Subjects

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Science Assessment Booklet

The curriculum is structured in such a way that students get to see the power of accumulated knowledge and the interconnectivity of the disciplines of science as well as its connections to other subjects within the school curriculum. Each topic is carefully chosen so that they never stand alone, but rather interleave or deepen the understanding of fundamental ideas and build the skills required for future success.

The teaching of Science at Chertsey High is modelled on the National Curriculum as it provides students with a traditional and broad understanding of scientific content and method. We are blessed with teaching staff from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds which enables our students to explore certain areas such as Space and Rock formation in a greater depth. Students learning is therefore ambitious from the moment they step foot in Year 7 as our teachers are specialists in their chosen fields.

The curriculum for Year 7 and 8 students is designed for them to gain a foundation in science rooted in logical reasoning and questioning of the everyday to form their own conclusions about the world they live in. This is delivered with an emphasis on questioning and a growth mind- set, establishing foundations early on that will be developed throughout the next four years. Biology, Chemistry and Physics will all be taught as separate sciences and topics, laying the foundations for the GCSE structure seen in later years.

From Year 9 onwards, students begin to undergo their transition to GCSE content and skills. They will continue to maintain the “spiral” of Years 7 and 8, revisiting content of these years with the detail and depth as studied at GCSE.  Therefore, they will begin to use GCSE style assessments related to the topics they are studying.  They will also begin to plan and conduct the core practical investigations that are associated with the Edexcel GCSE route.

Students in science should feel that they are free to question everything, and fundamentally that, as George Couros said “if students leave school less curious than when they have started we have failed them.” Students should, as a result of their lessons, become fascinated with the world around them and engage with it on a critical level, not just accepting everything at face value, but rather using the principles of the scientific method and enquiry to make their own decisions and judgements.

By the time students have completed their study in science and leave CHS they will have had access to a broad array of scientific contemporary and classical concepts that will equip them with the skills and knowledge to become scientific thinkers who can intelligently engage with society.

Year 7 Science

Number of lessons a fortnight: 6

Autumn term

The students can expect to have an introductory topic into science and the scientific method at secondary school. They will then go onto looking at the human body and how it functions as a living organism in the biology topic Organisms and Movement and Reproduction. The Chemistry topics that will be taught are States of matter and Reactions where students will develop on their KS2 knowledge and have their first introduction to hands on experiments and investigations. They will focus primarily on the fundamentals in the opening Physics topics, Forces and Electricity, where students will investigate these phenomena through practical and thought experiments.

Spring term

The second term is a chance for extended topics in Biology, Chemistry and Physics lasting the entire term with a chance for topical projects before their end of term exams. The focus of biology will be that of our genes and genetics in Genes and Variation, looking at what makes us different from each other and how different species have adapted for their survival, with an opportunity for students to attempt to extract their own DNA. In Chemistry students will study the Structure of the Earth as well as looking at rock formations and how natural geographic events occur. Physics will continue this trend looking at Energy and Transfers, in particular how energy is harnessed and used in the modern world as well as looking forward to the future.

Summer term   

This term is aimed at approaching some of the more conceptually difficult areas of the science curriculum before they are broached again in their GCSE. In biology students will study Ecology and Organisms (breathing), observing how changes to environment have wider spreading consequences than might appear obvious, as well as our breathing system and its adaptation for our survival. Their final Chemistry topics for the year are investigation heavy and teach scientific procedures for analysing samples in Compounds and mixtures and Matter and elements. In Physics they finish with two topics, Waves and Forces and motion. These topics require students to have developed a critical understanding of science over the year and are designed as introductory topics for later GCSE content of the same area.

Assessment:

Students will be assessed during the first week of lessons to grasp a baseline to work forwards from, as well as identify any possible areas of weakness that can be addressed early on. From here they will have a short assessment at the end of each topic with an additional lesson to review their own performance and set a plan to move forward on. In total there are 15 of these assessments throughout the year. In addition to this students will also be expected to sit an end of term exam each term to assess their learning of the entire year up to that point.

Year 8 Science

Number of lessons a fortnight: 6

Autumn Term

The first term looks at expanding their learning from Year 7, in Biology they will continue their exploration of the human body in Living Healthy, a topic that is closely linked with PSHE and PE. Chemistry focuses on expanding their understanding of different reaction types with two topics, Types of Reaction and Chemical Reactions, each one recapping and expanding on content from their Year 7 topics of similar content. Physics meanwhile will continue to look at forces and energy with two extended topics, Fields and Heat Transfers.

Spring Term

This term Biology links into Chemistry by investigating the process of photosynthesis and respiration of animals and plants, in Respiration. In Chemistry we take a more in depth look into the elements of the periodic table and its history, Atoms, Elements and Compounds. Physics takes on a theoretical approach as we study Earth and the Universe which focuses on our place in the universe and how we came to realise it over the last two thousand years.

Summer Term

This year finishes on a more focused look into Photosynthesis in Biology and applying our learning over the past two years in biology and plants into this topic.  Physics begins some GCSE content with Static Electricity and makes use the of the Van Der Graff generator, all for it to be repeated again later in their GCSE content of KS4.

