Science

Covid-19 has put science in the public eye like never before. The important roles that scientists have and their contributions to everyday life are acknowledged and appreciated more than ever before. We would like to encourage students to see their role, the contributions they could make and to let them see themselves as scientists instead of just passively observing doing the work of science. Whether that is just on a personal level, with the decisions they make or to allow them see that a science-based career pathway can be accessed by our students.

A high-quality science education provides the foundations for understanding the world through the specific disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics. Science has changed our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity, and all pupils should be taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, processes and uses of science. There are individual benefits to learning science, such as developing the ability to ask questions, collect information, organise and test ideas, solve problems, and apply what we learn. Even more, science offers a powerful platform for building confidence, developing communication skills, while making sense of the world around us. We like to create a positive atmosphere for students to explore scientific ideas, while extending these transferable skills.

All students study Science.  We aim to make the subject content accessible by making interesting and relevant. We break down the content into blocks and each of the main scientific themes are revisited and built upon as student progresses along our science pathways. We aim to use a wide range of teaching techniques, with opportunities for all students to access the content they need to become successful scientists. We use a variety of scaffolding techniques to support student and give open ended tasks to allow the most able to be stretched and challenged. We provide opportunities to develop study skills as well as exploring concepts through experimentation.

We have developed Project blocks which either support the learning or introduces new learning in a real-world example. This encourages, and rewards, reading to enhance a student understanding and application of their science knowledge. We also have specific reading tasks embedded into the curricula which are aimed at inviting students to choose to extend their reading practice.

Recommended Reading:

Encouraging students to be more science aware by reading blogs, such as  https://www.mrbondscienceguy.com/science-blog or https://wowscience.co.uk/blog/ or by exploring the websites of NASA, National Geographic or Science Museum.

The following are suggestions of books to consider, but the list of reading that is relevant is varied and should be adjusted to meet your own personal areas of interest.

Fiction at KS3 include the two entertaining books that have a science base are, Itch series: “Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter” (by Simon Mayo) and “Tesla’s Attic” (The Accelerati Trilogy) by Neal Shusterman & Eric Elfman. There are many, many more examples.

Non-fiction books include the horrible science series for younger students. A Short History of Nearly Everything (by Bill Bryson) or “Why does asparagus make your wee smell” (by Andy Brunning) would be more suitable for older students.

We aim to create an environment where all students feel able to offer contributions from their own experiences, interests and identities, knowing that these are valued. We build on the students interests, knowledge of local communities and try to personalise their learning. We talk about the wildlife at Ferry Meadows or the limestone of Peterborough Cathedral. 

We hope to be able to offer the following enrichment activities to cater for as many students as possible across all year groups.

  • Lego Club
  • Science club
  • Bronze CREST Award
  • Chick hatching
  • Ferry Meadows ecology trip
  • Visit to CERN

Curriculum Map

Here you can browse the curriculum maps for each Key Stage. Use the tabs to select the subject and key stage you wish to view, and use the left & right arrows to browse through the slides.

Key Stage 3 Science Projects

As mentioned above, we have developed Project blocks which supports or introduces new learning using real-world examples, with students being given one project to study per year within Key Stage 3. The graphic below shows the projects that students will study over Key Stage 3.