Woodley Primary School
Science delivered in different ways
Summary of Content
This school places an emphasis on children
managing their own learning in Science and
we have included some of the interesting
ways they deliver the curriculum here.
You can see from the pupil comments that this
approach has enabled the children to be very
analytical – a vital skill in Science.
What the school says
We are continually seeking to develop open and enquiring
learners who can transfer skills and attitudes across
curriculum areas into the wider world.
We focus on providing a variety of opportunities for children and
adults to manage themselves more effectively with a
developing self-awareness, enabling them to learn in teams,
communicate effectively, cope with challenges effectively etc
This focus on improving personal capabilities is designed to
develop a range of skills and capabilities that lead to better
learning not only in Science, but in all aspects of life.
Year 2 - Making from
Memory – circuits
Diagrams of circuits were placed around the room
- some that work, and some that do not.
Children went around the room and predicted,
using table, which circuits will “work”.
Lots of discussion ensued.
In pairs, children construct circuits and test their
predictions.
Children describe/explain what happened.
With this activity we found.....
The children were engaged and
on task all the time.
There was a purposeful
discussion between the
children where they used
their knowledge to reason
and make predictions.
There was also use of technical
vocabulary, team work and
questioning.
There were also
opportunities to make
assessments on children’s
understanding and
application of their subject
knowledge.
Teeth and Healthy Eating
This was a diamond ranking group activity in which small groups
of children ranked the cards in terms of how important they
considered them for preventing tooth decay
This activity was really
good to make the
children explain to each
other “why” they
thought one was more
important than another.
It enabled the teacher
to assess which children
had understood the
learning done on
preventing tooth decay.
Linking ideas
The children were given pictures
of everyday objects and asked to
comment on any aspect of
Science they noticed.
Children’s comments ....
I liked discussing ideas with my
partner.
I thought this activity was a good way of
linking a basic picture to scientific facts.
I liked this lesson because it made me
think. Also, I liked linking our ideas and I
think we should do it more often because
it helps me remember some science I may
have forgotten
Reproduce a picture from memory
Show the children a picture (with a Science theme) and
ask them (in groups) to reproduce it from memory.
This develops key observation skills which are vital in
Science and means they select important features.
It also encourages communication, listening,
cooperation, respecting the views of others, planning
and team work.
The school found these documents useful ...
Northern Ireland Curriculum (Developing personal capabilities)
Tools for thinking – personal capabilities. A Stockport document
What we will do next
We plan to extend this by looking for further
opportunities to include the ‘memory’
activity to support learning in a range of
activities using e.g. diagrams, objects, mind
maps, concept maps etc.