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  The Programe of Study for Science Key Stage 2 (2002) 

The requirements in this section of the programme of study apply across Experimental and Investigative Science, Life Processes and Living Things, Materials and their Properties and Physic

Introduction

Pupils should be given opportunities to:

Systematic enquiry

  • use practical tasks and investigations to acquire scientific knowledge, understanding and skills;
  • use both first-hand experience and secondary sources of information, and to decide which sources to use;
  • work quantitatively;
  • choose ways of using IT to collect, store, retrieve and present scientific information.

Application of science

  • relate scientific knowledge and understanding to familiar phenomena and to things that are used every day;
  • consider how applications of science, including those related to health, influence the quality of their lives;
  • consider the benefits and drawbacks of scientific and technological developments in environmental and other contexts.

The nature of scientific ideas

  • consider the importance of evidence and creative thought in the development of scientific theories;
  • consider how scientific knowledge and understanding needs to be supported by empirical evidence;
  • relate social and historical contexts to scientific ideas by studying how at least one scientific idea has changed over time.

 

Some useful links to General Science pages

 

Pupils should be taught:

Communication
  • use a wide range of scientific terms and symbols, and to consider why scientific and mathematical conventions are used;
  • use SI units;
  • present their ideas through the use of diagrams, graphs, tables and charts, using appropriate scientific and mathematical conventions.

Health and safety

  • take responsibility for recognising hazards in a range of work with living things, materials and devices with which they are familiar;
  • use appropriate information sources to assess risks, both immediate and cumulative;
  • apply their knowledge and take action to control the risks to themselves and to others.

 


Experimental and Investigative Science (AT1)

 

Pupils should be taught:

Planning experimental procedures

  • to use scientific knowledge and understanding to turn ideas suggested to them, and their own
  • to carry out trial runs where appropriate;
  • to make predictions where it is appropriate to do so;
  • to consider, in simple contexts, key factors that need to be taken into account;
  • to isolate the effect of changing one factor;
  • to decide how many observations or measurements need to be made and what range they should cover;
  • to consider contexts, eg fieldwork, where variables cannot readily be controlled, and to consider how evidence may be collected in these contexts;
  • to select apparatus, equipment and techniques, taking account of safety requirements.

Obtaining evidence

  • to use a range of apparatus and equipment safely and with skill;
  • to make observations and measurements to a degree of precision appropriate to the context;
  • to make sufficient relevant observations and measurements for reliable evidence;
  • to repeat measurements and observations when appropriate;
  • to record evidence clearly and appropriately as they carry out the work.

Pupils should be taught:

Analysing evidence and drawing conclusions

  • to present qualitative and quantitative data clearly;
  • to use graphs appropriate to the results obtained;
  • to use lines of best fit where appropriate;
  • to identify trends or patterns in results;
  • to use results to draw conclusions;
  • to decide whether the results support the original prediction when one has been made;
  • to try to explain conclusions in the light of their knowledge and understanding of science.

Considering the strength of the evidence

  • to consider whether the evidence is sufficient to enable firm conclusions to be drawn;
  • to consider anomalies in observations or measurements and explain them where possible;
  • to consider improvements to the methods that have been used.

 

Life processes and Living Things (AT2)

Pupils should be taught:

Life processes and cell activity

  • that many animals and plants have organs that enable life processes, eg reproduction, to take place;
  • that animals and plants are made up of cells;
  • the functions of the cell membrane, cytoplasm and nucleus in plant and animal cells;
  • the functions of chloroplasts and cell walls in plant cells;
  • ways in which some cells, including ciliated epithelial cells, sperm, ova, palisade cells and root hair cells, are adapted to their functions.

 


Some useful links for 'Life Processes and Cell activity'

 


Humans as organisms

Nutrition

  • that balanced diets contain carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, fibre and water;
  • some sources of the main food components in the diet;
  • that food is used as a fuel during respiration to maintain the body`s activity and as a raw material for growth and repair;
  • the principles of digestion, including the role of enzymes;
  • that the products of digestion are absorbed and waste material is egested;
  • Novo Nordisk - Enyzme Technology

 

Circulation
  • how blood acts as a transport medium and about the exchange of substances at the capillaries;
  • The Heart and the Circulatory System (Access Excellence)
  • The Heart: An Online Exploration From the moment it begins beating until the moment it stops, the human heart works tirelessly. In an average lifetime, the heart beats more than two and a half billion times, without ever pausing to rest. Like a pumping machine, the heart provides the power needed for life.
  • The Heart Page
  • HeartPoint Gallery describes how the heart acts as a pump, and lists all the main parts of the heart shown on the diagram. The site could be used by older children to research the workings of the heart as part of their work on circulation, or by a teacher finding out information for a lesson
  • Sizing up the Human heart

