Science

Year 5

Module 1

Forces (A)

Lesson 1: Water Resistance

This week we enjoyed our first Science lesson at the secondary school where we conducted an experiment to test water resistance based on different shapes. We learnt about what makes a fair test and variables that were involved.

identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces.
using test results to make predictions to set up further comparative and fair tests.
planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary.
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate.

Lesson 2: Friction

In Science, we have been learning about friction and enjoyed conducting another practical experiment at the secondary school. Using hexbugs, we timed how quickly they moved on different surfaces (such as, carpet, wood, lino etc) with the same distances. We recapped on what makes a fair test and decided on our dependant, independant and controlled variables, as well as calculating the mean for our results.

identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces.
planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary.
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate.

Lesson 3: Air Resistance

This week in science, our focus was air resistance. As part of our investigation, we designed a parachute that could safely carry an egg. We researched using secondary sources and used our knowledge to identify the forces that would be acting on our parachute. We labelled our design to show the force arrows which helped us to explain why we chose the specific design we did. At the end of the lesson, we timed how long our parachutes took to reach the ground from the second floor as well as checking whether our egg remained intact or cracked.

planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary.
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate.
recording data and results of increasing complexity using scientific diagrams and labels, classification keys, tables, scatter graphs, bar and line graphs.
identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces.

Module 2

Forces (B)

Lesson 1: Levers

In Science this week, we have been investigating and learning about levers. We first looked at what a lever is and identified the different parts of them which allowed us to recognise levers that we may use in our everyday life such as door handles. Following on from this, we began looking at how levers are used and what they can be used for. We conducted an investigation to see what would happen when we moved an object with the same weight closer and further from the fulcrum, which allowed us to test the force needed to then push the beam. We recorded our results to allow us to come to a supported conclusion for the relationship between force, position and weight.

recognise that some mechanisms, including levers, pulleys and gears, allow a smaller force to have a greater effect.
reporting and presenting findings from enquiries, including conclusions, causal relationships and explanations of and degree of trust in results, in oral and written forms such as displays and other presentations.
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate.

Lesson 2: Factory of the Future Workshop

Lesson 3: Gears, Levers and Pulleys

Today we learnt about gears, levers and pulleys as well as the part that gravity plays in situations such as for submarines. We explored gears and what role gears play in moving objects. To gain a better understanding, we looked at the different forces that are used when a submarine is underwater and what forces are used in different scenarios such as when riding a bike.

We then investigated the use of gears and what happens when we have more than one gear in a scenario. We created our own gear model and experimented what happened to the smaller gear when we turned the bigger gear and vice versa. This allowed us to understand the speed they can go and which gear deciphers which type of speed.

recognise that some mechanisms, including levers, pulleys and gears, allow a smaller force to have a greater effect.
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate.

Module 3

Space

Lesson 1: Our Solar System

This week in Science, we began learning about our solar system and the planets that are in it. We looked at different space elements and ordered them in terms of size and defined what a solar system and galaxy are. After we looked at our solar system, we then independently researched each planet and and looked at its mass, size, surface temperature and time of orbit etc. This then enabled us to identify any patterns there were when these areas to their distance from the sun.

describe the movement of the Earth, and other planets, relative to the Sun in the solar system

Lesson 2: Day and Night

Today we explored the idea of day and night and how it occurs. We also learnt about positions of the earth, moon and sun and how the moon orbits the earth. We modelled this idea using styrofoam balls and paper models to gain a securer understanding.

describe the movement of the Moon relative to the Earth
describe the Sun, Earth and Moon as approximately spherical bodies
use the idea of the Earth’s rotation to explain day and night and the apparent movement of the sun across the sky.

