Knowledge

• To know and name external body parts in humans.

• To know and name some senses and say which body part is associated with each sense.

Vocabulary

Eyes, ears, nose, face, legs, arms, elbows, knees, feet, toes, hands, finger tongues, hearing, seeing, tasting.

Knowledge

• To know a variety of common animals that are birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles and mammals.
• To know a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores.
• To describe and compare the structure of a variety of common animals.
• To identify, name, draw and label the basic parts of the human body and say which part is associated with which sense.

Vocabulary

head, neck arms, elbows, legs, knees, face, ears, eyes, hair, mouth, teeth, tongue, feet, hands, torso, skin, senses, hearing, touch, smell, sight, taste, characteristics, birds, fish, feathers, cold-blooded, warm-blooded, scales, breathe, lay, young, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, diet, carnivore, omnivore, herbivore

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• List features that people have in common and correctly label a human body (identifying and classifying)
• Using their senses to compare different textures, tastes, sounds and smells (observe closely, using simple equipment, use observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions)
• Identify the differences and similarities between animals (identifying and classifying, gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)
• Sorting animals into the correct classification in the form of a table (gathering and recording data to help in answering questions; identifying and classifying )
• Sorting animals according to their diets in the form of a table (gathering and recording data to help in answering questions; identifying and classifying )

Knowledge

• To notice that animals, including humans, have offspring which grow into adults. 
• To find out about and describe the basic needs of animals, including humans, for survival (water, food and air)
• To describe the importance for humans of exercise, eating the right amounts of different types of food and hygiene.

Vocabulary

offspring, growth, lifecycle, stage, reproduce, human lifecycle, child, teenager, adult, limbs, question, measure, test, record

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum )

• Identify features of babies (observe closely, using simple equipment, use observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions)
• Label pictures and write sentences explaining what animals need to survive (use observations and ideas to answer simple questions)
• Perform a comparative test to identify which activities make our bodies work harder (perform simple tests, gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)
• Sort foods into healthy and unhealthy foods (identify and classify)

Knowledge

• To identify that animals, including humans, need the right types and amounts of nutrition, and they cannot make their own food; they get nutrition from what they eat.
• To identify that humans and some other animals have skeletons and muscles for support, protection and movement. 

Vocabulary

nutrition, carbohydrates, fat, protein, calcium, dairy, energy, growth, carnivore, herbivore, omnivore, domesticated, pet, environment, diet, behaviour, company, health and welfare, skeleton, skull, ribcage, spine, joints, organs, protection, support, movement, muscles, triceps, bicep, relax, contract, joints, investigation, pattern, comparative, prediction, data, analysis, scatter graph

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Organise food into food groups to demonstrate a balanced and healthy diet (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, using straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings)
• Use known websites or other secondary sources to research the diets of pets (asking relevant questions and using different types of scientific enquiries to answer them)
• Observe the movement of and sort animals with and without skeletons to identify similarities and differences (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)
• Create a model of muscles to develop scientific understanding of how muscles contract and relax (using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)
• Set up a simple, comparative practical enquiry which is a fair test, make predictions, collect & analyse data (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables, reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions, using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)

Knowledge

• To describe the simple functions of the basic parts of the digestive system in humans
• To identify the different types of teeth in humans and their simple functions
• To construct and interpret a variety of food chains, identifying producers predators and prey

Vocabulary

teeth, incisors, molars, premolars, canines, omnivore, herbivore, carnivore, adaptation, digestive system, mouth, tongue, teeth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, acids, nutrients, bloodstream, waste, rectum, anus, food chain, producer, primary/secondary/tertiary consumer, prey, predator, energy 

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Set up and monitor an experiment to see how different liquids affect our teeth (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions)
• Make a judgement about an animal ‘s diet by looking at its teeth (using straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings)
• Create a model of the stomach to see the properties a stomach needs if the capacity needs to increase (recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Set up a simple practical enquiry, make observations, record the results and explain a process (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables, reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions, using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)
• Sort living things according to their role in a food chain and then according to their habitat (identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)

Knowledge

• To describe the changes as humans grow to old age.