Assessment

Students will be assessed during the first week of lessons to grasp a baseline to work forwards from, as well as identify any possible areas of weakness that can be addressed early on. From here they will have a short assessment at the end of each topic with an additional lesson to review their own performance and set a plan to move forward on. In total there are 15 of these assessments throughout the year. In addition to this students will also be expected to sit an end of term exam each term to assess their learning of the entire year up to that point.

Subject: Science

Number of Lessons a fortnight: 6

Biology

Cells and disease

Student will be revisiting the concept of cells and specialisation, they will spend time recapping what has been learnt in previous years, with the emphasis being application of understanding.  Student will then extend on both these topics delving deeper into the subject areas, investigating transport in cells and cell division and also the effects of different diseases and deficiencies on the human body.

Chemistry

Separation techniques and Structures and bonding

Students will be spiralling back to their Year 7 and 8 topics where they will revisit some of the investigations they first studied at CHS where they will be able to apply the practical than theoretical techniques they have acquired up to this point.  They will gain a deeper understanding on why certain separation techniques are used in particular circumstances and their real world application and then be able to explain the physical properties of bonded compounds, with a greater appreciation for the uniqueness of the periodic table’s structure.

Physics

Energy and Electricity

The primary focus for physics in Year 9 is to build a greater understanding to the questions of ‘why’ associated with the topic studied earlier on at CHS.  The return to studying energy mirrors their studies in maths with deciphering equations using algebraic techniques, whereas, electricity is more concerned with applying what students will have already covered in these topics and mapping this onto experiences drawn from ‘real life’.

Assessment

Students will be assessed at the end of each topic, using GCSE style exam questions and will be graded accordingly.  They will also be completing core practical assessments throughout the course, which will model a compulsory part of the final GCSE assessment.

GSCEs

Lessons per fortnight: 9

Combined

Students following the combined route of GCSE will study all three sciences, where possible being taught by a subject specialist, following the edexcel pathway. These lessons will comprise of both practical and theory lessons and will see students complete all the required core practical’s as fully written investigations using a separate lab book.

Homework will be down to the discretion of the class teacher but it is recommended that students complete 1-2 pieces a week making up a total of 1 hour of additional work. There are example worksheets for each lesson found attached within the shared drive.

Separate

Students following the separate route for GCSE will study all three science with specialised teachers, however they will gain no additional lesson time in which to do so, this will result in them having to complete additional home learning to make up the time required to complete the course.  It will be the responsibility of the teacher to ensure that students have all resources required to do this and are completing the required work, this should be given in addition to 1 hour of homework each week.

Student will complete both practical and theory work and will see students complete all the required core practical’s as fully written investigations using a separate lab book.

Biology

Students will learn to:

• understand the science of living organisms (including animals, plants, fungi and  microorganisms) and their interactions with each other and the environment.
• know the fundamentals of all living thing, starting with cells and working through tissues, organs and organ systems. Students will be able to appreciate the interdependence of living organisms and describe and explain different interactions.
• explain the process of photosynthesis in green plants and Earth’s dependence on it.
• know the chemical reactions and equations necessary for life, such as respiration.
• know the process of evolution by natural selection and how this accounts for the biodiversity found in nature. Students will be able to describe how the characteristics of living organisms is determined by its genome.

Chemistry

Students will learn to:

• understand the composition, structure, properties and reactions of matter in terms of atoms, atomic particles and the way they are arranged and link together.
• know that matter is composed of tiny particles called atoms and there are about 100 different naturally-occurring types of atoms called elements.
• describe that the bonds between atoms is caused by either transferring electrons or sharing them.
• appreciate that the properties of materials is linked to the giant atomic structures that they form.
• explain that reactions are caused by collisions of molecules and how rates of collisions can affect this.
• understand and use the conservation of energy and mass in chemical reactions and equations.

Physics

Students will learn to:

• understand the fundamental concepts of field, force, radiation and particle structures, which are inter-linked to form unified models of the behaviour of the material universe.
• link concepts such as cause and effect to aid in the explanation of forces and motion as well as atomic reactions.
• know the three Newtonian laws of mechanics and apply them to real world examples.
• use various models to help deepen understanding of physical concepts.
• use the particles model of matter or the wave model to describe physical phenomena such and sound and light.
• develop a wide vocabulary in relation to changes in systems such as pressure or electric potential.
• link mathematical skills to the field of equations and proportional values such as mass and weight

Due to the large range of topics students may have a natural inclination towards some areas of science over others, naturally there will be some topics that students will perform better in than others. With this in mind, there are a number of things that can be done to maximise their retention.

• Asking them short questions about the content that they have in their books, they will often have key words and definitions that need to be practiced.
• Encouraging students to create short, snappy cue cards that can be used for revision throughout the year. These should be made as close to the lesson as possible, ideally that evening (they don’t need to be big and beautiful, but rather just the key points or words from that lesson).
• Encourage your son or daughter  to use websites like BBC Bitesize or “myGCSEscience” on YouTube to help find answers or help, rather than just “googling” the question.

Click Here To Download The Science Curriculum Plan

Click Here To Download GCSE Sciences Command Words