School to celebrate our commitment to excellence in science teaching and learning.  The GILT award is achieved when science leadership is demonstrating sustained impact beyond the school.

The Primary School Quality Mark programme ensures effective leadership of science, enables schools to work together to share good practice and is supported by professional development led by local experts. It encourages teacher autonomy and innovation while at the same time offering a clear framework for development in science subject leadership, teaching and learning. Schools that achieve PSQM demonstrate commitment and expertise in science leadership, teaching and learning.

Our school community have been involved in developing the effectiveness of science including science club during home learning; developing reading in science and a creative curriculum designed to improve science learning, among other developments.

Stainton C of E School Science vision: 'By the end of their time at Stainton, children will have developed a deeper understanding of the world around them. They will be equipped with scientific strategies to make informed decisions, ask questions and be curious about future possibilities'.

Our principles for science teaching and learning are: 

• Inspiring curiosity by making science exciting and allowing children to discover for themselves.
• Deep scientific knowledge and vocabulary is applied and retained by staff and pupils.
• To develop confidence and skills to ask questions, draw conclusions and raise further questions.
• Using relevant and current scientific developments to drive interest and critical thinking.

We embed these principles into our teaching and learning throughout the whole school therefore underpinning our overall vision for science. 

At Stainton School, we encourage each child to develop their curiosity and question the world around them through the Science curriculum.  

To instill scientific confidence in children and to inspire future generations of young scientists, we need to spark their imagination and fuel their curiosity with hands-on, experiential science.  From Years 1-6 children build up their working scientifically skills to use during scientific enquiry.

Science builds 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 sustainability, and all pupils are taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, processes and uses of science.

Children are taught to work scientifically, through a range of scientific enquiries linked to each discipline.  These types of scientific enquiry include observation over time; pattern seeking; identifying, classifying and grouping; comparative and fair testing (controlled investigations); and researching using secondary sources.

Pupils are encouraged to answer scientific questions through collecting, analysing and presenting data.  Children are given opportunities to develop their scientific vocabulary and technical terminology and are supported to apply it confidently, accurately and precisely to explain their findings and results.  They apply their mathematical knowledge to their understanding of science, including collecting, presenting and analysing data.  

Through building up a body of key knowledge and concepts, pupils are encouraged to recognise the power of questioning while adopting a role of inquisitive investigator.  With this, they develop a sense of excitement and curiosity about natural phenomena.  We aim to make science enjoyable and exciting for our pupils.

Overview of units

Our curriculum follows the New National Curriculum with Science being taught discretely and with links to topic work, while additionally applying writing, maths and art skills where appropriate.  This is an overview of the Science curriculum and demonstrates how the key science areas are taught and built upon in progressive years.  Science taught in Reception is taught using the Early Years Foundation Stage guidance. Please see the attached document below for the curriculum coverage.

EYFS

Please see the link for EYFS.

Key Stage 1 - Years 1 and 2

The main focus of science teaching in Key Stage 1 is to enable pupils to experience and observe phenomena, looking more closely at the natural and constructed world around them.  They should be encouraged to be curious and ask questions about what they notice.  They are helped to develop their understanding of scientific ideas by using different types of scientific enquiry to answer their own questions, including observing changes over a period of time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple comparative tests and finding things out using secondary sources of information.  Children begin to use simple scientific language to talk about what they have found out and communicate their ideas to a range of audiences in a variety of ways.  Most of the learning about science is done through the use of first-hand practical experiences, and through the use of appropriate secondary sources, such as books, the internet, photographs and videos.

Pupils read and spell scientific vocabulary at a level consistent with their reading and spelling knowledge at Key Stage 1.

Lower Key Stage 2 – Years 3 and 4

The main focus of Science teaching in Lower Key Stage 2 is to enable pupils to broaden their scientific view of the world around them. They do this through exploring, talking about, testing and developing ideas about everyday phenomena and the relationships between living things and familiar environments, and by developing their ideas about functions, relationships and interactions. They are encouraged to ask their own questions about what they observe and make some decisions about which types of scientific enquiry are likely to be the best.  Different forms of scientific enquiry are: observing including observing changes over time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple fair tests and finding things out using secondary sources of information.  They draw simple conclusions and use some scientific language, first to talk about and, later, to write about what they have found out.

Pupils read and spell scientific vocabulary correctly and with confidence, using their growing reading and spelling knowledge.

Upper Key Stage 2 – Years 5 and 6

The main focus of Science teaching in Upper Key Stage 2 is to enable pupils to develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of scientific ideas. They do this through exploring and talking about their ideas; asking their own questions about scientific phenomena; and analysing functions, relationships and interactions more systematically.

At Upper Key Stage 2, they encounter more abstract ideas and begin to recognise how these ideas help them to understand and predict how the world operates.  They also begin to recognise that scientific ideas change and develop over time. They are encouraged to select the most appropriate ways to answer science questions using different types of scientific enquiry, including observing changes over different periods of time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out fair tests and finding things out using a wide range of secondary sources of information.  Pupils draw conclusions based on their data and observations, use evidence to justify their ideas, and use their scientific knowledge and understanding to explain their findings. 

Pupils read, spell and pronounce scientific vocabulary correctly.

Discovering what happens in KS1

Question  - Which material will keep Teddy dry?

Below you can see children in Year 1 exploring a range of materials on their own. They discovered what happened and recorded their results. We then had a discussion about which material would have been best. 

We recorded our predictions on the table and used a smiley face to show when we thought a material would work -  We used a sad face when we didn’t think the material would work - 

“The tinfoil is waterproof, but I don’t think I would like to wear it as a coat! You will get too hot!”

“The paper towel has gone soggy”                     

“The tissue has ripped!”

“The plastic worked, the water ran off”            

 "The felt soaked the water up”