Science
At The Vale Primary Academy, we teach pupils to be scientists. For this to happen, our science curriculum is underpinned by three core principles;
1) Where-ever possible, pupils learn through practical, hands on experiences
2) Pupils learn facts and build knowledge over time, using precise scientific vocabulary
3) Pupils learn and improve the skills of a scientist
As pupils enter our Foundation Stage, opportunities for investigation, exploration and critical thinking are all around. Provision is carefully planned through key themes such as seasons, physical changes, and growing and planting. These support pupils develop a range of scientific enquiry skills and in becoming scientific explorers. They are guided to ask questions, test their ideas and seek answers. These are the fundamental skills of a scientist.
As pupils move through the academy, the National Curriculum is sequenced in a way which builds knowledge and skills over time. They are given opportunities to ask questions and test their own ideas. For example, ‘How can I prove that water is transported from the roots into the leaves of a plant?’
Practical resources and activities help bring science alive in the classroom. For example, pupils in Y4 learn about digestion by making and simulating the actions of an intestine. Y6 pupils learn about electrical components by making a burglar alarm.
Science is further enhanced because it is carefully threaded into the Reading Enhanced Curriculum (REC). Additional enhancements to the National Curriculum include, for example, learning about Charles Darwin in Y6 through the text On the Origin of Species by Sabina Radeva, or learning more about dinosaurs in Y1 with Gigantosaurus, written by Jonny Duddle.