Vocabulary

embryo, foetus, toddler, adolescent, stages, lifecycle, hormones, genes, DNA,  hypothesis, line graph, causal relationships, comparative test, scientific enquiry, puberty, pubic hair, breasts, oestrogen, testosterone, pituitary gland, reproduction, menstruation, hormones, periods, chemical, mass, gestation period, womb, viviparous, zygote

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• Map, label and ask questions about the lifecycle of a human (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Identify casual relationships and present findings from an investigation about how we grow (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Categorise changes according to whether they happen to males or females. (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Know that scientists can monitor gestation periods (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)

Knowledge

• To identify and name the main parts of the human circulatory system and describe the functions of the heart, blood vessels and blood
• To recognise the impact of diet, exercise, drugs and lifestyle on the ways their bodies function
• To describe the ways in which nutrients and water are transported within animals including humans

Vocabulary

circulatory system, heart, organ, blood vessels, arteries, veins, capillaries, living cells, pump, oxygen, carbon dioxide, deoxygenated, oxygenated, platelets, plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells, antibodies, double circulatory system, single circulatory system, open/closed single circulatory system, vertebrates, invertebrates

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Use scientific diagrams and annotations to explain a scientific process (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Create a model of blood, keeping proportions accurate (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Plan, and carry out an investigation to explore the relationships between the types of exercise we can do and heart rate, present findings and draw conclusions (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Learn about William Harvey (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)

Prior Related Knowledge

• To observe changes across 4 seasons.
  
• To observe and describe weather associated with the seasons and how day length varies

Prior Related Knowledge

• To recognise that they need light in order to see things and that dark is the absence of light
  
• To notice that light is reflected from surfaces
• To recognise that light from the sun can be dangerous and that there are ways to protect their eyes
• To recognise that shadows are formed when the light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object
• To find patterns in the way that the size of shadows change

Knowledge

• To describe the movement of the Earth and other planets relative to the sun in the solar system
• To describe the movement of the moon relative to the Earth
• To describe the sun, Earth and moon as approximately spherical bodies
• To use the idea of the Earth’s rotation to explain day and night and the apparent movement of the sun across the sky

Vocabulary

orbit, solar system, Earth, sun, moon, planet, atmosphere, star, scale, heliocentric, geocentric, planetary movement, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, rotate, orbit, axis, hours, daytime, night-time, seasons, shadows, position (of the sun), rotate, pattern-seeking, investigation

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum) 

• Create a model to understand the movement of Earth in relation to the sun and moon (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Understand the theory of a heliocentric universe (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Create a to-scale model of the Solar System to understand distances and sizes (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Use a model to understand the movement of the Earth (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Plan a pattern-seeking investigation to identify how shadows change throughout the day, take accurate measurements then present data. Draw conclusions from this data. (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)

Prior Related Knowledge

• To distinguish between an object and the material from which it is made
  
• To identify and name a variety of everyday materials, including wood, plastic, glass, metal, water and rock
• To describe the simple physical properties of a variety of everyday materials
• To compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of their simple physical properties.

Knowledge

• To identify common appliances that run on electricity
• To construct a simple series electrical circuit, identifying and naming its basic parts, including cells, wires, bulbs, switches and buzzers
• To identify whether or not a lamp will light in a simple series circuit, based on whether or not the lamp is part of a complete loop with a battery
• To recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit
• To recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors

Vocabulary

appliance, mains electricity, battery, generated, power station, pylon, plug, socket, convert, electrical energy, series circuit, component, bulb (lamp), bulb (lamp) holder, buzzer, cell, battery (power source), wire, crocodile clip, switch, electrical conductor, electrical insulator, device

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Make systematic and careful observations about how appliances convert electrical energy (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Identify the work of Erik Bystrup (identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)
• Sort devices according to whether they use mains or battery electricity (identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)
• Build a circuit and investigate if by adding all components, a lightbulb will light up (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Investigate how switches work (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Set up a comparative test (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests)
• Learn about Benjamin Franklin (identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)
• Design diagrams and create functional objects (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions)

Knowledge

• To associate the brightness of a lamp or the volume of a buzzer with the number and voltage of cells used in the circuit.
• To compare and give reasons for variations in how components function, including the brightness of bulbs, the loudness of buzzers and the on/off position of switches.
• To use recognised symbols when representing a simple circuit in a diagram

Vocabulary

series circuit, cell, battery, symbol, component, voltage, variable, fair test, accuracy

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Create circuits of increasing complexity and represent them using diagrams, annotated with labels (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)
• Know how scientists have developed ideas over time - Nikolas Tesla (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Carry out a supported fair test to discover the brightness of a bulb (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Record with increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels the different ways to affect the function of a component in a circuit (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Plan a scientific enquiry to make a working device (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)

Prior Related Knowledge

• To know that living things move, grow, consume nutrients and reproduce; that dead things used to do these things, but no longer do; and that things that never lived have never done these things.
• To know that polar bears are an example of an animal adapted to its environment – thick fur for warmth and oily paw pads to ensure that they don’t freeze to the ice.
• To know that sharks are another example – smooth skin and streamlined shape for quick swimming; and gills for breathing underwater
• To know that cacti are an example of a plant adapted to its environment – thick skin keeps a store of water safe; sharp spikes keep animals from stealing the water
• To know that pine trees have thick bark and pine cones to protect against cold winters
• To know that woodlice live under logs – an example of a microhabitat - as they need somewhere dark and damp so that they do not dry out
• To know that frogs can live in ponds – an example of a microhabitat - as they water in which to lay their eggs (frogspawn).

Prior Related Knowledge

• To know that fossils form when a plant or animal dies and is quickly covered with silt or mud so that it cannot be rotted by microbes or eaten by scavenging animals; in time layers of sediment build, squashing the mud and turning it to stone around the dead plant or animal; the materials in the body are replaced by minerals that flow in water through the rock, leaving a rock in the shape of the animal or plant that was once there.

Prior Related Knowledge

• To describe how living things are classified into broad groups according to common observable characteristics and based on similarities and differences, including micro-organisms, plants and animals
• To give reasons for classifying plants and animals based on specific characteristics

Knowledge

• To recognise that living things have changed over time and that fossils provide information about living things that inhabited the Earth millions of years ago
• To recognise that living things produce offspring of the same kind, but normally offspring vary and are not identical to their parents
• To identify how animals and plants are adapted to suit their environment in different ways and that adaptation may lead to evolution

Vocabulary

evolution, generation, natural selection, mould fossils, body fossils, trace fossil, cast fossil, fossil record, species, fossil record, diversity, species, variation, siblings, inheritance, inherited variation, environmental variation, selective-breeding, crossbreed, characteristics, traits,  habitats, adaptation, traits, characteristics organism, climate, extinction, adaptation, pollinators

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Observe closely to identify inherited characteristics in a range of living things (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)
• Analyse how cross/selective breeding has led to animals with certain inherited characteristics (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Consider the advantages and disadvantages of selective breeding (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Know how Charles Darwin conducted scientific studies to inform his theory of evolution (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Analyse how different circumstances may lead to natural selection and evolution (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Compare the adaptations of animals in different habitats (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Use and apply knowledge of climate change to consider what this means for the adaptation of living things (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Observe and raise questions about how local plants are adapted to their environment; if possible, use microscopes to look at roots (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)

Knowledge

• Explore answers to questions such as, “What do you think will happen?” if I roll this car down the shiny ramp?  “Why the elephant sink and the boat float?"
• Articulating and solving day-to-day problems together with teachers.  “How can we make the playdough longer?”

We enable this by:

• Providing open-ended play materials inside and outdoors.
• Offering different resources for exploration of push, pull and twist: using puppets, reading pop-up books, performing action rhymes, threading beads, digging and lifting sand, riding bikes and playing percussion instruments.
• Manipulating playdough with tools such as cookie cutters, safe scissors, and small rolling pins.
• Building, stacking, and balancing blocks of varied shapes and sizes.
• Opportunities to investigate floating & sinking as part of water play activities.

Vocabulary

Push, pull, slide, spin, roll, squeeze, stretch, twisting, bounce, float, sink.

Prior Related Knowledge

• To identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses
• To find out how the shapes of solid objects made from some materials can be changed by squashing, bending, twisting and stretching

Knowledge

• To compare how things move on different surfaces
• To notice that some forces need contact between 2 objects, but magnetic forces can act at a distance
• To observe how magnets attract or repel each other and attract some materials and not others
• To compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of whether they are attracted to a magnet, and identify some magnetic materials
• To describe magnets as having 2 poles
• To predict whether 2 magnets will attract or repel each other, depending on which poles are facing

Vocabulary

force, contact force, push, pull, friction, resistance, surface, movement, method, fair test, variable, conclusion, gravity, magnet, magnetism, magnetic field, attract, repel, magnetic objects, north pole, south pole, metal, iron, steel, nickel, horseshoe magnet, bar magnet, ring magnet, strength of magnetic field

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Understand why tests should be fair and control all but one variable (the surface the car travels on). (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests)
• Independently set up an investigation, use equipment to measure how far cars travel and analyse results (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Make systematic observations, testing the strength of magnetism from different distances and predict whether two magnets will attract or repel each other, depending on which poles are facing (using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)
• Sort into groups objects that are attracted to magnets and those that are not (recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Measure the strength of a magnet by working out how many sheets of paper need to be in the way before a paperclip is no longer attracted (using straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings)

Knowledge

• To explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object
• To identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces
• To recognise that some mechanisms including levers, pulleys and gears allow a smaller force to have a greater effect

Vocabulary

friction, resistance, force-meter, contact force, gravity, gravitational pull, mass, matter, air resistance, water resistance, drag, upthrust, float, sink, streamlined, displace, simple machine, lever, pulley, gear (driver/follower), transmission, mesh, axle, effort, load, fulcrum, pivot, mechanisms, redirecting force

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• Plan a scientific enquiry, take accurate measurements with a force-meter, use diagrams and present findings (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Identify the scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas about gravity - Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Plan and carry out a scientific enquiry, making choices about the variables to be changed to test the impact of air resistance (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)
• Use knowledge of water resistance to make predictions (using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests)
• Use diagrams and labels to show the direction of a range of forces (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)

Knowledge

• To recognise that they need light in order to see things and that dark is the absence of light
• To notice that light is reflected from surfaces
• To recognise that light from the sun can be dangerous and that there are ways to protect their eyes
• To recognise that shadows are formed when the light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object
• To find patterns in the way that the size of shadows change

Vocabulary

light, reflect, light source, visible, visibility, dark, shiny, bright, dull, matt, mirror, reflection, reflect, angle, opaque, translucent, transparent, shadows, position, direction, filters, UV rays, protection, retina, pupil, damage, sunrise, sunset, rotation, compass direction

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Set up a simple comparative test to see which materials can be seen in low light (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests, making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Make careful observations when using mirrors, to learn how light behaves when it is reflected (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Report findings about keeping eyes safe in the sun (reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions)
• Collectively set up a simple comparative and fair test to see how shadows change over the course of the day (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests, making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)

Knowledge

• To recognise that light appears to travel in straight lines
• Use the idea that light travels in straight lines to explain that objects are seen because they give out or reflect light into the eye
• Explain that we see things because light travels from light sources to our eyes or from light sources to objects and then to our eyes
• Use the idea that light travels in straight lines to explain why shadows have the same shape as the objects that cast them

Vocabulary

energy, beam, ray, reflect, light source, shadow, cast, object, distortion, factor, incident ray, reflected ray, angle of incidence, angle of reflection, normal line, phenomena/phenomenon, refraction, change direction, phenomena/phenomenon, refraction, spectrum, prism

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Record findings from enquiry to find out whether light travels in straight lines (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Plan a scientific enquiry, record results and report findings to answer the question: Is a shadow always the same shape as the object that casts it? (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Take measurements of angles of incidence and reflection, using a protractor, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)
• Report and present findings about the refraction of light (as per pencil and glass demonstration) being an example of scientific phenomenon (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Identify scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments – Isaac Newton’s discovery about the colours of light (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)

Knowledge

• To know how to respect and care for the natural environment and all living things
• Understand why questions, like “Why did the Caterpillar get so fat?”
• To know and talk about what we see in our outdoor environment, using a wide vocabulary
• To know that animals have a lifecycle
• To know to handle mini-beasts with care and take care of their environment

We enable this by:

• Providing a rich outdoor environment to enable exploration of the world around them.
• Planting seeds and care for growing plants.
• Visiting the woodland to discover minibeasts.
• Digging and discovering what is beneath the ground.

Vocabulary

Animals, plants, grow, change, leaf, trunk, flowers, fruit, vegetables.

Knowledge

• To explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive
• To identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other
• To identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats
• To describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food

Vocabulary

living, features, move, feed, grow, reproduce, senses light, sound, temperature, habitat, environment, microhabitat, shelter, survive, suitability, desert, ocean, tundra/Artic, grassland, rainforest, forest/wood, wetlands, source, nutrients, energy, transfer, food chain, producer, prey, predator, depend/survive

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Identify and classify living and non-living things according to whether they are alive or dead or have never been alive (identifying and classifying)
• Use simple equipment (magnifying glasses) to observe closely the animals we find in local microhabitats (observing closely, using simple equipment)
• Use books and the internet to learn about different, unfamiliar habitats around the world and the animals that live there (gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)
• Sort animals and plants into food chains (identifying and classifying)

Knowledge

• To recognise that living things can be grouped in a variety of ways
• To explore and use classification keys to help group, identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment
• To recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things

Vocabulary

classification, group, category, key, vertebrate, invertebrate (insect, arachnid, annelid, mollusc), flowering, non-flowering, spores, seed cones, classification, dichotomous key, categorise, environment, surroundings, conditions, natural, human-made, urbanisation, deforestation, pollution, climate change, population, fossil fuels, natural disaster, human impact, endangered, extinct,  Venn diagram, positive, negative, indifferent, impact, conservation, protect, manage

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Use classification diagrams and careful observation to group living things according to their characteristics (recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Use dichotomous keys to identify living things and draw conclusions about what they are (recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Identify from observation and reading how environments change over time (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Use research and findings from the scientific community to understand how humans are negatively impacting the planet (using straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings)
• Devise a plan of action to protect living things in the local area (identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes)

Knowledge

• To describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird
• To describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals

Vocabulary

lifecycle, stages of development, sexual, asexual, reproduction, larvae, embryo, metamorphosis, naturalist, natural world, expertise, observe, document, study, sexual/asexual reproduction, pistal/carpel, stigma, style, ovary, stamen, anther, nectar, pollen, pollination, fertilisation, dispersal, tuber, bulb, runner, clone, asexual reproduction, vegetative propagation, external fertilisation, internal fertilisation, sperm, egg, embryo

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Compare and contrast life cycles of different animals to identify similarities and differences (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)
• Ask questions about the local area and plan different types of scientific enquiries to answer them, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Plan an enquiry to monitor and observe which plants flower at different times of the year (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary)
• Plan, carry out and record the results a scientific enquiry to answer questions about which parts of a plant will lead to asexual reproduction. Devise a conclusion. (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)

Knowledge

• To describe how living things are classified into broad groups according to common observable characteristics and based on similarities and differences, including micro-organisms, plants and animals
• To give reasons for classifying plants and animals based on specific characteristics

Vocabulary

classification, vertebrate/non-vertebrate, taxonomy, arachnids, crustaceans, insects, millipedes, annelids, echinoderms, molluscs, coelenterates, dichotomous key, algae, moss, fern, conifer, ginkgoes, angiosperms, microorganism, microbes, fungi, bacteria, protists

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Know that Carl Linnaeus’ taxonomy was significant and has an impact today (identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments)
• Use and apply classification process to animals (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Select an appropriate way to record data (recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs)
• Plan and set up an experiment to discover where mould will spread the fastest. Present findings. (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)

Knowledge

• To know the property of different materials
• To know that materials are used for different purposes
• To know how materials can be sorted in to different groups

We enable this by:

• Providing open-ended play materials inside and outdoors to explore texture, sound, smell, taste, sinking and floating.
• Offering different textures for exploration.
• Encouraging children to bring natural materials in to the setting to investigate and talk about.
• Exploring materials changing from one state to the other.

Vocabulary

hard, soft, rough, smooth, heavy, light, shiny, dull.

Knowledge

• To distinguish between an object and the material from which it is made
• To identify and name a variety of everyday materials, including wood, plastic, glass, metal, water and rock
• To describe the simple physical properties of a variety of everyday materials
• To compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of their simple physical properties

Vocabulary

material, object, wood, plastic, metal, rock, water, properties, hard/soft; stretchy/stiff; shiny/dull; rough/smooth; bendy/not bendy; opaque/transparent, absorbent / not absorbent, waterproof/not waterproof 

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Know how to sort objects according to the material they are made from (identifying and classifying)
• Ask and suggest answers to one key question: What properties does the material have? (asking simple questions and recognising that they can be answered in different ways)
• Using observations to suggest what material is best at absorbing water (observing closely, using simple equipment)
• Perform a simple test to find out which material is the most waterproof (performing simple tests, using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions, gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)

Knowledge

• To identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses
• To find out how the shapes of solid objects made from some materials can be changed by squashing, bending, twisting and stretching

Vocabulary

property, material, object, suitability, purpose, wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper, cardboard, strong, waterproof, bounce, grip, solid, squash, bend, twist, stretch, stretchy/not stretchy, fabric, fair test

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Identify and classify the variety of uses of different materials based on their properties (identify and classify)
• Find out which material makes a ball bounce higher (observing closely, using simple equipment, performing simple tests, using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions)
• Draw a conclusion as to whether a solid changes shape (asking simple questions and recognising that they can be answered in different ways)
• Make a prediction and carry out a fair test (observing closely, using simple equipment, performing simple tests, using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions, gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)

Prior Related Knowledge

• To compare and group together different kinds of rocks on the basis of their appearance and simple physical properties.
• To describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock
• To recognise that soils are made from rocks and organic matter

Knowledge

• To compare and group materials together, according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases
• To observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled, and measure or research the temperature at which this happens in degrees Celsius (°C)
• To identify the part played by evaporation and condensation in the water cycle and associate the rate of evaporation with temperature

Vocabulary

states of matter, solid, liquid, gas, matter, mass, volume, particles, properties, changing state, melt, temperature, freeze, water vapour, melting point, freezing point, condensation, evaporation, water cycle, precipitation, water vapour

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Group and classify a variety of different materials according to whether they are a solid, liquid or gas (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions)
• Explore the effect of temperature on some substances by investigating the temperature at which a range of solids change state and become liquids (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests, making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables, reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions)
• Make careful observations of freezing over time (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests, making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables, reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions)
• Create a model of the water cycle to understand how condensation forms (recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Set up comparative and fair tests to determine the effect of temperature on rates of evaporation (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests)

Knowledge

• To compare and group together everyday materials on the basis of their properties, including their hardness, solubility, transparency, conductivity (electrical and thermal), and response to magnets
• To know that some materials will dissolve in liquid to form a solution, and describe how to recover a substance from a solution
• To use knowledge of solids, liquids and gases to decide how mixtures might be separated, including through filtering, sieving and evaporating
• To give reasons, based on evidence from comparative and fair tests, for the particular uses of everyday materials, including metals, wood and plastic
• To demonstrate that dissolving, mixing and changes of state are reversible changes
• To explain that some changes result in the formation of new materials, and that this kind of change is not usually reversible, including changes associated with burning and the action of acid on bicarbonate of soda

Vocabulary

thermal conductor, thermal insulator, thermal, insulator, material, transference, independent/dependent/controlled variable, dissolve, solid, liquid, gas, states of matter, solution, mixture, solution, filtration, sieving, evaporation, permeable, vapour, particles, not reversible/irreversible, burning, chemical changes, rust, bicarbonate of soda, gas, acid

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Take measurements with a thermometer with increasing accuracy (taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate)
• Plan an enquiry (fair test) answer a question, including recognising and controlling variables (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary)
• Plan and carry out a scientific enquiry to answer the question: How can we separate a mixture? (planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary, taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate, recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs, using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests)
• Report using first-hand observations and findings from demonstrations in written forms (reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and a degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations)

Knowledge

• To identify and name a variety of common wild and garden plants, including deciduous and evergreen trees
• To identify and describe the basic structure of a variety of common flowering plants, including trees

Vocabulary

plants, wild plants, garden plants, weeds, trees, seeds, root, shoot, soil, hand lenses/magnifying glasses, flower, petal, stem, leaf/leaves, tree, trunk, bark, branch, flower, blossom, acorn, common tree names identified (for example: oak, ash, beech, sycamore, horse chestnut, apple, holly, fir), deciduous, evergreen, leaf/leaves, bark, branches, trunk

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Identify and classify plants as garden plants, wild plants, trees or weeds (observing closely, using simple equipment, identifying and classifying)
• identify and describe the roots of a plant by observing closely using simple equipment – magnifying glasses/hand lenses (observing closely, using simple equipment, identifying and classifying)
• Observe the parts of a flowering plant closely using simple equipment – magnifying glasses/hand lenses (observing closely, using simple equipment)
• Gather data about the thickness of tree trunks and compare and contrast to understand variation (gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)
• Identify and classify common trees according to their physical features: leaves, bark, branches, trunk (identifying and classifying)

Knowledge

• To observe and describe how seeds and bulbs grow into mature plants.
• To find out and describe how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy

Vocabulary

seed, seed coat, bulb, food store, protect, mature, roots, seed leaves, shoot, germinate/germination, absorb, nutrients, energy, germinate, food supply, temperature, plant, mature, lifecycle, germinate, reproduce

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• Monitor a planted seed over the period of a few weeks (observing closely, using simple equipment, using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions)
• Keep a seed diary to track changes (gathering and recording data to help in answering questions)
• Perform a simple comparative test to see whether seeds need water to grow (performing simple tests)
• Carry out a simple comparative test to show that plants need water and light to stay healthy (performing simple tests)

Knowledge

• To identify and describe the functions of different parts of flowering plants: roots, stem/trunk, leaves and flowers
• To explore the requirements of plants for life and growth (air, light, water, nutrients from soil, and room to grow) and how they vary from plant to plant
• To investigate the way in which water is transported within plants
• To explore the part that flowers play in the life cycle of flowering plants, including pollination, seed formation and seed dispersal

Vocabulary

seed, parent plant, dispersal, germination, roots, root hair, stem, leaves, trunk/branches, flowers, function, nutrients, carbon dioxide, growth rate, transport, absorb, root, root hairs, stem, tubes, nutrient, drought, climate, flower, pollen, nectar, pollination, reproduce, attract, 

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• Make systematic and careful observations of seeds to look for properties that will help us to understand how they are dispersed (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Set up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests to find out how quickly the roots of a seed grow (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions)
• Set up simple practical inquiries to show water transport through a stem, marking the changes on a jar (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Measure different changes e.g. height and number of leaves over time (gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions)
• Use results to draw simple conclusions and make predictions e.g. which colours are most common and why might that be? (using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)

Related Knowledge

• To recognise that living things can be grouped in a variety of ways
• To explore and use classification keys to help group, identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment
• To recognise that environments can change and that this can sometimes pose dangers to living things
  

