Science
Curriculum Overview - Science
Rationale
At St Aidan’s Academy we are committed to providing a stimulating, engaging and intellectually challenging learning environment to enable all our pupils to develop scientific consciousness, from the subatomic to the intergalactic. We aim to give all pupils a strong understanding of the world around them whilst acquiring specific skills and knowledge to help them to think scientifically, to gain an understanding of scientific processes and an understanding of the uses and implications of Science, today and for the future. At St Aidan’s, scientific enquiry skills are embedded in each topic the pupils study and these topics are revisited and developed throughout their time at school. This model allows pupils to build upon their prior knowledge and increases their enthusiasm for the topics whilst embedding this procedural knowledge into the long-term memory.
Intent
Science is about figuring out how the world around us works, by building up a set of facts that other people have worked out from doing experiments and observing what is happening. We study Science at St Aidan’s Academy because we love knowing how our world works. We love it when something that was a total mystery to us before suddenly makes sense. We love knowing how the lights come on, and why our Earth doesn’t crash into the Sun. We love knowing why chemical reactions happen, and we love being able to predict things that we’ve never seen. We love knowing how our bodies work, and how we grow, and why we need to eat, and what happens when we don’t. We love seeing amazing things happen in front of us, and trying to work out together what we’re seeing, and making sense of it all. We love working things out. Science matters because knowing how the world works isn’t easy. At St Aidan’s Academy we want our pupils to know that asking questions is the key to understanding what is going on. We believe that studying Science helps us to be able to ask questions. Making sense of our world can sometimes be hard, and we believe that Science helps us to do that. Science as a subject also opens doors! Key Stage 3 leads to GCSE, which can lead to A Levels, BTEC, apprenticeships, college, further education and employment. Science opens all of these doors. However, the real reason that Science matters to pupils is because questions are there to be answered. Knowing how our world works is a great achievement in itself. Being able to explain the structure of an atom, how our hearts work, why doors open when we push them - these are all great achievements. Having two GCSEs in Science is a great achievement. Being able to go to college to do A Levels, completing an apprenticeship in a trade or a technical field, going on to university, getting a good job that makes us feel fulfilled. These are all great achievements, and all of them are made easier by a good knowledge of Science, and by doing well in Science.
Implementation
At St. Aidan’s, scientific enquiry skills are embedded in each topic the pupils study and these topics are revisited and developed throughout their time at school. This model allows pupils to build upon their prior knowledge and increases their enthusiasm for the topics whilst embedding this procedural knowledge into the long-term memory. All pupils are supported to develop and use a range of skills including observations, planning and investigations, as well as being encouraged to become independent learners in exploring possible answers for their scientific based questions. A range of retrieval tasks and activities are implemented consistently within science lessons, to ensure pupils understand and can recollect basic and complex content. Previous learning is revisited frequently to strengthen the pathway between the working and long-term memory in pupils, further supporting our pupils’ ability to recall content and apply it to exam situations. Our Key Stage 3 curriculum in Science is rooted in inspiring pupils to develop their key knowledge and practical skills, as well as a keen focus on guiding all pupils to become fluent in the language of Science. We cover the national curriculum and ensure all pupils have a firm grasp of concepts they will need as they progress through their Science journey at St. Aidan’s. Pupils begin by learning the cornerstones of Scientific understanding across all three disciplines such as the Structure of the Atom, Cells, and Forces. These are then built upon as pupils’ understanding and Scientific vocabulary continues to evolve from year 7 to Year 9. This ensures the National Curriculum is covered. Our curriculum also builds in key opportunities to develop pupils’ hands on practical skills, encouraging them to ask questions and seek answers through the Scientific method. In year 10 our students will begin to study their GCSE’s by undertaking the Pearson 9-1 Combined Science route. Our Combined Science pathway offers opportunities to refine key transferable skills such as logical thinking, application of mathematical skills and the understanding of abstract concepts. This can lead to pathways beyond St. Aidan’s which can include A-levels in Chemistry, Physics or Biology as well as BTEC study in Applied Science or Health and Social Care. Outside of the classroom, our Science pupils will be given the opportunity to enrich their knowledge and passion for the subject through some of our exciting trips.
Impact
The Impact will be scientifically literate citizens. Science literacy is important because it provides a context for addressing societal problems, and because a science- literate populace can better cope with many of its problems and make intelligent and informed decisions that will affect the quality of their lives and those of their pupils. Pupils will have a much broader vocabulary with which to understand the world. They will continue to have a sense of awe and wonder of the world and see the problems and possible solutions that Science can give to the human civilisation.
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