Science

Science at Northway Infant School stimulates and excites pupil’s curiosity about natural phenomena and events in the world around them. Science makes an increasing contribution to all aspects of life and we encourage the children to question why and how things happen, as well as observing the impact it can have.

Key to this is the opportunity for children to learn by exploring and playing with things in their world. They pick up clues about what they see, touch, smell, taste and hear in order to make sense of it all; learning to question and discuss issues based on concrete experiences and their own understanding. From here, they come to conclusions, which they match up with all the experiences they have had.  Science is about linking practical experiences with ideas.

As children enter school with differing experiences, we focus our teaching to enable them to develop observational, investigative and communication skills through first-hand experiences and secondary sources such as books and technology.

At Northway, we aim to provide a rich topic based Science curriculum that engages the children. Lessons are taught in both indoor and outdoor environments that are stimulating and in which scientific skills and understanding can be developed. We are keen to provide multi-sensory learning to maximise engagement and enjoyment, with displays supporting learning and consolidating key vocabulary.

Children are able to apply their knowledge through planning, conducting and evaluating a range of scientific investigations throughout the year which also enable them to explore science in a range of contexts. We encourage children to be curious about their environment and want them to be resilient to that fact that they may not always get ‘the answer right’, being open-minded about what they discover and enjoying the process of discovering something new!

Children in Reception follow the Curriculum as outlined in the 2021 statutory framework of the Early Years Foundation Stage. For Science, skills are taught, developed and observed as they make progress towards and, where appropriate, beyond the Early Learning Goals in the strand of Understanding the World: The Natural World.

 Science is a core subject for Key Stage 1 in the National Curriculum and is organised into the following strands:

• Working scientifically
• Plants
• Animals, including humans
• Everyday materials
• Seasonal changes
• Living things and their habitats

Subject Leader: Kathryn Dickinson

kdickinson@northway.gloucs.sch.uk