Science
At Rufford Primary, we recognise the importance of science in every aspect of daily life. Therefore, we encourage children to be inquisitive throughout their time at school and leave a legacy of scientific thinking beyond this - preparing our children for careers in the STEM industry.
From EYFS to Year 6, our science curriculum, following close guidance to both Development Matters and the National Curriculum sequence and content, fosters a natural curiosity for science through the disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics, enabling all children to develop and acquire a range of progressive knowledge, skills and rich vocabulary. Our evidence-based science curriculum has been designed to promote a mastery of procedural and disciplinary knowledge through deliberate practice, spaced retrieval and interleaving with other subjects. Through high-quality teaching resources, experiences, rich learning modules and careful planning, we aim to enhance the children’s science capital.
Within EYFS, science is taught through Understanding of the World, allowing children to make sense of the world around them through carefully planned provocations and adult-led activities. As a result, children are equipped with the foundational knowledge and skills necessary for Year One.
From Year 1 to Year 6, Science is taught weekly, through a progressive modular approach, in which pupils study new content, skills and vocabulary in depth. We have adopted the Science curriculum from CUSP Partnership of schools because of it's careful sequencing that enables purposeful connections to prior learning; this eases the forgetting curve and helps develops long-term retention. Some modules are later revisited to allow for spaced retrieval.
At our school, we believe all our pupils have the potential to succeed. We want our children to be confident to ask questions and challenge their scientific predictions, and love to discuss and share their thoughts; our curriuculum supports these aims.