Lesson 3: How craters form on the moon

This week in Science, we investigated how impact craters form on the moon, and used this information to identify the best site to build a lunar base. To do this, we decided our independent variables (the things we would you change), our dependent variables (the things we would you measure) and our control variables (the things that needed to remain the same).

planning different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary
taking measurements, using a range of scientific equipment, with increasing accuracy and precision, taking repeat readings when appropriate

Astrodome Dome Immersive Experience - 5th February 2024

Year 5 had the amazing opportunity to experience a space presentation in a giant inflatable dome which projected images of space onto the ceiling of the dome, giving an immersive experience. They also had a chance to ask any questions they had about space to the space expert who presented the talk. The students covered content from the KS2 space curriculum including; Space News, Earth, Sun, Gravity, Life on the Space Station, Pole Star, Compass Bearings, Solar System, Starry Night, Greek Constellations, Milky Way and Trip to Mars. We were also shown a how a space car is put together and real life meteorite rocks.

Module 4

Properties and changes of materials

Lesson 1: Properties of materials

During our first lesson, we explored a variety of material's properties, including whether they were transparent, translucent, opaque, magnetic or non-magnetic and whether they were insulators or conductors. This enabled us to be able to group the matrials accordingly. We used a torch to find out whether the materials were transparent (let light through completely), translucent (let some light through) or opaque (let no light through). We then used magnetics to find out whether a variety of different materials were magnetic or not.

compare and group together everyday materials on the basis of their properties, including their hardness, solubility, transparency, conductivity (electrical and thermal), and response to magnets

Lesson 2: Dissolving and separating substances

Today in science, we focussed on dissolving and separating substances. Firstly, we recapped the key terms; solute, solution and solvent and observed the process of dissolving with water and blue crystals, which resuted in a blue liquid being formed. We then experiemented with a variety of different materials to test whether they would dissolve or not for example, sand, sugar and iron filings.

Afterwards, we thought about whether or not we could reverse the process of dissolving and separate the substances again.

know that some materials will dissolve in liquid to form a solution, and describe how to recover a substance from a solution
use knowledge of solids, liquids and gases to decide how mixtures might be separated, including through filtering, sieving and evaporating
demonstrate that dissolving, mixing and changes of state are reversible changes

Module 5

Animals including humans

Lesson 1: Gestation

During today's lesson we looked at gestation periods for different animals, including humans. We learnt about fertilisation and predicted how the size of the animals impacted on the length of their gestation. Following that, we learnt about the terms prenatal and foetus and then studied the different stages of prenatal development and put this into a timeline. We were able to look at some life size models of the uterus and embryo/foetus at different stages of the prenatal development.

Pupils should be taught to:

describe the changes as humans develop to old age.

Lesson 2: Growth and Development

Today we explored the growth and development of infancy, childhood and adolescence. First we focused of the stages of development in infancy and how a baby grows and develops into a toddler and then into childhood. We then explored how a human grows and develops throughout adolescence. We compared the changes that the human body goes through during puberty in both males and females. Towards the end of the lesson, we looked into some facts and fiction about puberty and then learnt about the menstruation cycle.

Pupils should be taught to:

describe the changes as humans develop to old age.

Lesson 3: Stages of development and Old Age Life Stage

Today we studied the life stage of old age and what happens in this area of development. We compared the changes that occur during this time to a person's body and mind. We then recapped all areas of development, looking at each area of development and understand the full life cycle of a human.

Pupils should be taught to:

describe the changes as humans develop to old age.

Module 6

Living things and their habitats

Reproduction in plants

In our first science lesson for this topic, we looked at the process of asexual and sexual reproduction in plants. We also looked at the parts of a plant and processes of pollination, fertilisation and germination. As part of our lesson, we were able to choose to grow our own mexican hat plant or geranium using the process of asexual reproduction. Lastly, we used used jars to house a broad bean seed to grow our own broad bean plant as part of the sexual reproduction process in plants.

In addition tho this, we have looked at the life cycles of different mammals and compared these to other living things to sport patterns in the similarities and differences of their life cycles.

Pupils should be taught to:

describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird
describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals.

Coin cleaning:

To end the year, we took part in some coin cleaning experiements. We used different variables to submerge the coins in to and then compared the differences in how they cleaned the coin's surfaces. We were then able to take part in an experiment in which we changed a 2p copper coin into nickle and a 5p nickle coin into copper using energy.

Page updated

Report abuse