 


Movement
  • the role of the skeleton, joints and muscles in movement;
  • the principle of antagonistic muscle pairs, eg biceps and triceps;
  • 3-D Foot and ankle
  • Human Anatomy The Visible Human Project The National Library of Medicine has undertaken to provide a set of digitised images of the human body for use in education and research. The Visible Human Project will initially create a digital image data set of a complete human male and female cadaver, with digitised anatomical photographs, as well as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computer tomography (CT) data.
  • MRI Image Map of Human body

 


Reproduction
  • about the physical and emotional changes that take place during adolescence;
  • the human reproductive system, including the menstrual cycle and fertilisation;
  • how the foetus develops in the uterus, including the role of the placenta;
  • Basic Embryology Review Program chapters on all aspects of development
  • The visible Embryo an online tutorial on the first four weeks of human development, plus links to embryology sites

Breathing

  • how lung structure enables gas exchange to take place;
  • how smoking affects lung structure and gas exchange;


Respiration

  • that aerobic respiration involves the reaction in cells between oxygen and food used as a fuel;
  • that during aerobic respiration glucose is broken down to carbon dioxide and water;
  • to summarise aerobic respiration in a word equation;
    Pupils should be taught:


Health

  • that the abuse of alcohol, solvents and other drugs affects health;
  • that bacteria and viruses can affect health;
  • that the body`s natural defences may be enhanced by immunisation and medicines.
  • Virology visit this site to see computer visualisations of viruses, plus many links to virology
  • Virology on the WWW the most comprehensive single site for virology information


Green plants as organisms nutrition and growth

  • that photosynthesis produces biomass and oxygen;
  • that plants need carbon dioxide, water and light for photosynthesis;
  • to summarise photosynthesis in a word equation;
  • that nitrogen and other elements in addition to carbon, oxygen and hydrogen are required for plant growth;
  • that root hairs absorb water and minerals from the soil;


Reproduction

  • how sexual reproduction occurs in flowering plants, including fertilisation and seed formation;


Respiration

  • that plants carry out aerobic respiration.

 


Some useful links for Plant biology
  • Natural Science resources collection of educational resources (instructional software, lab activities, lesson plans, student created materials ...) for K-12 mathematics and science education.
  • Botany resources a very comprehensive set of botany links.
  • Botany resources on the WWW a good starting point for a broad exploration of botany.
  • Plant Cells and environment includes fundamental and applied aspects of plant molecular biology, cell physiology, plant biochemistry, whole plant physiology, environmental physiology, crop physiology and physiological ecology, together with genetical, structural, micrometeorological and pathological aspects as related to function.
  • Plant images
  • Wild flower database catalogues, links, common and Latin names,photographs and gardens to explore.

 


Variation, classification and inheritance variation
  • that there is variation within species and between species;
  • that variation within a species can have both environmental and inherited causes;


Classification

  • how keys can be used to identify animals and plants;
  • to classify living things into the major taxonomic groups;


Inheritance

  • that selective breeding can lead to new varieties.

Living things in their environment adaptation

  • that different habitats support different plants and animals;
  • how some organisms are adapted to survive daily and seasonal changes in their habitats, eg light intensity, temperature;


Feeding relationships

  • how food chains may be quantified using pyramids of numbers;
  • that in food webs there are several food chains with species in common;
  • how toxic materials may accumulate in food chains;


Competition

  • factors affecting the size of populations, including predation and competition for resources;
  • that organisms successfully competing in their environment contribute relatively more offspring to the next generation.

 


Materials and their properties(AT3)

Pupils should be taught:

Classifying materials solids, liquids and gases
  • to recognise differences between solids, liquids and gases, in terms of properties, eg density, compressibility, ease of flow, maintenance of shape and volume;
  • Science in Action - 'Materials' - The BBC site with explanations and experiments
  • a simple model of solids, liquids and gases, in terms of the arrangement and movement of particles;
  • how the particle theory of matter can be used to explain the properties of solids, liquids and gases, including changes of state, gas pressure and diffusion;


Elements

  • that elements consist of atoms and that all atoms of the same element contain the same number of protons;
  • that elements can be represented by symbols and that the periodic table shows all the elements;
  • Periodic Table - Web Elements - A brilliant site maintained by Mark Winter at Sheffield University


Compounds

  • how some elements combine through chemical reactions to form compounds, eg water, carbon dioxide, magnesium oxide, sodium chloride;
  • that compounds have a definite composition, and to represent compounds by formulae;

 


Some useful links for Chemistry

 

Mixtures
  • that mixtures, eg air, sea water, contain constituents that are not combined;
  • about methods, including filtration, distillation and chromatography, that can be used to separate mixtures into their constituents;

Metals and non-metals

  • that most metallic elements are shiny solids at room temperature, that most are good thermal and electrical conductors, and that a few are magnetic;
  • that non-metallic elements vary widely in their physical properties, that many are gases at room temperature, and that most are poor thermal and electrical conductors;
  • to use these properties to classify elements as metals or non-metals.

Changing materials

Physical changes

  • that when physical changes, eg changes of state, formation of solutions, take place, mass is conserved;
  • that solutes have different solubilities in different solvents and at different temperatures;
  • that different materials change state at different temperatures;
  • Science in Action - 'Materials' - The BBC site with explanations and experiments

 


Some useful links for Temperature

Pupils should be taught:

Geological changes

  • that the rock cycle involves sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous processes that take place over different timescales;
  • that rocks are classified as sedimentary, metamorphic or igneous on the basis of their processes of formation, and that these processes affect their texture and the minerals they contain;

Chemical reactions

  • that when chemical reactions take place, mass is conserved;
  • that virtually all materials, including those in living systems, are made through chemical reactions;
  • to represent chemical reactions by word equations;
  • that there are different types of reaction, including oxidation and thermal decomposition;
  • that useful products can be made from chemical reactions, including the production of metals from metal oxides;
  • about chemical reactions, eg corrosion of iron, spoiling of food, that are generally not useful;
  • that energy transfers that accompany chemical reactions, including the burning of fuels, can be controlled and used;
  • about possible effects of burning fossil fuels on the environment.
  • Antoine Henri Becquerel (1852-1908) On the rays emitted by phosphorescence
  • Chemical Safety
  • The Chemistry Place
  • Chemistry links General Chemistry Resources on the Internet
  • Selected Classic Papers from the History of Chemistry
  • Chemistry lessons
  • Polymers and liquid crystals
  • John Dalton In 1802, in the grandly titled "Experimental Essays on the Constitution of Mixed Gases; on the Force of Steam or Vapour from water and other liquids in different temperatures, both in a Torricellian vacuum and in air; on Evaporation; and on the Expansion of Gasses by Heat," John stated his law of partial pressures.
  • Dmitrii Mendeleev (1834-1907) On the Relationship of the Properties of the Elements to their Atomic Weights

Patterns of behaviour metals

  • the reactions of metals with oxygen, water and acid;
  • the displacement reactions that take place between metals and solutions of salts of other metals;
  • how a reactivity series of metals can be determined by considering these reactions;
  • how this reactivity series can be used to make predictions about other reactions;


Acids and bases

  • that pH is a measure of the acidity of a solution;
  • to use indicators to classify solutions as acidic, neutral or alkaline;
  • the reactions of acids with metals and bases, including carbonates, to form salts;
  • some everyday applications of neutralisation, eg the treatment of indigestion, the treatment of acid soil;
  • how acids in the atmosphere can lead to corrosion of metal and chemical weathering of rock.
  • Reily's Water Activities The following concepts are involved in the next lessons:
    • The cohesive and adhesive properties of water.
    • Surface tension of water (related to cohesive properties of water).
    • Absorbency of water with different materials.
    • The capillary action of water.
    • Floating and sinking (i.e. buoyancy, displacement).
    • The states of water (gas, solid, liquid).

 


Physical Processes(AT4)

Pupils should be taught:

Electricity and magnetism

Static charge
  • that an insulating material can be charged by friction;
  • that there are forces of attraction between positive and negative charges, and forces of repulsion between like charges;


Current in circuits

Magnetic fields

  • about magnetic fields as regions of space where magnetic materials experience forces;
  • the field pattern produced by a bar magnet;
  • Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

Electromagnets

  • that a current in a coil produces a magnetic field pattern;
  • how electromagnets are constructed and used in devices, eg electric bells, relays.


