SCIENCE

UNESCO described science ‘as the greatest collective endeavour’ as it helps generate solutions to every day life problems and helps answer the mysteries of the Universe! Considering this being the first year at Seniors, it has been a pleasure to see the pupils as they have overcome challenges, demonstrated resilience, used their creativity and developed problem solving skills in Science.

In Key stage 3, the year 7 pupils started learning about the three different states of matter in Chemistry. Whilst learning about acids and alkalis, pupils carried out home experiments where pupils made their own indicators using red cabbage. In Physics, pupils learnt more about forces and engineered a parachute that would fall the slowest using their knowledge of forces and streamlining. In Biology, pupils were learning about organisms such as plants and animals, particularly their structures and functions.

In year 8 pupils learnt about various topics in all three sciences which included physics: the study of universe. Chemistry the study of matter and biology the study of life and living organisms. It gave them the opportunity to develop their problem-solving and observation skills such as communicating, classifying, measuring, inferring and predicting.

Year 9 pupils learnt about the plants, their structure and how they reproduce. Considering we have entered a new era- Anthropocene (increasing human activity affecting the climate and ecosystems), this topic was truly relevant, and the pupils were able to learn more about the environment. In Chemistry, as all matter is composed atoms, pupils learnt more about the structure and history of the atom, reactivity series and how acids react with bases to form a neutral solution. In Physics pupils learnt about forces in action, electricity and energy. Physics help them understand the world around them and satisfy curiosity. It also developed their critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

In Key stage 4, year 10, pupils learnt more about the key characteristics of organism and their different types. Pupils learnt more about production of food in plants and animals, testing for key food molecules, how they are transported and used in respiration. In Chemistry, pupils initially started learning about the key fundamentals (states of matter) before moving on to bonding (covalent, ionic and metallic). Pupils were then able to develop their quantitative chemistry skills by calculating relative formula mass, moles, reacting masses..etc. In physics pupils learnt about the Forces and motion, Electricity, Waves and energy. They had the opportunity to improve their skills relating to numeracy, problem-solving, data analysis and the communication of complex ideas, as well as a wider understanding of how the world works on a scientific and human level.