Intent

At Farsley Springbank Primary School, our science curriculum is driven by our core values of Independence, Determination, Curiosity, Risk-taking, Collaboration and Respect. We aim to nurture inquisitive, resilient and self-motivated young scientists who are inspired to explore and question the world around them.

We believe that every child should develop a deep sense of curiosity—a desire to understand how and why things happen. Our high-quality, bespoke and flexible science curriculum fosters this natural curiosity through hands-on exploration, practical investigation and real-world application.

In order to foster children’s independence and encourage risk-taking, pupils are encouraged to think critically, make decisions and take ownership of their scientific learning. Children carry out enquiries, evaluate evidence and draw conclusions with growing confidence.

By showing determination, pupils persevere through challenges, embrace mistakes as part of the learning process and develop the resilience needed to test ideas, solve problems and communicate their findings effectively. 

Across all key stages, children are taught the essential knowledge, skills and methods of science in ways that inspire awe, wonder and excitement. They are supported to “work scientifically” in every lesson - asking questions, predicting outcomes, carrying out tests, analysing results and reflecting on what they have discovered. Often, they do this by working collaboratively alongside their classmates. 
 

Science at Farsley Springbank reaches beyond the classroom. Children engage with first-hand experiences indoors and outdoors, developing their science capital by recognising how science shapes their lives, communities and future possibilities.

In line with the National Curriculum, we ensure that our science teaching:

• Nurtures scientific knowledge and understanding through engaging, meaningful contexts.
• Promotes curiosity through active investigation, experimentation and discovery.
• Develops oracy and scientific thinking, enabling children to question, discuss, explain and reason using accurate scientific vocabulary.
• Build and support enquiry skills, empowering children to observe, predict, test and draw evidence-based conclusions.
• Ensures inclusion and equity, celebrating diverse strengths and providing the support all learners need to succeed.

Implementation

Our science curriculum is carefully designed and sequenced to build pupils’ independence, determination and curiosity at every stage of their learning journey. We ensure that science is practical, purposeful and rooted in play based learning - enabling children to think, question and work like real scientists.

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

In the Early Years, science learning is embedded through the Understanding the World strand of the curriculum. Teachers create stimulating provision areas that spark curiosity and encourage children to explore through play and first-hand experiences. Children are supported to ask questions, make observations and begin to notice patterns in the world around them. Through this, they build early independence as learners – are encouraged to select their own resources, follow their interests and share discoveries with others. Adults model scientific language and guide enquiry through thoughtful questioning, nurturing children’s early skills of exploration and reasoning.

Key Stage One and Key Stage Two

From Year 1 onwards, lessons are designed to be hands-on, practical and enquiry-led, allowing pupils to explore scientific ideas through investigation and problem-solving.

Planning across the school is carefully sequenced to ensure progression of knowledge and skills, drawing on National Curriculum objectives and building on prior learning through regular retrieval opportunities. This ensures that children embed key scientific concepts securely in their long-term memory. Teachers explicitly teach and model the skills of Working Scientifically, weaving them into every unit of work. Pupils are supported to plan fair tests, make careful observations, record data accurately and use evidence to draw conclusions. This systematic approach helps children develop the determination needed to persevere through challenges and think critically about their results.

Throughout each topic, scientific vocabulary is explicitly taught, empowering children to communicate with confidence and “talk like scientists.” Oracy is central to our approach, ensuring all pupils can articulate their ideas and justify their thinking whilst being respectful of other people’s findings and ideas. 

Real-World Science and Enrichment

We are passionate about showing pupils that science is everywhere—not confined to the classroom. Teachers plan opportunities for first-hand experiences both indoors and outdoors, making learning relevant and inspiring. Our dedicated woodland area provides an invaluable outdoor learning environment where teachers and pupils can explore the natural world, conduct experiments and carry out scientific investigations in a real-life context. This immersive space enables children to observe seasonal changes, study habitats and apply their enquiry skills in meaningful, hands-on ways.

Educational visits, outdoor learning and visiting experts further enrich the curriculum and help children connect their scientific understanding to real-world contexts. These experiences nurture pupils’ curiosity about the world, develop their ability to work collaboratively alongside their peers and inspire them to see themselves as confident, capable and determined scientists who can make a difference to the future.

Science long term plan

Science progression of skills and knowledge

Science learning journeys

Here are some examples of our science learning journeys.