Staunton & Corse C of E Academy

Our School Vision

Let Your Light Shine

 “Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and. glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:15-16

We are committed to creating a positive, safe and nurturing Christian environment, where all members of the school and wider community will be respected and valued.

Within God’s love, we will support and encourage one another to grow and flourish…to be the very best we can be.

Intent

What do we aspire for our children?

At Staunton and Corse C of E Primary Academy, we recognise the importance of science in every aspect of daily life. As one of the core subjects taught in primary schools, we give the teaching and learning of science the prominence it requires.

The scientific area of learning is concerned with increasing pupils’ knowledge and understanding of our world, and with developing skills associated with science as a process of enquiry. It will develop the natural curiosity of the child, encourage respect for living organisms and the physical environment and provide opportunities for critical evaluation of evidence.

In accordance with the aims of the national curriculum, our science teaching offers opportunities for children to:

• Develop scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding through the specific disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics
• Develop understanding of the nature, processes and methods of scientific enquiry that help them to answer scientific questions about the world around them
• Be equipped with the scientific knowledge required to understand the uses and implications of science, today and for the future
• Develop the essential scientific enquiry skills to deepen their scientific knowledge
• Use a range of methods to communicate scientific information and present it in a systematic, scientific manner, including computing, diagrams, graphs and charts
• Develop a respect for the materials and equipment they handle with regard to their own, and other children’s safety
• Develop an enthusiasm and enjoyment of scientific learning and discovery

We endeavour to ensure that the science curriculum we provide will give children the confidence and motivation to continue to further develop their skills into the next stage of their education and life experiences.  Our lessons are planned by our class teachers.  They follow a clear progression grid using the National Curriculum objectives, this was created by our science coordinator. 

Implementation

How will we deliver the curriculum?
Teachers create a positive attitude to science learning within their classrooms and reinforce an expectation that all children are capable of achieving high standards in science. Our whole school approach to the teaching and learning of science involves the following:

• Science will be taught for at least one hour each week.
• Science is linked to class topics where possible but not to the detriment of the subject. Where necessary it is taught discreetly and children are always made aware of when they are studying science. For example, the Great Fire of London is linked to our Materials topic.
• Children are encouraged to ask their own questions and be given opportunities to use their scientific skills and research to discover the answers. This curiosity is celebrated within the classroom. Teachers create engaging lessons, often involving high-quality resources or visitors to aid understanding of conceptual knowledge. Teachers use precise questioning in class to test conceptual knowledge and skills, and assess children regularly to identify those children with gaps in learning, so that all children keep up.
• We build upon the learning of previous years. This is monitored through the use of whole school progression grids and knowledge checkers completed before a topic is taught. As the children’s knowledge and understanding increases, and they become more proficient in selecting, using scientific equipment, collating and interpreting results, they become increasingly confident in their growing ability to come to conclusions based on real evidence. We assess this through termly and end of topic assessments.
• Working scientifically skills are embedded into lessons to ensure these skills are being developed and new vocabulary and challenging concepts are introduced through direct teaching.
• Teachers demonstrate how to use scientific equipment, and the various working scientifically skills in order to embed scientific understanding. Teachers find opportunities to develop children’s understanding of their surroundings by accessing outdoor learning and workshops with experts.
• Our teachers have clear knowledge of our children’s previous knowledge and how to build upon that using our Knowledge Organisers. This enables our teachers to close any knowledge gaps and the children have key vocabulary and scientific facts to refer to throughout that scientific topic.
• Our skills ladders ensure there is a clear progression of skills throughout the school, these are an integral part to our teachers when planning, previous knowledge is consolidated and the next steps are planned for.

Impact

How do we know our Science curriculum is effective?

We are committed to ensuring our children have access to the experiences and skills necessary to equip them for life, we develop their cultural capital through science club- Wizz, Bang Pop, whole school trips, for example: to the Cheltenham Science Festival each year and immersing ourselves in whole school science days, inviting in specialists and focusing on developing key scientific knowledge of the plants and animals in our natural environments through varied and first hand experiences of the world around them. This successful approach at Staunton results in a fun, engaging, and high-quality science education; enjoyed by both pupils and teachers! By the time our children leave us they have the understanding of key scientific processes and that science has changed our lives and that it is vital to the world’s future prosperity.

Sample Knowledge Organisers

(showing progression)

Curriculum Statement

Progression of skills