This resource provides a quick and easy map of your child’s curriculum journey in Science.

Biology

Chemistry

Physics 

Science is our way of understanding the world around us. Our aim is to ‘bring out the scientist in everyone’. As a team, we are passionate about our subject and the wonder, challenge and inspiration it provides to so many young people. Scientific enquiry is placed at the heart of teaching and students are expected to operate as scientists. We aim to ensure students’ natural curiosity is sustained and the power concepts of science are deliberately sequenced across the 5 year curriculum. Lessons are highly interactive with a focus on developing both practical skills and content knowledge. Disciplinary skills are generative and mastered as students progress through the 5 year scheme.

Science provides the foundations for understanding the material world. Scientific understanding is changing our lives and is vital to the world’s future prosperity. Students will be taught to appreciate how the complex and diverse phenomena of the natural world can be described and studied in ways that help students to develop curiosity. They will gain insight into how science works and an appreciation of it within our everyday lives.

KS3

In Year 7 science, students’ new scientific knowledge is assimilated into their prior learning and understanding from Key Stage 2. They study topics from biology, chemistry and physics and explore the power concepts of science as they progress through the sequence of the curriculum. Throughout the year, students also begin to develop their scientific skills in practical planning, data collection and analysis and evaluation. This year is fundamental in forming a basis of disciplinary knowledge and concepts that students can continue to build on in Year 8 and further into GCSE study.

Students begin their study of biology with cells, the building blocks of life, before moving on to organs and organ systems within the body, then specifically to study how the reproductive system in humans allows for the creation of new life. Throughout these topics there are distinctive opportunities to debate, discuss key ethical issues and develop skills in critically analysing scientific developments.

Chemistry teaching units initially focus on the big idea of atoms as the basis of everything and move into the behaviours of atoms through reactions and how to represent these using word and balanced symbol equations. Students will use first-hand experience of reactions to investigate chemical phenomena and develop their use of conventions for chemical communication.

Physics encourages students to develop ideas about how the world works around us. Teaching begins with understanding the big idea of how forces act on objects before moving on to how waves behave and finally investigating the wonders of our solar system! There is an emphasis on learning the basics of calculation skills as well as practical investigative techniques.

Overall this year is to build a firm foundation of scientific skills both investigative and in communication. For example, describing, explaining, concluding and evaluating. These skills are integral to our narrative of learning and form the basis for the next 4 years of scientific study at Co-op Academy Walkden.

Years 8 and 9 continue to build on the foundations built in Year 7 science. The scientific skills of enquiry continue to be honed through the application of the big ideas of science. Students will be encouraged to extend their understanding and begin to link topics and concepts together in their schemas of knowledge to explain natural phenomena.

Biology begins with studying the digestive system in more detail, drawing on the power concept of cells and particles to extend understanding. This then leads on to exploring ecosystems and the bigger links in the world around us and finally into the concepts of variation within ecosystems and how variation is inherited.

In their chemistry topics, students will continue to build on their understanding of particles and conventions for communicating about reactions in the topics of separation techniques, the periodic table and reactions of metals. These schemes of work also lead to developing greater competency in the scientific skills required to carry out practical investigations.

In Physics, students continue to draw on the power concepts of science through the study of energy, electricity, magnetism and motion and pressure. Students will be encouraged to continue to use numerical and literacy skills to eloquently express their ideas in a scientific context.

Overall this is an opportunity for students to extend their schemas of scientific knowledge and skills, apply their existing knowledge in new contexts, form further links between schemas and stimulate more curiosity about how the world around us works.

KS4

Moving into KS4, biology teaching gives students the chance to gain a good understanding of human biology, organisms, evolution and the environment. The course helps put Biology in the context of students’ everyday lives with topics ranging from ‘Keeping healthy’ to ‘Humans and their environment’. The specification is based on a series of topics related to the living world and is very relevant to students who study it. It is designed to help them understand how Science can be used to explain the world in which they live and the impact humans have. As teachers of Biology, we strive to imbed the moral, ethical, social and religious contexts of the subject into our everyday teaching. This gives the students a basis to understand the wider impact of Biology and helps them to make informed opinions, whilst improving their ability to debate and write scientifically.

In Chemistry, students learn about the basic components of matter and how matter is structured. They continue to develop an understanding of the materials in the world around them, the way in which materials behave and how new materials are developed. Students will continue to build on the foundations of the particle model to understand how chemical reactions are important in all aspects of life on planet earth. Students will also engage in learning about how chemistry can be of benefit or harm to the environment and humanity itself.

In Physics, we continue our study of the atom and particles and build upon knowledge or energy transfers and stores. This leads us to study electricity; how to generate it, problems with using it and the components of a circuit. Atomic structure is followed by radioactive sources. Finally, we study magnetism and electromagnetism, linking back to the generation of electricity to complete our journey. Those studying triple science move beyond our Earth, learning about the energy and forces that create and maintain our universe. We then look at how stars form and how the idea of our universe is constantly changing as exploration and knowledge expands outwards.

As scientific methods and theories develop over time, students learn to appreciate that Science has limitations and boundaries determined by the knowledge of the current generation, with new advancements built on the gathered ideas from many contributors. Not all advancements are for the betterment of the human race, which makes it very difficult to consider ethical issues that may arise. These ethical topics are dealt with through the topics of evolution and the work of Darwin, the history of the atom and work of Rutherford, the influence of Mendeleev on the periodic table and issues such as climate change, stem cell research and genetic testing.

Students throughout Key Stage 4 fine-tune their expression of scientific ideas including the writing of practical reports, building on and consolidating their scientific skills that have developed over the course of their 5 years of study. Over the 5 years this creates a generative web of learning that links to students real life experiences of the world around them.

Overall, students should leave Walkden with curiosity, knowledge and the skills to investigate the world around them. We are highly ambitious that students will finish their journey with us with a totality of experience that incorporates both content and disciplinary knowledge with a love of science that will stimulate them to further discover more about the world, with the ability to discern facts from fiction and a shrewd understanding of how to interpret, analyse and evaluate information.

From studying Science GCSE, you can go on to study Science A-Level in separate science subjects or a BTEC Level 3 in combined Science. This can lead to studying all sorts of subjects at University or onto exciting art based apprenticeships. For example:

• Laboratory Technician;
• Forensic Science;
• Pharmaceutical dispenser/researcher.

Check out the range of apprenticeships here for which you need good science skills or take a look at some more information about Biology based degrees here.  You can find more about Chemistry based degrees here.

Studying Science can lead you to study a wide variety of subjects at University. Such as:

• Agricultural Science;
• Food and consumer Science;
• Equine Science.

Have a look at the UCAS website to see how many different combinations you can do.

The Curriculum Overview provides information as to how the curriculum is sequenced to enable students to build their knowledge and skills towards ambitious endpoints in each subject area. Each terms’ learning is complemented by a knowledge organiser.