Forces and motionforce and linear motion

  • how to determine the speed of a moving object;
  • the quantitative relationship between speed, distance and time;
  • that balanced forces produce no change in the movement of an object;
  • ways in which frictional forces, including air resistance, affect motion, eg the effect of air resistance on a descending parachute, the effect of friction between a tyre and a road;


Pupils should be taught:

Force and rotation

  • that forces can cause objects to turn about a pivot;
  • the principle of moments and its application to situations involving one pivot;
  • Science in Action - The BBC site with explanations and experiments

Force and pressure

  • the quantitative relationship between the force acting normally per unit area on a surface and the pressure on that surface;
  • some applications of this relationship, eg the use of snow shoes, the effect of sharp blades.

Light and sound

The behaviour of light

  • how shadows are formed;
  • that light travels much faster than sound;
  • that non-luminous objects are seen because light scattered from them enters the eye;
  • how light is reflected at plane surfaces;
  • how light is refracted at the boundary between two different materials;
  • that white light can be dispersed to give a range of colours;
  • the effect of colour filters on white light;
  • how coloured objects appear in white light and in other colours of light;
  • What is a Rainbow?
  • Eclipse - follow the path of an eclipse
  • How light works - This document is designed to give students a basic understanding of important concepts related to light and its various properties.

Hearing

  • that sound waves cause the ear drum to vibrate and that different people have different audible ranges;
  • the effects of loud sounds on the ear;


Vibration and sound

  • that sound waves cannot travel through a vacuum;
  • the link between the loudness of a sound and the amplitude of the vibration causing it;
  • the link between the pitch of a sound and the frequency of the vibration causing it.
  • Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

Pupils should be taught:

The Earth and beyond the solar system

  • that the apparent daily and annual movement of the Sun and other stars is caused by the movement of the Earth;
  • the relative positions of the Earth, Sun and planets in the solar system;
  • that gravitational forces determine the movements of planets around the Sun;
  • that the Sun and other stars are light sources and that the planets and other bodies are seen by reflected light;
  • that artificial satellites can be used to observe the Earth and to explore the solar system.

 


Some useful links for Astronomy and Space

  • Ask an Astronaut The National Space Society is proud to present the public access to those who have flown in space. Through this site, you will have the opportunity to read about and question astronauts while learning about their missions.
  • Ask the Astronomer
  • Astronomy picture of the day
  • Bradford Robotic Telescope .The telescope is in the department of Industrial Technology at the University of Bradford.
  • Comets - Primary and secondary information on comets and observing comets
  • Earth from Space - NASA site An astronaut's view of the home planet
  • Earth View - view of the earth from the Moon. Zoom in and look more closely
  • Eclipses - upcoming & Recent Eclipses of the Sun and Moon
  • Eclipse - follow the path of an eclipse
  • Exploring Space - Virtual Exhibits. Explore! will take you on adventures from space weather to the Red Planet. Passengers may now board the SSI Explore Shuttle. Fasten your seat belt and place your tray in its upright and locked position. Prepare for launch. Your cosmic adventure is about to begin!
  • Houston Chronicle Interactive Space Central - coverage of NASA shuttle missions, space news, and don't miss the Astronomy Picture of the Day.
    • Index of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images from the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy and the Space Telescope Science Institute. These pictures are large JPEG, Tiff or GIF files. Click here for more information about the different image file formats.
      • HST Public Images by Subject - with thumbnails (will take a long time to download).
      • HST Public Images by Subject - without thumbnails.
        Click here         to read important information regarding copyright and the use of these images. It might be useful to print a copy and distribute to all those who may make use of these pictures within your school.

