Science
Science – Curriculum Intent Statement
Purpose of the Subject
Through science, we aim to nurture children’s curiosity, critical thinking and understanding of the world around them. We want pupils to develop a sense of wonder, ask thoughtful questions and build secure scientific knowledge that helps them make sense of natural phenomena, living things and the physical world. Our science curriculum reflects the diverse nature of our school community, ensuring that every child sees themselves as a scientist who can investigate, discover and contribute to scientific understanding. We want children to feel confident, empowered and excited by the possibilities of science.
Alignment with the National Curriculum
In line with the National Curriculum, we teach children to:
- Develop scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding across biology, chemistry and physics.
- Understand the nature, processes and methods of science through different types of scientific enquiry.
- Use scientific skills to answer questions, gather evidence, make predictions and draw conclusions.
- Apply scientific knowledge to real‑world contexts, understanding how science shapes our lives and futures.
Curriculum Coverage
Our science curriculum provides:
- Mirrors – opportunities for children to see their own identities, cultures and experiences reflected in scientific role models, contexts and examples.
- Windows – opportunities to explore scientific ideas, discoveries and perspectives from around the world.
We select content from the National Curriculum and design meaningful, practical and engaging projects that connect to pupils’ lives, interests and the unique community we serve. Each unit includes opportunities for hands‑on investigation, conceptual understanding and scientific reasoning.
Curriculum Progression
Our science curriculum is built around four interrelated strands of knowledge:
1. Procedural Knowledge (Working Scientifically)
Procedural knowledge represents the practical skills children need to carry out scientific enquiry. These skills are mapped in a vertically integrated progression from EYFS to Year 6, ensuring pupils revisit and deepen their understanding over time. For example, children begin by observing closely and asking simple questions, progressing to planning fair tests, taking accurate measurements and presenting findings using scientific language. SOLO taxonomy supports this progression, enabling pupils to move from basic enquiry to mastery.
2. Disciplinary Knowledge (The “Big Ideas” of Science)
Disciplinary knowledge represents the conceptual frameworks that underpin scientific thinking. These include:
- Deep Conceptual Understanding – Ensuring children move beyond isolated facts to develop a secure understanding of key ideas, enabling them to make meaningful connections and apply their knowledge in different contexts.
- Inquiry and Scientific Thinking – Encouraging children to ask and answer scientific questions, fostering curiosity and a genuine desire to explore and understand the world around them.
- Excitement and Wonder – Creating opportunities for children to experience the awe and wonder of science, sparking enthusiasm and inspiring aspirations to become future scientists.
These concepts are taught, revisited and applied in every year group, helping children understand how scientific knowledge is developed, tested and refined.
3. Substantive Knowledge (The Content We Teach)
Substantive knowledge represents the specific scientific content children learn—such as forces, materials, habitats, light, electricity, evolution or the human body. This knowledge is presented as clear learning outcomes that detail what pupils should know and remember. Content is chosen to reflect our community, celebrate diversity in science and ensure that all children see themselves as capable scientific thinkers.
4. Substantive Concepts
Substantive concepts are recurring ideas that appear across the science curriculum, such as energy, matter, change, system, adaptation, force and interaction. These concepts are explored in different contexts across year groups, helping children build familiarity, confidence and deeper scientific understanding.
Repetition and Retrieval
Our science curriculum is built on high levels of repetition to ensure that children remember more and can do more as they progress through school. Procedural and disciplinary knowledge are revisited in every year group, allowing pupils to apply skills with increasing independence. Substantive concepts reappear across units, enabling children to make connections and strengthen long‑term understanding. Retrieval practice is embedded within lessons and across terms, ensuring that key knowledge is revisited, secured and stored in long‑term memory.
Assessment
Assessment in science focuses on pupils’ ability to apply scientific knowledge, enquiry skills and reasoning. We assess pupils through:
- Practical investigations
- Scientific discussions and explanations
- Written outcomes / enquiry tasks
- End of unit assessments
These assessments provide insight into how well children understand scientific concepts, how confidently they can work scientifically and how effectively they can think and reason like scientists.