Science 
Jesus said, “I have come in order that you might have life —life in all its fullness.”
(John 10:10)
Proud to be... Forever Riverside!
At Rochester Riverside, our Science learning is driven by our school vision. Everything we teach is aimed to help our children prosper by understanding and exploring two key concepts: "Who are we?" and "How do we live?"
We are curious, we explore, we question, we are scientists...we are Riverside!
In our class we are experimenting what will happen if we touch food when we have not washed our hands and when we have. I love science but especially like astronomy because it is about space but I do like all of science. - Andi September 2024.
Our Learning is rooted in Character Education: the philosophy with which to develop essential, powerful and procedural knowledge (skills) alongside attributes in order to enable our children to flourish both in school and in the wider community to become forever Riverside. (See our school vision)
Intent
At Rochester Riverside it is our aim to develop inspired pupils with constantly enquiring minds; who appreciate the way Science will affect their future on a personal, national and global level and who want to be actively involved in that scientific future. We believe that all children have a right to a broad, balanced and relevant education which provides continuity and progression and takes individual differences into accounts.
The expectations for each year group are underpinned by the National Curriculum and planned so that the children are able to flourish and build upon their previous learning.
We want our children to:
• Develop understanding of the nature, processes and methods of science through different types of science enquiries that help them to answer scientific questions about the world around them.
• Be equipped with the scientific skills required to understand the uses and implications of science, today and for the future. We understand that it is important for lessons to have a knowledge-based focus and that the scientific skills will be developed over time.
• Develop an enthusiasm and enjoyment of scientific learning and discovery.
Click here to view our science policy.
Implementation
At Rochester Riverside, from Early Years through to Year 6, we recognise the importance of Science in every aspect of daily life and want our children to develop a positive attitude towards their Science learning. We use our Science Pilgrim Progress (Review, Teach, Practise and Apply) to plan and teach the children’s next steps. It is a clear way to see each child's individual learning journey within Science and enables teachers and children to assess what has been learnt. It also informs teachers of the children who need further support with their learning. When additional needs are identified, we work to enable each child to overcome learning barriers and help create a pathway to success. Where necessary, targets can be included on the individual’s school-based plan which is used to monitor interventions and targeted support.
You can find the Pilgrim Progress for each year group below.
Our Rochester Riverside Science Map
Science topics are planned and taught to enable the children to build on their prior knowledge.
Impact
Assessments are carried out for a variety of purposes:
• Ongoing assessment (through observation in the EYFS) is an informal part of every lesson. The purpose is to inform the teacher of pupils’ learning and therefore future planning.
• Work is marked according to the scientific learning objectives, referring to other curriculum areas such as spelling or maths. Developmental marking should specifically move forward the individual child’s science learning.
• Success Criteria are regularly used to enable children to meet the science expectation of the lesson and to help facilitate self and peer assessment of progress.
• End of unit teacher assessments are advised to build a picture of a child’s ability across all strands of Science (also paying specific attention to Scientific Enquiry ability) through the year, enabling the teacher to report an accurate statement on the child’s knowledge, skills and understanding at the end of the academic year.
• Parents are informed of children’s progress throughout the year.
• Monitoring of science is the role of the co-ordinator and Senior Leadership Team and can take the form of learning walks, lesson observations, book scrutiny and pupil interviews.
• Year 2 and Year 6 complete teacher assessments as is the current statutory requirement.
Take a look at our science learning in Reception...
Take a look at our Science learning in Year 1 and Year 2
We have been learning all about how to keep our bodies healthy. We enjoyed making a healthy fruit salad.
Science Week 2024
During Science week, we took part in a number of scientific activities and experiments. Little Nell Class had the task to try and create a bridge using a range of given resources. We then had to test the strength of our bridges. The task involved lots of co-operation and problem solving skills.
In Oliver Twist, we decided to do an experiment with gummy bears.
To begin with, we learnt what a prediction was and then made our own predictions on what we thought would happen to the gummy bears when they were put in different types of water. We had some great predictions and really thought about our ideas.
After we made our predictions, we put the gummy bears into 4 different types of water - cold, hot, sugared and salty. We observed the gummy bears throughout the day and noted the changes that were happening. By the end of the day, the gummy bear that was in cold water has grown much bigger! The gummy bear in the hot water had lost its colour as it had run in the water. The sugared water gummy bear had also got bigger and was much slimier than the others. Finally the salt water gummy bear had shrunk and started to dissolve.
We were great scientists and loved investigating whilst observing the changes over time, it took about an hour for us to see any changes! Miss Oakey forgot to take pictures at the end but we can tell you all about how they had changed!
British Science Week
Our love of reading!
At Rochester Riverside we share a real love of reading and this helps to develop our love of Science too. Take a look at some of the books that we have enjoyed sharing.
Listen to some stories we have loved sharing together, click on the picture...
Useful websites and things you can do at home...
