Science

At Manorside Academy, we aim to develop curious, interested and engaged learners with Science being a key driver for these skills. We encourage pupils to use science to answer some of our biggest questions and to understand how the world works. We support the statement in the Finding the Optimum: The Science Subject Report* that says “The findings of science have fundamentally shaped every aspect of our world. Science drives innovation, creating new knowledge to help us solve current and future problems. All young people are entitled to a high-quality science education, to the curiosity it engenders and the understanding and the opportunity it brings.” and have shaped and designed our curriculum around ensuring it enables this.
Pupils will be encouraged to understand how science can be used to explain what is occurring, predict how things will behave, and analyse causes. It will provide opportunities for the critical evaluation of evidence and rational explanation of scientific phenomena as well as opportunity to apply their mathematical knowledge to their understanding of science, including collecting, presenting and analysing data. Pupils will be immersed in key scientific vocabulary, which supports in the acquisition of scientific knowledge and understanding. To ensure high quality teaching a learning in science we have implemented the following:

Knowledge in Science

We have carefully planned our Science curriculum to ensure there is an appropriate balance of substantive and disciplinary knowledge, carefully interweaved, which supports pupils to organise and structure their knowledge effectively and therefore move from novice to expert. This is mapped out on our Progression Maps to support staff knowledge and understanding of this. We define substantive knowledge as – knowledge produced by science and is referred to ‘scientific knowledge’ and ‘conceptual understanding’ in the National Curriculum (biology, chemistry and physics). Disciplinary knowledge refers to – what pupils learn about how to establish scientific knowledge, comprising knowledge of concepts as well as procedures. This links to ‘working scientifically’ in the National Curriculum and is clearly highlighted on all Medium-Term Plans so staff and pupils know the key areas of focus. We have clearly identified the disciplinary areas of knowledge to ensure pupils are not expected to acquire this knowledge through practical activities but by being taught is explicitly. 

The coherence between Science and other areas of the curriculum including Maths, Computing, Geography and Physical Education, are clearly labelled on the Medium-Term Plans. This is to ensure staff are confident with identifying where new knowledge may need to be introduced or where a skill may simply need to be recapped to allow pupils to access the Science learning and to strengthen interdisciplinary links.  

To ensure pupils gain a wide understanding of different scientists and how they have contributed to the development of science, we have created an overview of all scientists that pupils study during their time at Manorside Academy. We have ensured that this incorporates scientists for different cultures, genders and backgrounds to widen pupils’ cultural capital. 

Pedagogy

Across science lessons, children will work interdependently to support each other through collaborative and peer learning and children will be challenged with open-ended investigative opportunities that will enable them to take locus of control for their learning. As a core subject, we ensure that all pupils receive 1.5 hours of Science teaching a week to ensure it has the level of priority and focus required, this enables pupils to gain a deep level of understanding and application to ensure they know more and remember more in Science. Across lessons, all staff will act as an activator and facilitator of learning, skilfully intervening, scaffolding, questioning and moving learning on in all parts of the lesson so they make rapid progress with activities being carefully chosen so they match the curriculum intent. Prior knowledge is carefully considered to ensure pupils know enough to arrive at appropriate scientific explanations. 

Possible misconceptions are anticipated at the planning stage to ensure these are addressed and acknowledged during the teaching of new knowledge. This ensures that these are addressed before being embedded into independent practise. 

Early Years

Pupils begin their formal science education in the Early Years where they gain the foundational knowledge, primarily through Understanding the World: The Natural World. The provides pupils a wide range of opportunities to develop their knowledge and vocabulary which categorises and describes the natural world. Pupils are exposed to this through story & non-fiction books, rhymes, songs and speech and language focused sessions. The Science curriculum is meticulously planned from the moment pupils join the school in the EYFS to ensure that new knowledge is introduced with sufficient time and practise and is the built on as pupils progress through the school. The EYFS Science curriculum is designed to ensure pupils are prepared for learning further science in Year 1 and that key skills are embedded before progressing onto the Year 1 National Curriculum.

Practical Work

When planning practical work, staff have ensured that it has a purposeful link to the content area of the curriculum the pupils are focusing on and that it forms part of a wider instructional sequence Practical activities are used for a range of outcomes e.g. to help pupils learn substantive or disciplinary knowledge or to be a curricular object in itself. At Manorside Academy, we aim to get a careful balance between practical work through teachers’ use of demonstrations, and through pupils completing the practical work themselves. The decision is based around the intended outcome and objects of study of the session. 

Assessment

We assess pupils in a range of ways; assessment for learning, assessment as learning and assessment for learning. They are designed to ensure the curriculum is not narrowed and do not lead to unnecessary workload, but that they highlight any misconceptions of gaps in knowledge swiftly. Potential, common misconceptions are written on the Medium-Term Plans to try and address these before they occur. The assessments then give staff the areas that they need to develop further or deepen pupils’ knowledge in. Pupils are continuously assessed throughout each lesson, through high level questioning, lapping of the classroom and checking of understanding. Teachers then use this information within the session and to inform the next lesson. As well as this, pupils complete end of unit assessments which are designed to show strengths in pupils understanding and to highlight any gaps which need filling before progressing onto the next area. These are all recorded on an online system (DCPro) for all staff across the school to refer to and use as part of their planning process. To ensure that pupils have remembered key knowledge, during the Autumn term of each academic year, they are assessed on their understanding of the science curriculum from the previous year. This highlight which key pieces of information have been remembered, and which need to be readdressed during upcoming science sessions. 

Enrichment

To develop pupil passion for science, we deploy a range of strategies to enrich the subject. This includes celebrating British Science Week each year; as part of this we bring in local scientists and visit local secondary school science laboratories to develop pupils intrigue and interest. This enrichment is carefully planned to either link to the topic the pupils’ are currently studying, to recap key knowledge they will need in upcoming units or to be pre-teaching opportunities, whilst developing a love for science. We also give pupils the opportunities to go on educational visits linked to their current scientific topic e.g. to the Planetarium or to Winchester Science Museum. On top of this, at various points in the year, pupils are set Science Projects or Investigations to complete as part of their home learning, with support given to parents on how to carry this out effectively and resourcefully.

Pupils thoroughly enjoy getting involved with science experiments, such as this one exploring which type of chocolate melts the quickest:

Pupils at Manorside Academy thoroughly enjoy celebrating their science learning and taking part in national events such as Science Week: