“The important thing is not to stop questioning.”

Albert Einstein

Intent

At Lydney C of E Primary School, we follow the Collins Snap Science scheme of work for our Science lessons.  The full Snap Science programme is designed as a series of year frameworks, made up of several modules to ensure full coverage of the National Curriculum.

At the beginning of each module in a year there are clear statements of what children will know by the end and which skills they will have developed.

The full Snap Science framework is built on a clear progression of conceptual knowledge in science from FS to Y6, which has been used to structure the content within key ideas, from year to year and within each year group and module, and to identify conceptual gaps in the National Curriculum. This ensures that children systematically develop their knowledge of big ideas and their scientific skills.

All Snap Science lessons are planned to ensure that all children in a class can access and master the intended knowledge and skills with each lesson offering three levels of differentiated task. Most Snap Science lessons are practical lessons. Access for all is ensured as all resources are cheap and easily accessible; and listed clearly in the resource matrix.

Underpinning our Science curriculum are our Christian values: trust, friendship, respect, forgiveness, courage and truthfulness and curriculum drivers. Science is using evidence to make sense of the world.  It has the ability to make us feel both enormously insignificant (compared to the scale of the visible universe) and enormously significant (we are genetically unique).  It helps us understand our relationship with the world around us (how the physical world behaves, the interdependence of all living things).  Making new discoveries increases our sense of awe and wonder at the complexities and elegance of the natural world.  For scientists, this is a spiritual experience and drives us onwards in our search for understanding.

The lessons we teach have an intention of providing a high-quality, coherent and progressive experience of the subject, with scope for cross-curricular learning.

Implementation

At Lydney C of E Primary School, children have weekly lessons in Science throughout Key Stage 1 and 2.  In Early years, Science is taught through the children learning about the world around them and in their learning through play.

All Snap Science modules have an introduction which provides teachers with a clear explanation of the science they need to understand and in each lesson key information is highlighted at relevant points.

All Snap Science lessons provide clear guidance to teachers for describing and explaining scientific ideas with helpful diagrams, images, animations and videos, plus with questions to stimulate discussion.

All Snap Science modules include a section in the introduction where commonly held misconceptions are listed so that teachers can ensure that they are addressed.

Snap Science modules are designed to ensure that key ideas and the vocabulary to express them are revisited over the course of a series of lessons and are built on as topics progress between years and Key Stages.

Effective formative assessment is built into every Snap Science lesson so that teachers are aware of children's

developing knowledge and understanding, and their use of skills. They are supported to identify any gaps in learning and provide appropriate feedback to consolidate and build on key knowledge and skills. In the Reflect and Review part

of the lesson children summarise what they have learned and use the success criteria to assess how well they have

done and their next steps. The Evidence of Learning section provides clear guidance for teachers to indicate things children say, write, draw and do regarding achievement of the learning intention. 

Impact

Science is constructed to ensure broad and deep engagement of the Programme of Study for Science and that assessment strategies and resources measure what children have been taught and learned – not through separately designed tests.

Snap Science lessons are differentiated to ensure that that all children can work appropriately towards achieving the learning intention, with support provided for children with lower prior attainment in reading, writing and maths.

Snap Science lessons all lead to children representing or expressing their learning in shareable outcomes.

The Snap Science framework is shaped by a clear progression of science knowledge and skills from FS to Y6, and beyond, ensuring that transition between Key Stages is smooth and effective.