  • Impact Craters Almost all of the craters are less than 600 million years old, and those less than a mile in diameter are usually around 3 million years old or younger. Most of the craters are between one and ten miles in diameter. There should be many craters less than a mile in diameter, but they are harder to find because they do not survive geological processes as well as larger craters.
  • Live from Mars
  • Mars Global Surveyor - view the latest images from Mars
  • Mars Missions - images and information about the expedition to Mars including Mars Pathfinder July 4th 1997
  • The Nine Planets - A Multimedia Tour of the Solar System - an essay about our solar system with text, pictures, sounds and an occasional movie. Each of the planets and major moons in our solar system is briefly described and illustrated with pictures from NASA spacecraft.
  • NASA Exhibits Aircraft & Major Space Artifacts on Display - browse the list of Air and Space artifacts on display by name or by gallery.
  • NASA observatorium NASA's Observatorium is a public access site for Earth and space data. We have pictures of the Earth, planets, stars, and other cool stuff, as well as the stories behind those images.
  • NASA Photo Gallery
  • An Overview of the Solar System
  • Planetarium Web Sites
  • Solar System Live! - You can view the entire Solar System, or just the inner planets (through the orbit of Mars).
  • Solar System Trading cards
  • Space and Astronomy page
  • Space and Astronomy Sites
  • Space Shuttle click on a component of the Space Shuttle and receive detailed information about its construction and function.
  • Johnson space centre space, space travel and NASA information.
  • Space Tech's Orrery - tour the Solar system
  • Space Topics a list of space links available through Yahoo.
  • Stars and Galaxies
  • STELLAR STELLAR participants utilise Space Life Sciences and Shuttle mission research data to create K-14 classroom activities
  • The Sun - The Sun - A Multimedia Tour
  • Views of the planets information and images about the sun, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, meteoroids, people, and the history of space exploration.
  • Views of the Solar system Views of the Solar System presents a vivid multimedia adventure unfolding the splendour of the Sun, planets, moons, comets, asteroids, and more. Discover the latest scientific information, or study the history of space exploration, rocketry, early astronauts, space missions, spacecraft through a vast archive of photographs, scientific facts, text, graphics and videos.
  • Voyager Project Home page This site contains information about the project, read Interstellar Mission Description, Latest Weekly Status Report, Distance & Velocity Information, see Voyager spacecraft photos, see many images from the Scenes from Earth section, and much more.
  • Welcome to the Planets This is a collection of many of the best images from NASA's planetary exploration program.
  • Window to the Universe Our purpose is to develop a fun and different Web site about the Earth an Space sciences.

 


Energy resources and energy transfer

Energy resources
  • that there is a variety of energy resources, including oil, gas, coal, biomass, food, wind, waves and batteries;
  • that the Sun is the ultimate source of most of the Earth`s energy resources;
  • that electricity is generated using a variety of energy resources;
  • that some of the Earth`s energy resources are renewable and some are not;
  • Solar Energy Research Facility USA- US Department of Energy SERF
  • Nuclear power risks
  • The Virtual Nuclear Tourist - Nuclear power plants around the World

Conservation of energy

  • the distinction between temperature and the total energy contained in a body;
  • that energy can be transferred and stored;
  • that energy is conserved;
  • that although energy is always conserved, it may be dissipated, reducing its availability as a resource.
  • Energy Quest - Energy Education from the California Energy Commission. A really nice site with a lot of ideas for use at Key stage 2/3. One of the problems is the home page contains an awful lot of graphics and can, at times, be very slow to download. To help with this problem they have provided a text only version of the home page. See below;
  • Energy Quest - full version which may take some time to download
  • Energy Quest - text only version of the home page
  • The Society of Automotive Engineers (Canada) has created this program as an exciting way to learn science. Lessons-plans are organised in units for your convenience.

 

Other Links - General Science topics
  • US Grade 5
    • Earth and Space Science
    • Life Science
    • Physical Science
    • Science link of the month
  • US Grade 6
    • Earth and Space Science
    • Life Science
    • Physical Science
  • Science database search a database to find answers to many of those common (and not so common) science questions
  • Science Information Infrastructure - A collaboration between scientists and teachers, developing educational resources using NASA images and datasets.
  • Science internet links
  • Sci Journal Sci-Journal is the on-line publication for science students which gives YOU the chance to publish work you've done in your school or college science classes so that other science students around the world can read about it.
  • Science lessons by subject
  • Science Learning Network a site which provides Internet exploration of science museums and resources for science teachers
  • Science Links Association for Science Education
  • Science Online ready-made classroom activities developed by teachers; also includes resources to help you build your own Internet-based classroom activities
  • Science Resources - Channel 4 Life, Materials, Physical processes, Equinox, Science bank.
  • Sea and Sky - A great web site dedicated to the last two great frontiers.
  • Smithsonian Institute - the starting page with links to the Smithsonian's electronic exhibits
  • The Study Web - Science links Astronomy | Astrophysics | Biology | Botany | Chemistry | Ecology | Energy | Engineering | Entomology | Environment | Earth Science | Genetics | Geology | Meteorology & Weather | Natural & Human-Made Disasters | Oceanography | Ornithology | Palaeontology | Physics | Reptiles & Amphibians | Science Fair Projects | Space & Aeronautics
  • Top Marks a free one-stop gateway to high quality educational resources on the Internet.
  • BECTa - Virtual teacher centre (VTC)
  • Wellcome Wing The Wellcome Wing at the Science Museum
  • The Why Files Science behind the news