All students will develop a love of science and through their learning they will develop transferrable skills in preparation for life beyond school. All students will develop to become critical thinkers that can use analytical problem solving to effectively overcome challenges. Our students will be reflective, resilient and will learn from their mistakes continuously striving for improvement. 

KS3 Curriculum intent:  

• The principal focus of our curriculum in key stage 3 is to develop a deeper understanding of a range of scientific ideas in the subject disciplines of biology, chemistry and physics. 

•  Pupils should begin to see the connections between these subject areas and Science, student’s become aware of some of the big ideas underpinning scientific knowledge and understanding.  

Examples of these big ideas are: 

• Links between structure and function in living organisms,  

• The particulate model and the resources and means of transfer of energy.  

• Relating scientific explanations to phenomena in the world around  

• Use modelling and abstract ideas to develop and evaluate explanations. 

• Pupils should understand that science is about working objectively, modifying explanations to take account of new evidence and ideas and subjecting results to peer review. Pupils should evaluate their results and identify further questions arising from them. 

KS4 Curriculum intent 

• Teaching science at key stage 4 continues with the process of building upon and deepening scientific knowledge and the understanding of ideas developed in earlier key stages in the subject disciplines. 

• Studying science at key stage 4 provides the platform for more advanced studies, establishing the basis for a wide range of careers. For some, it will be their last formal study of subjects that provide the foundations for understanding the natural world and will enhance their lives in an increasingly technological society. 

• Science is changing our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity so all students are taught essential aspects of the knowledge, methods, processes and uses of science.  

• Students will be taught to appreciate the achievements of science towards complex and diverse phenomena of the world.  

 These key ideas include: 

• The use of conceptual models and theories to make sense of the observed diversity of natural phenomena 

• The assumption that every effect has one or more cause 

• That change is driven by interactions between different objects and systems 

• That science progresses through a cycle of hypothesis, practical experimentation, observation, theory development and review 

• That quantitative analysis is a central element both of many theories and of scientific methods of inquiry.