Bearsted Primary Academy Newsletter
It has been a really exciting module for Science, as we have celebrated British Science Week and begun working towards gaining the Primary Science Quality Mark (PSQM).
The theme for Science Week this year was 'Connections'. We have been extremely lucky to build and develop connections with some of our parents who work in STEM related professions and our wider community who have come and visited us to share with us what they do.
Mr Bidewell visited from Bison to talk to use about how he has made his printing company more sustainable through the use of Science. We also reflected on what action we could take in school and at home to become 'greener'.
Mr Marsh, who is a project manager for a water company, came to talk to Years 3 and 4 about his job and how Biology, Chemistry and Physics are all involved with the water cleaning and transportation process, between rain falling from the sky to water coming out of our taps. He also advised us as to why it's not a good idea to drink rain straight from the sky! The same could be also be said for catching snowflakes on your tongue!
Mr Rose visited us from Mace to talk to us about HS2. We learnt lots of fascinating facts about the building process and how it has been developed to be as green as possible. We learnt about the role of a civil engineer and how Science and Engineering are linked.
The winning entry!
We also launched our very first 'Bearsted Primary Academy Annual Science Prize' with a competition entitled 'Connecting with Science at Home'. We were blown away (quite literally!) with the number of entries, some of which were very explosive! Certificates were presented to all of our competitors and our class winners were as follows:
Little Bears - Lucy
Sissinghurst - Eli
Scotney - Vlad
Milton Chantry - Matilda
Maison Dieu - Isla
Rochester - Hauwa
Upnor - Arjun
Temple Manor- Lahan
Lullingstone - Michyla
Our over all winner, for one highly explosive homemade rocket that reached heights above roof level, was Leo Z from Rochester Class. Well done Leo!
We have also looked at addressing misconceptions and sterotypes as to what a 'scientist' looks like. As well as inviting visitors in to talk about their STEM related careers, we have used the Primary Science Teaching Trust's website to look at a range of jobs and how they involve Science. 'A Scientist Just Like Me' introduces the children to a wide range of people who work in STEM careers, looking at what they do, how it relates to Science, what skills and qualifications they need as well as what their interests are outside of their job. https://pstt.org.uk/resources/curriculum-materials/ASJLM
The children have found this really interesting and it is has been great to widen their aspirations for future careers in STEM related jobs.
March has seen the start of a year long project to undertake the Primary Science Quality Mark (PSQM). We have got off to a flying start with all of the work around Science Week and we are looking forward to continuing to build on this over the next 12 months. Our next task is to work on putting our vision for Science into words, and trying to unpick what we want Science to look like at Bearsted Primary Academy. All of our staff have shared their ideas as to what they think an inspirational Science Curriculum would look like and we are looking forward to chatting with the children to get their ideas too. We would also welcome the parent voice, so if you have any ideas that you would like to share, please feel use the GOOGLE FORM HERE.
What next?
As part of the early work for our PSQM, we have been looking at the different types of scientific enquiry that we are required to develop as part of the curriculum. One of the areas that we have identified to further develop, is looking at changes over time. This gave us a great idea for Modules 5 and 6 are we are very excited to announce that we will be having a sunflower growing competition between all of the classes. As well as being a fun activity, it will be a good opportunity for the children to make simple observations, take measurements and put them in a table or plot them on a graph. You might also like to get involved at home and plant your own sunflower seeds over the Easter holiday or see what else you could grow in your garden or in pots on a kitchen window sill.
Holiday Homework (optional)
Carrying on from our work around STEM careers and what a modern day scientist looks like, we would love the children to draw a poster of what they think a scientist looks like today. They could draw and write about someone they know with a STEM related career or research a job that they might like to do when they are older. We will be creating a whole school Science Board and putting some of the posters on the board as well as keeping some in the classroom. There will be a certificate for everyone who takes part. These can be handed directly to class teachers by April 21st.
Last, but by no means least, there have been some great activities going on in Science Club over the last two modules. The children have taken part in a range of chemistry focused experiments and they have also explored a fabulous new STEM building set, creating a range of moving models.
