Science and Technology at Hiltingbury Infant School

Science and Design technology

Yr R

In the foundation stage, the children observe and talk about how plants, humans and other animals grow and change.  They learn about different materials and seasonal changes. (Understanding the World.)

They experiment with design, texture and function (Expressive Arts and Design) making their own houses, aquariums and sliding pictures.  In the Autumn term we enjoy a visit from ‘Longdown Dairy farm.’  In the Spring term our topic ‘Rumble in the jungle’ is enriched by a visit from Zoolab and in the summer term we explore Hillier Gardens near Romsey.

KS1 (Years 1&2)

The children develop their ‘working scientifically’ skills, asking questions, gathering evidence, carrying out experiments and looking at different ways of presenting their results.  Lessons are practical and focus on the world around them.

Year 1

In Year 1 topics such as ‘Happy and Healthy’,  ‘Giants’ and ‘Minibeasts enable the children to learn to identify and name plants and animals (including humans) and how they can be grouped.  They learn about the properties of everyday materials, seasonal changes and different types of weather.  The children really enjoy making fruit kebabs, designing moving vehicles  and creating dens.  Trips to the Beaulieu Motor Museum (in our ‘Zoom about’ topic) and Countryside Education Trust (Minibeasts) add to their excitement and learning.

Year 2

In Year 2 the children look at living things and their habitats, develop a deeper understanding of how plants grow and what they need to stay healthy, learn about different types of animals (including humans) with a focus on reproduction, nutrition and exercise and the use of everyday materials and how they can be changed.

Experts are invited in, to add to the richness of the curriculum, such as IBM for our Tryscience Day and Paleontologists for our ‘Dinosaur’ topic.  The children also enjoy a trip to Marwell zoo to study wild animals and their habitats.

In DT the children design and make their own winding mechanism for a castle (linked to our Castle and Knights topic.)  In ‘Ahoy there’ they make a healthy sandwich and in  ‘Go Wild’ the children design and make their own animal puppets.