KS1 Science Strands

Year 1

Intro to Forces
Chn are introduced to simple forces as pushes and pulls which act in a particular direction. They investigate forces associated with vehicles, explore bubbles, experiment with magnets and look at natural forces affecting our world.

Life Cycles
Stories, videos & lots of hands on investigations will enable chn to understand the life cycles of minibeasts, amphibians & plants. Sessions include study of a variety of species: ladybirds, butterflies, frogs, dragonflies, trees & flowering plants.

Light & Sound
Chn find we need light to see things & that darkness is an absence of light. They identify light sources & have fun investigating shadows. Go on a listening walk & discover how different sounds are made. Then investigate floor coverings for a baby’s room.

Living & Growing
Chn name body parts & collect data about themselves to present as a pictogram. They explore the diffs between living & things that have never been alive. Then find out what plants & animals need to stay alive & how all baby animals grow to become adults.

Senses
Chn have lots of hands-on experience to investigate the five senses of touch, sight, hearing, taste & smell. Discuss how animals can use their senses to help us or to show their feelings, and how some people deal with losing one of their senses.

Types of Materials
Explore materials commonly found in the classroom, sorting them into plastic & not plastic. Discover objects that float & sink before carrying out related investigations. Use the Three Little Pigs to study building materials before looking at magnets.

Year 2

Changing Materials
Chn develop an understanding that materials have different properties & therefore different uses. Discuss natural/man-made materials. Chn find that materials, e.g. water, often change when heated or cooled & that forces can change the shape of materials.

Electricity
Appliances using mains electricity or batteries or both are identified & the dangers of mains electricity emphasised. Chn construct simple circuits & explain why some do not work. They include switches in their circuits to turn components on & off.

Forces
Chn develop a basic understanding of forces as pushes & pulls that can make things speed up & slow down. Find out that forces can also change the shape of things & are being exerted in a range of everyday contexts. Carry out investigations using vehicles.

Healthy Humans
Chn learn that to stay alive, to grow & to be healthy they need food, water, exercise & rest. Investigate balanced diets and different food groups. Find out which is the favourite form of exercise. Discuss things that might harm their bodies.

Living Things in their Environment
Differences & similarities between plants & animals are discussed. The plants & animals found in the local environment are investigated. Chn learn that living things can be grouped by the way they look & that habitats affect this & should be cared for.

Plants
Chn develop an understanding that plants are alive & follow a life cycle. They recognise & name plant parts. An investigation is done to discover what seeds need to germinate. The variety of plants in the locality is studied & diff seeds investigated.

There are currently no separate Investigation Strands nor a Sex Education Strand for KS1.