Science Overview
At Sandling Primary School, our science curriculum is designed to inspire curiosity and foster our PRACTISE values through topics such as plants, electricity, sound, and space. By teaching key scientific skills like asking questions, making observations, gathering data, and presenting findings, we encourage students to become problem solvers and develop resilience. Exploring the wonders of space and the natural world nurtures an adventurous spirit, while hands-on and open-ended experiments stimulate creativity. Collaborative projects and experiments build teamwork skills, and individual research promotes independence. As students confidently present their findings, they gain self-assurance and esteem, equipping them with a strong foundation for lifelong learning and future success.
What our pupils say about their science learning
| “I really enjoyed planting seeds with my group and watching them group into strawberry plants. We had to water them and leave them out in the sun so they can grow. We haven’t eaten them yet because we are still waiting for them to become ripe!" Lily - Year 1 |
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“We learnt about lots of different animals in science and my favourite lesson was when the ‘Bug Man’ came into school. We learnt that there is a difference between turtles, tortoises and terrapins. Turtles live in water, tortoise live on land (although they do like their bath time!), and terrapins live on land and in water, and they enjoy basking in the sunlight!" William - Year 3 |
| “I enjoyed learning about animals and their habitats - learning about animals is my favourite. I found it sad that polar bears’ habitats are being destroyed, and that the fish in our oceans are being overfished. I also got to build my own electrical circuit which included a buzzer and a light bulb, that was pretty cool." Joshua - Year 4 |
| “I enjoyed learning about space because I learnt lots of things that I didn’t know at the beginning of the year. I learnt that the planet closest to the sun, Mercury, is the hottest, and that the planet furthest away, Neptune, is the coldest. I also learnt that the sun is the centre of our solar system which is the Heliocentric model." Fred - Year 5 |
| “Evolution was a really interesting topic in science this year, in particular when we learnt about how the same animals had evolved in different places across the world, and how this caused them to adapt in different ways so that they could survive in their different habitats." Poppy – Year 6 |
Within our science curriculum, we break our learning down into:
- Substantive Knowledge
This is knowledge of the products of science, such as models, laws and theories. This is taught through concepts such as Plants, Materials and Electricity that pupils revisit throughout their time at Sandling.
- Disciplinary Knowledge
This is knowledge of the practices of science (working scientifically) – it is how scientists learn about, ask questions and understand the world around them. This teaches pupils how scientific knowledge becomes established and gets revised.
This is taught through second-order concepts such as Ask Questions, Make Observations and Plan which pupils revisit throughout their time at Sandling.
Whole School Long Term Plan
| Name | |
|---|---|
| Science Long Term Plan.pdf | Download |
Year Group Medium Term Plans
Please contact the Science Lead via the school office if you have any further questions.
