At Dundale Primary School, we follow the National Curriculum for Science. To enhance this, we have adopted Snap Science because if offers a whole school scheme of work which is engaging for the children. Also it enables us to ensure that there is clear progression through all of the modules of learning contained in the Science Programme of Study. With this scheme of work, we are secure in the knowledge that the children have access to an effective curriculum that will help them systematically build their skills and understanding and it has clear links to the new ‘working scientifically’ criteria. We offer a broad and engaging curriculum which includes a range of practical activities to bring concepts to life, as well as animations and interactive activities.
Our intent is to:
At Dundale, we aim to teach science through a variety of ways such as the use of:
Curriculum Organisation
Below is an overview of the Science Programme of Study for Reception, KS1 and KS2.
Reception
The Statutory Framework for Receptions sets out the learning opportunities relating to Understanding the World. Within the children’s guided activities, children are encouraged to make sense of their physical world and their community through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places, technology and the environment.
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Autumn 1 and 2 |
Spring 1 and 2 |
Summer 1 and 2 |
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Changes in Nature Autumn and Winter understanding the effect of the changing seasons on the natural world around them.
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Science experiments Ie. Cars on ramps |
Exploring the natural environment
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Year 1 |
Year 2 |
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Autumn 1 |
Humans Identify, name, draw and label the basic parts of the human body and say which part of the body is associated with each sense. |
Use of Everyday materials -identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses -find out how the shapes of solid objects made from some materials can be changed by squashing, bending, twisting and stretching.
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Autumn 2 |
Seasonal changes Introduce to thread into each season; Autumn/Winter.
observe changes across the four seasons. observe and describe weather associated with the seasons and how day length varies.
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Use of Everyday materials -identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses -find out how the shapes of solid objects made from some materials can be changed by squashing, bending, twisting and stretching.
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Year 3 |
Year 4 |
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Autumn 1 |
Rocks -compare and group together different kinds of rocks on the basis of their appearance and simple physical properties -describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock -recognise that soils are made from rocks and organic matter.
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States of Matter Pupils should be taught to: - compare and group materials together, according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases -observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled, and measure or research the temperature at which this happens in degrees Celsius (°C) -identify the part played by evaporation and condensation in the water cycle and associate the rate of evaporation with temperature.
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Autumn 2 |
Light -recognise that they need light in order to see things and that dark is the absence of light -notice that light is reflected from surfaces -recognise that light from the sun can be dangerous and that there are ways to protect their eyes -recognise that shadows are formed when the light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object -find patterns in the way that the size of shadows change.
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Electricity identify common appliances that run on electricity - construct a simple series electrical circuit, identifying and naming its basic parts, including cells, wires, bulbs, switches and buzzers -identify whether or not a lamp will light in a simple series circuit, based on whether or not the lamp is part of a complete loop with a battery -recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit -recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors. |
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Year 5 |
Year 6 |
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Autumn 1 |
Forces Explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of Gravity; identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces; recognise that some mechanisms, including levers, pulleys and gears, allow a smaller force to have a greater effect.
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Light
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Autumn 2 |
Earth and Space Describe the movement of the Earth, and other planets, relative to the Sun in the solar system; describe the movement of the Moon relative to the Earth; describe the Sun, Earth and Moon as approximately spherical bodies; use the idea of the Earth’s rotation to explain day and night and the apparent movement of the sun across the sky.
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Electricity
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Year 1 |
Year 2 |
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Spring 1 |
Animals Identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals |
Habitats -Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive -identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other -identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats -describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.
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Spring 2 |
Animals Identify and name a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores
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Habitats -Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive -identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other -identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats -describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.
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Year 3 |
Year 4 |
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Spring 1 |
Forces and Magnets -compare how things move on different surfaces -notice that some forces need contact between two objects, but magnetic forces can act at a distance -observe how magnets attract or repel each other and attract some materials and not others -compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of whether they are attracted to a magnet, and identify some magnetic materials -describe magnets as having two poles -predict whether two magnets will attract or repel each other, depending on which poles are facing.
