Science
At Holy Family, our aim is that all pupils are equipped with the scientific knowledge required to understand the uses and implications of science, today and for the future. Children will be encouraged to work and think scientifically, developing experimental and investigative skills and using scientific vocabulary to express their findings and theories.
We believe that children have a natural sense of awe and wonder in the world around them and through high quality teaching and learning we aim to support them to develop a secure science knowledge base, and encourage them to ask questions and make predictions to further develop their scientific enquiry skills.
EYFS
In the foundation stage, children will be introduced indirectly to science through the Specific areas of Understanding the World, Expressive Arts and Design and the Prime area of Physical development. Through first hand experiences, children will begin to explore, observe, problem solve, predict, and think critically and gain a wider experience of the world around them. Children will be encouraged to make decisions and discuss creatures, people, plants and objects in their natural environments and staff will ask relevant, open-ended questions, to help children to think critically and make connections between ideas. Through carefully planned and appropriate adult led activities, following the children's interests, providing an enabling environment (both inside and out of the classroom) and allowing the children to explore, investigate and make sense of their environments independently, we hope to foster a love of science and develop the children's scientific skills and understanding.
Key Stage 1
During key stage 1 we enable pupils to experience and observe phenomena, looking more closely at the natural and humanly constructed world around them. They are encouraged to be curious and ask questions about what they notice and will be helped to develop their understanding of scientific ideas by using different types of scientific enquiry. They will begin to use simple scientific language to talk about what they have found out and communicate their ideas in a variety of ways. Most of the learning about science will be done through the use of first-hand practical experiences.
During Years 1 and 2, children will study the following aspects:
* Plants
* Animals, including humans
* Seasonal changes
* Everyday materials and their uses
* Living things and their habitats
Lower Key Stage 2
The principal focus of science teaching in Years 3 and 4 is to enable pupils to broaden their scientific view of the world around them. They should ask their own questions about what they observe and make some decisions about which types of scientific enquiry are likely to be the best ways of answering them. They should also draw simple conclusions and use some scientific language, first, to talk about and later, to write about what they have found out.
During Years 3 & 4 children will study the following aspects:
*Plants
*Animals, including humans
*Light
*Forces and magnets
*Living things and their habitats
*States of matter
*Sound
*Electricity
Upper Key Stage 2
During years 5 & 6, pupils develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of scientific ideas. They will do this through exploring and talking about their ideas; asking their own questions about scientific phenomena; and analysing functions, relationships and interactions more systematically. They will also begin to recognise that scientific ideas change and develop over time and will learn to select the most appropriate ways to answer science questions using different types of scientific enquiry. Pupils will draw conclusions based on their data and observations, use evidence to justify their ideas, and use their scientific knowledge and understanding to explain their findings.
During Years 5 & 6 children will study the following aspects
*Living things and their habitats
*Animals, including human
*Properties and changes of materials
*Earth and Space
*Forces
*Evolution and inheritance
*Electricity
*Light