- Module 1: The Earth
- Module 2: Chemical Basis of Life
- Module 3: Early Life on Earth
- Module 4: Complex Organisms
- Module 5: Forces on Earth
- Module 6: Earth and Beyond
Curriculum Intent
Our science curriculum is designed to help all students master important scientific concepts and skills, no matter their starting point. It focuses on deep understanding, connecting core ideas, and avoiding superficial learning. The curriculum follows a structured approach, starting with basic topics and building up to more complex ones, integrating with other subjects like maths.
Practical work and experiments are key parts of the curriculum, allowing students to engage actively and apply their knowledge. The curriculum also addresses common challenges in learning science by emphasising clear explanations and vocabulary. Through the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP), students develop critical thinking, ethical reasoning, and global awareness.
The curriculum is carefully sequenced, revisiting key concepts to reinforce learning and address misconceptions. It includes frequent practice, feedback, and assessments to ensure students retain and apply their knowledge effectively. Overall, the goal is to make science engaging and relevant, preparing students for future learning and real-world applications.
ks3: Sciences
Students in year 7-9 study the Middle Years Program (MYP) in science. This program offers a comprehensive learning experience that fosters a holistic understanding of scientific concepts and their real-world applications. It emphasises inquiry-based learning, helping students develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and hands-on scientific skills through practical experiments and data analysis. The program integrates science within global contexts, making the subject relevant to current global challenges, and encourages independent learning and interdisciplinary connections. These elements prepare students for future academic pursuits and careers while also developing essential soft skills like teamwork, communication, and ethical reasoning
- Module 1: Electricity and Forces
- Module 2: Elements and Compounds and Changing Substances
- Module 3: Tissues and Organs
- Module 4: Interdependence and Bioenergetics
- Module 5: Light, Colour and Magnetism
- Module 6: Reactants and products, Human Impact on the Environment
- Module 1: Interdependence and Bioenergetics
- Module 2: Light, Colour and Magnetism
- Module 3: Reactants and products, Human Impact on the Environment
- Module 4: Growth and differentiation
- Module 5: Heating
- Module 6: The Periodic table
ks4: science
- Module 1: Movement and Acceleration, Genetics
- Module 2: Organ Systems
- Module 3: Home electricity, Structure and Bonding
- Module 4: Photosynthesis, Energy Conservation
- Module 5: Making Substances
- Module 6: Radioactivity
- Module 1: Controlling reactions, evolution
- Module 2: Carbon chemistry, Life diversity, Applied forces
- Module 3: Feedback and control, atmosphere
- Module 4: Electromagnetic radiation, controlling reproduction
- Module 5: Force fields, Space (Triple only ) Revision and EXAMS
- Module 6: Revision and EXAMS
ks5: biology
Biology is a course that is key to a huge array of careers. Put simply, Biology is the study of life. It has close links with Mathematics and Chemistry.
This course is perfect for students who are fascinated in the world around us, the human body and how organisms interact with one another. Biology A Level is an essential component for many science and medical degree courses. It provides an ideal platform for anyone wanting to study the Biological Sciences further. Our Biology course includes twelve compulsory practicals with lots of opportunities to carry out experiments and investigations. The course also develops transferable skills that can be used in many degree courses.
Biology Advanced Level is highly respected by both universities and employers.
Course content
- Biological molecules
- Cells
- Organisms exchange substances with their environment
- Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
- Energy transfers in and between organisms
- Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments
- Genetics, populations, evolution and ecosystems
- The control of gene expression
Assessment
- Paper 1
Any content from topics 1–4, including relevant practical skills in a 2-hour exam with 91 marks. There is a mixture of short and long answer questions (76 marks) and extended response questions (15 marks). This paper makes up 35% of the A-Level. - Paper 2
Any content from topics 5-8, including relevant practical skills in a 2-hour exam with 91 marks. There is a mixture of short and long answer questions (76 marks) and a comprehension question (15 marks). This paper makes up 35% of the A-Level. - Paper 3
Any content from topics 1-8, including relevant practical skills in a 2-hour exam with 78 marks. There is a mixture of structured questions including practical techniques (38marks), critical analysis of given experimental data (15 marks) and one essay from a choice of 2 titles (25 marks). This paper makes up 30% of the A-Level.
ks5: chemistry
You are the stuff that stars are made of. Chemistry is the study of all chemical substances and how to change one chemical into another. The food you eat, the air you breathe, your own body, your mobile phone, the plants and streets around you are made of chemicals. As you want inexpensive products, chemistry helps to decrease economic costs, and as you want a safe environment, chemistry helps to decrease pollution by detecting the toxins, and by destroying them.
If you like logical problems, and thinking hard – really using your brain – then Chemistry is for you. If you want to know what makes up the world around you, you are a natural chemist.
Mobile phones are small because chemists developed more efficient batteries, and new pigments for the screens. Clothes are more light weight and colourful (or a darker black!) than those of our ancestors. Cars go further on a litre of fuel due to the study of chemical combustion.
Chemistry is also always helping us to develop new products and processes. In the car industry, for example, companies are working on fuel cells to power your car more efficiently, new fuels from plant material and new alloys to make vehicles lighter. Studying Chemistry would complement A levels such as Biology, Physics, History, Geography, English and Modern Languages.
Course content
- Module 1
Development of Practical Skills
Skills of planning, implementing, analysis and evaluation - Module 2
Foundations in Chemistry
Atoms, compounds, molecules and equations
Amount of substance
Acid–base and redox reactions
Electrons, bonding and structure. - Module 3
Periodic Table and Energy
The periodic table and periodicity
Group 2 and the halogens
Qualitative analysis
Enthalpy changes
Reaction rates and equilibrium (qualitative). - Module 4
Core Organic Chemistry
Basic concepts
Hydrocarbons
Alcohols and haloalkanes
Organic synthesis
Analytical techniques (IR, MS) - Module 5
Organic Chemistry and Analysis Aromatic Compounds
Carbonyl compounds
Carboxylic acids and esters
Nitrogen compounds
Polymers
Organic synthesis
Chromatography and spectroscopy (NMR).
Assessment
All content is externally assessed through written examination.
ks5: physics
Physics is a challenging but very interesting course for those students who love Science and want to explore it to a much higher level.
In summary, Physics is the study of how everything works. It has close links with Mathematics, Chemistry and Biology.
The Physics course is very practical with lots of opportunities to carry out experiments and investigations. You will also learn to work as part of a team.
Course content
Advanced Subsidiary (one year course)
Unit 1:
- Mechanics – mathematics of motion, vectors, projectiles, forces, Newton’s Laws of motion, emery, power and efficiency
- Electric Circuits – current, charge, potential difference, resistance, solving circuit problems, resistivity, power, potential dividers, electromotive force and current flow in microscopic terms
Unit 2:
- Materials – density, upthrust, Hooke’s Law, stress, strain, Young Modulus and strain energy.
- Waves and particle nature of light – wave definitions, interference, standing waves, diffraction, refractive index, critical angle, lenses, polarisation, pulse-echo techniques, photoelectric effect, Einstein’s equation, atomic line spectra.
Advanced Level (two year course)
In addition to the topics above the following are also studied in the second year of the course.
Unit 1:
- Further Mechanics
- Electric and Magnetic Fields
- Nuclear and Particle Physics
- Assessment is by a paper lasting 1 hour 45 minutes consisting of 90 marks (30%).
Unit 2:
- Thermodynamics
- Space
- Nuclear Radiation
- Gravitational Fields
- Oscillations
Assessment
- AS Unit 1: Assessment is by a paper lasting 1 hour 30 minutes consisting of 80 marks (50%).
- AS Unit 2: Assessment is by a paper lasting 1 hour 30 minutes consisting of 80 marks (50%).
- A-Level Unit 1: Assessment is by a paper lasting 1 hour 45 minutes consisting of 90 marks (30%).
- A-Level Unit 2: Assessment is by a paper lasting 1 hour 45 minutes consisting of 90 marks (30%).
- In addition, students will sit a third assessment lasting 2 hours 30 minutes consisting of 120 marks (40%). This paper will ask questions from the entire specification.