Take a look at our Primary Science subject curriculum:
Reception
Year 1
Unit 1 – Ourselves
- All about me.
- Similarities and Differences.
- Compare sizes – height, hands, head.
- The five senses – Sight, Smell, Taste, Touch and Hearing.
Unit 2 – Living and Growing
- Alive or never been alive.
- Places to live.
- Offspring.
- Life cycle of a frog.
- Growing up.
- Food groups.
- Water Diary.
- Tooth Decay.
Unit 3 – Plants
- Alive or never Alive.
- Different Plants.
- Parts of a plant.
- Seeds.
- Parts of a plant we eat.
- Plant detectives.
Unit 4 – Material Properties
- What are Materials?
- Textures.
- Opposites.
- Metal, Plastic, Fabric, Wood, Glass.
- Properties of Fabric.
- Uses of Fabric.
Unit 5 – Forces
- How do things move?
- Actions.
- Push or Pull.
- Making things move.
- Changing Direction.
- Bubbles/Kites.
Unit 6 – Sound
- Sound all around.
- Music.
- Sound Board.
- What can you hear?
- Looking after your ears.
- Helping us to hear.
Year 2
Unit 1 – Living things in their Environment
- Sorting Living Things.
- Environment
- Habitats
- Migration and Hibernation.
- Changes in the Environment – Endangered Species.
- Weather
Unit 2 – Material Properties
- Describing Materials
- Properties of Materials.
- Material choices.
- Rocks
- Fossils
Unit 3 – Material Changes
- Reversible and Irreversible Change.
- Heating and Cooling.
- Solids, Liquids and Gases.
- Changes in cooking.
- Dissolving.
Unit 4 – Light and Dark
- Seeing with Light.
- Darkness – Absence of light.
- Sources of light.
- Reflection.
- Light Travels.
- Shadows.
Unit 5 – Electricity
- Uses of Electricity.
- Electricity – Mains or Cells.
- Electrical Safety.
- Electrical Circuits.
- Switches.
- Static Electricity.
Unit 6 – The Earth and Beyond
- What is space?
- The Solar System.
- Planets in their orbits.
- The Earth’s Axis – Day and night.
- The Sun and Moon.
- Constellations.
Year 3
Unit 1 – Plants
- Plants are living things.
- Life cycle of plants.
- Parts of a plant – Roots, Stem, Leaves.
- Seed Germination.
- Growth in plants – Favourable and unfavourable conditions.
- Plants we grow for food.
Unit 2 – Life Processes
- What is living?
- Alive, not alive or Never been alive.
- The Life Processes- Movement, Growth, Nutrition and Reproduction.
- Hibernation
- Sorting living things.
- Life cycles.
Unit 3 – Keeping Healthy
- Balanced Diet.
- Vitamins and Minerals.
- Energy.
- Food and Health.
- Active and Inactive.
- Keeping your heart healthy.
Unit 4 – The senses
- The human senses.
- Sight.
- Touch.
- Hearing.
- Taste.
- Smell.
Unit 5 – Material Properties
- Describing properties.
- Sorting materials: Venn diagrams and Carroll diagrams.
- Reflective Materials.
- Magnetic Materials.
- Absorbent and waterproof materials.
- Hard and soft materials.
- Materials for a purpose.
Unit 6 – Forces and Motion
- Push and Pull.
- Weight, mass and force.
- Measuring Force.
- Moving objects.
- Friction.
Year 4
Unit 1 – Humans and Animals
- Life Processes.
- Using your senses.
- Sorting living things.
- The human skeleton.
- X-Rays.
- Muscles and joints.
Unit 2 – Living things in their Environment
- Different Environments.
- Caring for the environment.
- Habitats.
- Sorting Animals.
- Identification keys.
- Waste/Pollution.
Unit 3 – States of Matter
- Solids.
- Liquids.
- Gases.
- Melting Ice.
- Liquid to Solid.
- Reversible and Irreversible changes.
Unit 4 – Magnetism
- What is a magnet?
- Strongest Magnet.
- Magnetic Field.
- Magnetic Poles.
- Uses of Magnets.
Unit 5 – Electricity
- Simple Circuits.
- Circuit components.
- Electrical appliances.
- Batteries and Cells.
- Series Circuits.
- Switches.
Unit 6 – Sound
- Animal Ears.
- How is sound made?
- Vibrations.
- How sound travels?
- Measuring Sound.
- Musical Instruments.
- Stopping Sound.
Year 5
Unit 1 – Life Cycle of Flowering Plants
- Habitats and Microhabitats.
- Parts of a Plant.
- Reproduction in Plants.
- Parts of a flower.
- Pollination – Fertilisation – Seed dispersal – Germination.
- Life cycle diagrams.
Unit 2 – Characteristics of Plants
- Growth.
- Germination of seeds.
- Factors affecting germination.
- Stem, roots and leaves.
- Factors affecting growth.
Unit 3 – States of Matter
- Solids, liquids, gases.
- Change of State.
- Evaporation and condensation.
- Water Vapour.
- Solutions – Dissolving and separation.
- Factors affecting solution.
- Water Cycle.
Unit 4 – The way we see things
- Light sources.
- Uses of light.
- Intensity of light.
- Light travels.
- Reflection
- Mirrors.
- Your eyes.
Unit 5 – Shadows
- How are shadows formed?
- Shadow puppets.
- Materials and light.
- Changing shadows.
- Sun and shadows.
- Sundials.
Unit 6 – Earth and Beyond
- Earth’s movement – on its axis.
- Earth’s movement – around the sun.
- Our solar system.
- The sun.
- The moon and its phases.
- Planets.
- Constellations.
- Galaxies.
Year 6
Two units are covered each term, not necessarily in the given order.
Unit 1 – Humans and animals
- The Circulatory System.
- The Respiratory System.
- The Nervous System.
- The Digestive System.
- Health of body and Organ Systems.
Unit 2 – Food chains
- Habitats.
- Plants, Predator and Prey.
- Rainforest food chains.
- Ocean food chains.
- Savanna Food chains.
- Predator and prey adaptations.
- Food webs.
- Investigating local habitats and food chains.
Unit 3 – Caring for the environment
- Deforestation.
- The problem with waste.
- Water Pollution and Air Pollution.
- Climate change.
- Managing Waste.
- Energy – Uses and Sources.
- Saving Energy.
- Protecting Habitats.
Unit 4 – Material Changes
- Changing states of Matter.
- Reversible and Irreversible Changes.
- Reversible changes – Melting and Freezing, Evaporation and Condensation
- Irreversible changes – Burning, rusting.
- Changes in cooking.
- Mixing solids.
- Mixing solids and liquids.
- Separating Mixtures.
- Growing Crystals.
Unit 5 – Forces and Motion
- Forces.
- Measuring Forces.
- Mass and Weight.
- Force diagrams.
- Balanced and unbalanced forces.
- Simple machines – Lever, Inclined Planes, Wheel and axle, Gears.
- Friction.
- Air resistance.
Unit 6 – Electricity
- Circuits.
- Electrical current.
- Conductors and insulators.
- Flow of electric current.
- Parallel Circuits.
- Switches.