2023-2024

Solar Clock Experiment (Spring)

We carried out an investigation into how the sun transitions across our sky as the earth rotates. We made our very own sundial which we made sure was position facing north as we are in the northern hemisphere. From the same spot, we measured the accuracy of our sundial by how close the shadow was to the correct time at 9am, 11am, 1pm and 3pm. We then measured the length of the shadow from the gnomon to see how that changed through the day. This investigation required a sunny day.

Phases of the Moon (Spring)

In this lesson, we have been looking at the eight lunar phases which are: new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, third quarter and waning crescent. The cycle repeats once a month (every 29.5 days). We created a pinwheel to display this phases.

Earth’s Movement in Space (Spring)

In science this week, we have been carrying out an observational experiment to understand the Earth’s orbit of the sun and it’s rotation and how that effects day and night and the seasons we experience here on the planet.

Heliocentric Model (Spring) 

In science this week, we have been looking into how our knowledge of the solar system has changed considerably over the year. From the earth being considered flat, the geometric universe - where earth is at the centre, to the heliocentric system which is also known at Sun-centered solar system we use today.

We were then given a challenge to create a heliocentric model of the sun and the orbit of the earth and moon. We were given the materials and instructions to follow with no additional support. We had to persevere and read the instructions careful. We succeeded. Take a look. 

Our Solar System (Spring)

This term we are exploring earth and space. In this lesson we started looking at the order of the planets that make up our solar system. We learnt a ‘mnemonic’ to help remember the order - My (Mercury) Very (Venus) Easy (Earth) Method (Mars) Just (Jupiter) Speeds (Saturn) Up (Uranus) Nothing (Neptune). Then we explored how the planets are grouped - Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are terrestrial planets as they are rocky and Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are gas giants because they are mainly made of gases. We then tried to understand the massive size of our solar system but creating a scaled model outside where 1m is equal to 50 million km. 

We are creating drawings replaying this scale in pairs where we have included facts about each planet. This will be added soon once we have completed them.

How does distance affect volume of sound? (Autumn)

Today we have been investigating how the volume of sound from a sound source is affected by distance. We placed a speaker at one end of the field and measured the decibel reading standing right next to it. Then we moved away in 10 metre intervals and measured the decibel reading again. We realised that as the distance increased the decibel reading decreased meaning the volume of sound was getting quieter the further we went from the speaker. We learnt this is because the vibrations (power) from the sound source travelling through the particles in the air, pass on their vibration will lose power each time it is passed onto the next particle. By the time they reached our ear at the far end of the field, their power had decreased enough to lower the volume of the sound.

Exploring pitch (Autumn)

We have been getting creative making percussion instruments using various materials in our classroom. Our instrument was meant do create different pitch sound. We know that low pitch sounds are made by larger instruments compared to high pitch sounds usually made by smaller instruments. We learnt that high-pitched sounds are made by fast vibrations and have high frequencies (a greater number of waves occurring in a given amount of time). High-pitched sounds have shorter wavelengths. Low pitch sounds are the opposite. 

How does sound travel through different mediums? (Autumn)

In today's science lesson, we have been investigating how sound travels through different mediums - solids, liquids and gases. We have to conduct four mini experiments which demonstrated the difference. We used a speaker and sugar on cling film wrapped over the top of the bowl to see the vibrations acting upon the sugar. We had a chat through a balloon to see the change it made to our voices. We created a vacuum by placing a bottle into a bowl of water with our ear at one end and two stones tapped together under water. We notice how the sound was less once the vacuum was created with the bottle in the water. Finally, we hung a metal hanger from our fingers and tapped it against the table. We repeated this but with our fingers in our ears where we notice the sound was amplified like we were listening to Big Ben. Take a look!

2022-23

Investigating Reflectivity of Materials (19.05.23)

After our last lesson, where we established what light sources are and that light travels in straight lines, we explored how light reflects off different surfaces. We created a light catcher for our torch; we placed the material 15cm away each time to ensure a fair test. As the light travelled from the torch onto the material, it reflected back onto the light catcher and the brighter it became the more reflective the surface is. In groups we tested: smooth tin foil; crinkled tin foil; plastic bag; white paper; coloured paper and a mirror. Our findings show that the smoother the surface the reflective it is.

An insulator or a conductor?

In science this week, we have been making a simple series circuit again with a cell and a bulb or buzzer. with an extended part to add different materials to complete our circuits. We have done this to test various different materials to see if they are conductors (allows an electrical current pass through easily) or insulators (won't allow an electrical current pass through it). Once we tested each material, we completed a whole class Venn Diagram to present our findings.

Series Circuits

We have been exploring making simple series circuits which included components such as a bulb, switch and buzzer all powered by a battery (cell). Understanding that an electrical current needs a complete circuit to work and any break in that circuit won't allow the electrical current flow round to the components. We also had a go at drawing the diagrams for our circuits we made using the current symbols for each component. 

Our Learning in Science this term

Over the last few weeks, we have been working together in small groups to give a 5 minute talk/ presentation showcasing all our learning in science this term. 

Oracy in Science

We have come to the end of our term's science learning so we are going to create that 'sticky learning' by planning, rehearsing and presentation a 5 minute talk on the key learning we have developed on the digestive system, teeth and food webs. Today, we began practising our oracy skills while revising our science knowledge - we sat back to back with a different image and had to describe that image to our partner. We found it challenging but used clarifying questions to help unpick what our partner was trying to say. Then, we were given the key facts to help label the images we had drawn (diagram of teeth and digestive system) through discussion and coming to a joint consensus we could label our diagrams. We then began to plan our presentations before lots of rehearsing.

2021-22

Making New Plants - Cloning

We have begun an experiment to clone different plants through cuttings from their parent plant. Over the coming weeks we will make observational drawings so show their progress.

Is there a link between the mass and weight of an object?

This week the class have been investigating if there is a link between the mass (the amount of matter in an object measured in g/kg) and weight (the strength of gravity pulling on an abject measured in Newtons). The children found out that for every 100g of mass an object pulls 1 Newton - roughly.

Sir Issac Newton!

Children have been exploring and understanding the life of Sir Issac Newton. They have various activities to ensure that knowledge was retained by: first, writing a biography in Sir Issac which had exactly 100 words and then writing a 50 word saga or poem on the great man. They are looking forward to investigating force over the coming weeks.

Magnetic Poles: Do they attract or repel?

We have been exploring magnets this term and today's lesson involved the understanding of the parts of magnets (poles) - they attract or repel one another? We discussed the earth is a giant magnet and that, unrestricted, all magnets will point north. Therefore, we made our own compasses to locate letters to spell out a word. Can you work out what it is?