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Sound Pupils should be taught to: - identify how sounds are made, associating some of them with something vibrating -recognise that vibrations from sounds travel through a medium to the ear -find patterns between the pitch of a sound and features of the object that produced it -find patterns between the volume of a sound and the strength of the vibrations that produced it -recognise that sounds get fainter as the distance from the sound source increases.
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Spring 2 |
Forces and Magnets -compare how things move on different surfaces -notice that some forces need contact between two objects, but magnetic forces can act at a distance -observe how magnets attract or repel each other and attract some materials and not others -compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of whether they are attracted to a magnet, and identify some magnetic materials -describe magnets as having two poles -predict whether two magnets will attract or repel each other, depending on which poles are facing.
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Humans and Animals Describe the simple functions of the basic parts of the digestive system in humans -identify the different types of teeth in humans and their simple functions - construct and interpret a variety of food chains, identifying producers, predators and prey.
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Year 5 |
Year 6 |
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Spring 1 |
Properties and Changes in Materials Compare and group together everyday materials on the basis of their properties; hardness, solubility, transparency, conductivity (electrical and thermal), and response to magnets; know that some materials will dissolve in liquid to form a solution, and describe how to recover a substance from a solution; use knowledge of solids, liquids and gases to decide how mixtures might be separated- filtering, sieving and evaporating
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Living Things
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Spring 2 |
Properties and Changes in Materials Compare and group together everyday materials on the basis of their properties; hardness, solubility, transparency, conductivity (electrical and thermal), and response to magnets; know that some materials will dissolve in liquid to form a solution, and describe how to recover a substance from a solution; use knowledge of solids, liquids and gases to decide how mixtures might be separated- filtering, sieving and evaporating
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Animal including Humans
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Year 1 |
Year 2 |
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Summer 1 |
Introduce to thread into each season; Spring/Summer. Plants identify and name a variety of common wild and garden plants, including deciduous and evergreen trees identify and describe the basic structure of a variety of common flowering plants, including trees.
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Growing plants -observe and describe how seeds and bulbs grow into mature plants -find out and describe how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy.
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Summer 2 |
Materials identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses find out how the shapes of solid objects made from some materials can be changed by squashing, bending, twisting and stretching.
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Animals, including humans -describe the importance for humans of exercise, eating the right amounts of different types of food, and hygiene. -notice that animals, including humans, have offspring which grow into adults |
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Year 3 |
Year 4 |
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Summer 1 |
Plants -identify and describe the functions of different parts of flowering plants: roots, stem/trunk, leaves and flowers -explore the requirements of plants for life and growth (air, light, water, nutrients from soil, and room to grow) and how they vary from plant to plant -investigate the way in which water is transported within plants -explore the part that flowers play in the life cycle of flowering plants, including pollination, seed formation and seed dispersal.
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Living Things and their Habitats Pupils should be taught to: -recognise that living things can be grouped in a variety of ways - explore and use classification keys to help group, identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment -recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things |
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Summer 2 |
Animals, including humans -identify that animals, including humans, need the right types and amount of nutrition, and that they cannot make their own food; they get nutrition from what they eat -identify that humans and some other animals have skeletons and muscles for support, protection and movement. |
Range of experiments revising learning over the past year. States of matter, electricity, living things. |
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Year 5 |
Year 6 |
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Summer 1 |
Living things and their habitats Describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird; describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals. |
Evolution and Inheritance Statutory requirements:
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Summer 2 |
Animals, including Humans Describe the changes as humans develop to old age. |
Evolution and Inheritance Statutory requirements:
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The programmes of study describe a sequence of knowledge and concepts. While it is important that pupils make progress, it is also vitally important that they develop secure understanding of each key block of knowledge and concepts in order to progress to the next stage. The programme of study outlines the knowledge, skills and scientific understanding for each year group. The associated vocabulary is also incredibly important and is a major aspect of the teaching of Science at Dundale School.
Useful links : Government Programme of Study for Keystages 1 and 2
Stem Science is a very useful website with lots of wonderful resources.
https://www.stem.org.uk/primary-science
Snap Science
https://collins.co.uk/pages/primary-science-snap-science