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Welcome to

St Albans Girls' School

Science

Curriculum Intent and Overview
The Science curriculum is designed to equip students with the understanding necessary to explain the world around them. Each year, our schemes of learning are designed to build upon previous knowledge and lay the foundations for the year ahead. We aim to provide a curriculum that allows all students to develop a fundamental understanding of the universe and how it works, but also to foster the same enthusiasm and love of learning that drives the wider scientific community.

 

 

The Department

Curriculum Leader: Miss A Fotheringham                                                                                                                                          Assistant Curriculum Leader & Curriculum Leader for Chemistry: Mr D Bowyer                                                                                                                                                                                  

STEAM in Science

The Science department offers a wide variety of STEAM activities. This provides students who are passionate about science or considering a career in a STEAM based environment with invaluable enrichment opportunities.

In Years 7 and 8 a Science club is run by staff and supported by post 16 students in the Autumn and Spring terms. Students are invited to attend and experience a number of practical activities that are linked to everyday applications of science.. Year 7 students attend a trip to Whipsnade Zoo and this is linked to the science curriculum and teaches them about how animals and plants adapt to their habitats.

Year 9 students are involved in a STEAM activity day and this is run with links to British Science Week. This is a cross curricular opportunity and the Maths and Design Technology departments are also involved. They involve a variety of themes, such as designing electric cars, and help students to see the applications of these subjects particularly in Engineering.

In Year 10 students take part in the Live Operating Theatre, seeing concepts from the Biology classroom in real life. At Key Stage 5 all science subjects offer students Olympiads to stretch and challenge them. Each department also runs specific activities including Physics and Biology in Action and a Spectroscopy session for chemists. These are all done at universities in London.

KS3

What will be studied?

Students are taught topics in Biology, Chemistry and Physics in rotation, three times per week. We follow the national curriculum using a contextual approach to teach the concepts. For example, students in Year 7 will complete a module on Motorsport, learning about Forces, Speed and Acceleration. Throughout our curricula a great emphasis is placed on Working Scientifically skills which we teach through practical experiments. This includes the ability to draw conclusions from data and evaluate theories.

What support is needed?

Your child should have access to our online textbook and this can be accessed online at www.Kerboodle.com. Teachers regularly upload resources to their class’ Google Classroom and this should be their first port of call. Other useful websites for revision include BBC Bitesize and Seneca.

How will they be assessed?

  • A mix of end of topic tests and project based assessments, testing the knowledge and skills throughout a topic
  • Mid topic checkpoints
  • An end of year examination

GCSE

Exam Board: AQA

Specification Number: 8464

What will be studied?

The GCSE Combined Science course aims to develop knowledge and understanding of Science and how this is related to the everyday phenomena that students have experienced. Students learn to explain these and the observations made during experimental work. A great deal of emphasis is based on thinking and working scientifically and the skills required to do so are developed through opportunities to complete Required Practical activities. Students learn to plan investigative approaches, collect data and analyse this in order to give conclusions. By the end of the course students will also be able to apply scientific knowledge to familiar and unfamiliar situations and interpret and communicate scientific information accurately.

Learning methods:

Students are encouraged to think scientifically and ask questions about their everyday life experiences. They are encouraged to draw conclusions from data and evaluate theories and hypotheses, as well as apply knowledge and understanding to new and unfamiliar situations. A great emphasis has been placed on mathematical skills required in Science and students are taught to apply what they learn in Maths to scientific problems.

The examinations include questions on practical skills and in particular scientific techniques. 16 Required Practical activities have been provided by AQA that are essential and these are carried out and used to develop the skills needed to ensure students will be successful. A great emphasis is placed on ensuring that students learn to become competent scientists and we have an excellent technical team who support teaching and learning in each Science discipline.

How is the course assessed?

There are six units, two in each of Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Each is assessed by a 75 minute examination set and marked by AQA and all papers are equally weighted (16.7% of the grade). In total students take 6 exams at the end of the course in Year 11. A variety of assessment objectives are examined including recall and application of knowledge, as well as analysis and evaluation.

Good literacy and numeracy is very important, and exam papers will assess both – approximately 30% of questions in Physics will involve the use of mathematical skills; 20% in Chemistry and 10% in Biology.

Each subject has several required practical activities. These are compulsory and questions related to practical skills make up 15% of questions in the examinations.

To ensure good tracking of pupil progress, students are set tests regularly. These made up of past exam questions and outcomes are used to report progress to parents. In Year 9 students are assessed at the end of the year; in Year 10 they take mock examinations in the Spring term as well as the end of year assessments in June.

Year 11 students take mock examinations in November/December. The outcomes are used to estimate grades that are reported to parents.

References:

AQA Biology, 3rd Edition: Laurie Ryan, Oxford University Press

AQA Chemistry, 3rd Edition: Laurie Ryan, Oxford University Press

AQA Physics, 3rd Edition: Laurie Ryan, Oxford University Press

What websites are recommended?

www.kerboodle.com

www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/zrkw2hv

What equipment is needed?

A calculator, ruler, pen and pencil are essential at all times.

Get in touch

Mr P O'Neill

Sandridgebury Lane

St Albans

Hertfordshire

AL3 6DB

(To request a paper copy, please contact our Administration Department)

01727 853134