Autumn science topics
The science of the seasons
As summer slips slowly into autumn this month, the topic of seasons naturally arises in many science courses around the world. In the UK, for example, at Key Stage 1 (5 – 7 year olds) there is a section of the curriculum entitled seasonal changes. My Ways into Science book, Seasons, provides library support for this topic.
Ways Into Science : Seasons
While at http://www.peterdriley.com/support-materials/support-materials-for-ways-into-science-seasons/ you can find a film explaining how the seasons link to the movement of the Earth, stop and chat discussion sheets to help the children secure their knowledge, a quiz based on the Seasons book and an experiment report sheet to record the children’s activities in this topic.
quiz sheet
The film and stop and chat discussion sheets can also be used now, or at other times of year by children reading Moving up with Science:Habitats where habitats through the season are featured on pages 12 – 19.
Moving Up With Science – Habitats
The science of space
The lengthening evenings with their starry skies provides an opportunity to cover curriculum work on space. To provide library support for 9–11 year olds in this area I have written The Earth in Space where pages 16 to 19 can be integrated with the film and the stop and chat discussion sheets.
Straight Forward With Science: The Earth In Space
All twenty five books in my three Franklin Watts series – Ways into Science, Moving up with Science and Straightforward with Science – have activities for the readers to try. They are very welcome to send in reports and photographs of their work to me at peter@peterdriley.com and I will put them in The Science Exhibition Gallery for other children around the world to see and share their interest in science.
The film and stop and chat sheets may also be useful in supporting revision of the movement of the Earth in the Cambridge Primary Checkpoint science course. See pages 74 and 75 of the study guide and pages 70 – 71 of the Teachers guide.
Teaching about the Seasons and the Earth and Space
In Teaching Primary science you will find sections on the seasons (pages 21 – 27) and Earth and Space (pages 152 – 158).
Teaching Primary Science is published today by Bloomsbury
In each section there is background information, glossary, progression notes, technical tips, three detailed lesson plans, further lesson ideas and activities and cross curricular links. You might like to integrate the film and stop and chat discussion sheets with the Seasons and Earth and Space sections in this book.
You may like your children to use ICT to communicate reports and pictures of their science investigations to other children around the world to inform, interest and inspire them also in their science work. If you do, send their work to peter @peterdriley.com and I will put it in our Science Exhibition Gallery. Here is an example from the gallery.
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