Science

Intent

At Keevil Church of England Academy we believe that science is a key part of a child’s education.  We aim to engender a curiosity about the world around us, and teach children how to find answers to their questions through a scientific process.  We follow the National Curriculum,  through our topics we cover a breadth of subject knowledge and concepts from all aspects of science – physics, chemistry and biology.  An important aspect of all science units of work is teaching the children how to ‘work scientifically’, and lessons across the school have a strong practical element. 

Our curriculum is organised as a progression which facilitates the re-visiting of learning through recurrent themes, such that knowledge and understanding becomes embedded in children’s long term memory.  For details of this see the document below ‘Keevil CofE Academy Science Knowledge and Skills Progression’.

We ensure our Science Curriculum is rooted in the vision and ethos of the school, through ensuring that as well as delivering scientific knowledge and skills lessons also develop the Keevil Characteristics:

Children learn the knowledge that helps them understand a range of scientific processes and concepts.  Problem-solving is an integral part of the scientific process, which is developed through an enquiry-based approach to learning the subject.  Diligence and resilience are required to execute investigations accurately and reliably, as is team-work as experiments, tests and research need to be conducted in collaboration with others.  Good communication skills are vital to present, share, discuss and explain findings and outcomes, as well as deepen understanding.

Implementation

Science is a core subject, and as such a unit of work is delivered each term in each class, following our school’s Teaching and Learning expectations and non-negotiables to ensure a high standard of provision.  The ‘Keevil CofE Academy Science Curriculum Overview’ below, shows how the units of work in the subject are mapped across our 2 year curriculum cycle.

Impact

Through the delivery of our curriculum children are enabled to develop scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding through the disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics, that meets age-related expectations as specified in the National Curriculum.  They are equipped with the skills to ask and answer questions through scientific enquiries.  They understand the uses and impact of science in everyday life.  They are encouraged to be excited and curious about the world around them, and see science as the means through which to explore this.