How we teach Science at Old Town

Rationale

At Old Town Infant School we believe that a high-quality science education provides the children the foundations for understanding the world around them. Science has impacted the world in many ways, and all pupils should be taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, processes and uses of science. Through building up a body of key knowledge and concepts, learners will be encouraged to understand how science can be used to explain what is happening around them. In terms of scientific enquiry, learners will begin to plan experiments, predicting what they think will happen and giving reasons why. They will then move on to collecting data and analysing results.

Our Science Curriculum aims to:

• Provide an exciting and thought-provoking curriculum that promotes and satisfies children's curiosity.
• Encourage children to question, explore and observe the world around them, so that they can make observations about both themselves and the environment.
• Help children to develop the skills needed to find out answers to their questions.
• Develop positive attitudes to science and increase children's scientific knowledge.
• Encourage children to be open-minded and to consider other's thoughts and ideas.
• Develop children's growth mind set when supporting them to work both collaboratively and independently.
• Instill a confidence to broaden children's vocabulary, using appropriate scientific language.
• Develop an ability to interpret findings critically and make links to what they already know about the world around them.
• Develop the skills of investigation - including observing, measuring, predicting, hypothesizing, experimenting, communicating, interpreting, explaining and evaluating.
• Foster concern about, and active care for our environment and the living things contained within.

Our main aim at Old Town Infant School is to develop children’s knowledge, skills and understanding. We encourage children to ask, as well as to answer, scientific questions about not only unfamiliar areas, but also concepts that they have experienced already.

Wherever possible, the children are involved in “real” scientific activities and investigations, and make links with other curriculum areas to maximise their learning opportunities.

We utilise the immediate locality around us to explore wildlife, habitats and physical changes to the natural world