Related Knowledge

• To describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals
  

Knowledge

• To know that there are three kinds of rocks: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic
• To know that the Earth has a solid crust made up of tectonic plates with molten rock beneath
• To know that granite and basalt are types of igneous rock and that igneous rocks form from molten rock below the Earth’s crust
• To know that limestone and sandstone are types of sedimentary rock which form when small, weathered fragments of rock or shell settle and stick together, often in layers
• To know that marble and slate are types of metamorphic rock which form when rocks in Earth’s crust get squashed and heated in processes such as when tectonic plates press against each other
• To know that fossils form when a plant or animal dies and is quickly covered with silt or mud so that it cannot be rotted by microbes or eaten by scavenging animals; in time layers of sediment build, squashing the mud and turning it to stone around the dead plant or animal; the materials in the body are replaced by minerals that flow in water through the rock, leaving a rock in the shape of the animal or plant that was once there
• To know that soil is made from tiny particles of rock broken down by the action of weather (weathering).

Vocabulary

Rocks, Soils,  Minerals, Clay, Sandy, Silt, Dead organic matter, Granite, Slate, Marble, Chalk, Limestone, Sandstone, Basalt, Flint, Crystals, Hard, Soft, Permeable, Impermeable, Fossil, Dinosaur, Volcano, Mountain, Igneous, Metamorphic, Sedimentary, Obsidian.

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

• Explore rocks describing them thinking about their texture, colour and appearance.
• Observe rocks, including those used in buildings and explore how and why they might have changed over time
• Use a hand lens or microscope to help them to identify and classify rocks according to whether they have grains or crystals, and whether they have fossils in them.
• Research and discuss the different kinds of living things whose fossils are found in sedimentary rock and explore how fossils are formed.
• Investigate what happens when rocks are rubbed together or what changes occur when they are in water.
• Raise and answer questions about the way soils are formed.

Prior Related Knowledge

• To know that the gradual change of species over millions of years can be observed by looking at examples of fossil.

Knowledge

• To know there are different seasons/times of year with different characteristics: weather, changes, celebrations.
• To know which season they were born in.

We enable this by:

• Providing a rich outdoor environment to enable exploration of the world around them.
• Exploring each season as we enter it and watching and observe the world around us change as the season progresses.
• Encouraging a curiosity about how things change each season
• Planting seeds and care for growing plants throughout the seasons.
• Providing props and resources to use imagination in role and collaborative play.

Vocabulary

Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, warm, cold, chilly, change, flowers, grow, sun, holiday, trees, rain. Leaves, windy, ice, Christmas.

Knowledge

• To observe changes across the 4 seasons
• To observe and describe weather associated with the seasons and how day length varies

Vocabulary

season, changes, autumn, winter, spring, summer, weather, sunrise, sunset, temperature

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Make observations about living things in the local area in each season. Observe changes and link to seasons (observing closely, using simple equipment)

Related Knowledge

• To compare and group materials together, according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases
• To observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled, and measure or research the temperature at which this happens in degrees Celsius (°C)
• To identify the part played by evaporation and condensation in the water cycle and associate the rate of evaporation with temperature

Related Knowledge

• To explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object
• To identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces
• To recognise that some mechanisms including levers, pulleys and gears allow a smaller force to have a greater effect

Knowledge

• To identify how sounds are made, associating some of them with something vibrating
• To recognise that vibrations from sounds travel through a medium to the ear
• To find patterns between the pitch of a sound and features of the object that produced it
• To find patterns between the volume of a sound and the strength of the vibrations that produced it
• To recognise that sounds get fainter as the distance from the sound source increases

Vocabulary

sound, sound wave, vibrate/vibrations, medium (solid, liquid, gas), energy, strength of vibration, volume, distance, decrease, sound source, properties (of materials), sound, insulator, insulation, pitch, high pitch, low pitch

Working Scientifically (links to National Curriculum)

•  Make careful observations about how we see, hear and feel sound (making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers)
• Set up a comparative test to identify how the strength of vibrations affect the volume of a sound (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests, making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers, gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions, recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables)
• Conduct a fair test with control variables (setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests)
• Carry out an experiment three times to increase reliability (using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions)
• Draw conclusions about what affects the pitch of a sound (reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral/written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions)