Developing Scientific Enquiry in Key Stage 2

1. Developing Scientific Enquiry in Key Stage 2

2. Main Messages • Grab their attention • Be aware of the different kinds of enquiry • Highlight the particular skills and teach children about them • Maximise thinking, minimise writing • Record in a variety of ways Enjoy your investigations.

3. How many investigations can you think of that could be explored in response to this video clip? This is an activity that works quite well as a homework to develop good home school links with science.

4. The skills Toolbox • Children have to know what the tools are and how to use them through focused (not boring) activities and investigations • Children make progress through adding more advanced tools to their tool kits • Children must use the tools to carry out their own investigation with specific skills highlighted.

5. ? ? ? ? It all starts with questions. ? ? ? ? ?

6. Worms Can worms……..? Do worms………? Are worms……….?

7. Questions generated by children. • Are worms afraid of water? • Do worms lay eggs? • Can they smell? • Do they like some colours better than others? Which of these questions could we look up in books or on the internet? Which ones can we investigate? How could we do it?

8. Celebrity Minibeasts An idea from the Rolls Royce Science Prize. In pairs interview a minibeast in the style of a celebrity magazine. This is a fun way to explore habitats, food chains and life cycles. It is also a good link to Literacy.

9. Bush Tucker Challenge Give science a context that appeals to children and motivates learning. Here is an example based on “I’m a celebrity get me out of here”. It is a more engaging way to explore nutrition and balanced diets. The idea is that children look at the nutritional value of insects and bugs to create a balanced meal for celebrities “in the jungle”. It is a lot of fun and can lead to a vibrant classroom display. Compare meal ideas from around the world

10. Real Life Investigations Topic: 6C Dissolving Scientists have developed the first non-stick, biodegradable gum. In most situations, it doesn't stick to pavements, clothes, shoes or hair - and tests by gum lovers have confirmed it has the same texture, taste and chewiness as conventional chewing gum. The new gum dissolves naturally in water and is easily washed away by rain. In this activity children will look at the factors that affect dissolving, to plan an investigation to find out the quickest method of removing the new gum. They will look at a graph of rates of dissolving in hot and cold water to help them plan their investigation.

11. We need to … • Make the most of scientific enquiry • Take a few risks • Maximise thinking, minimise writing • Set up conditions for children to talk, to share their thinking and be creative • Enjoy our science lessons

12. Making the most of Scientific Enquiry • Be aware of different kinds of enquiry • Highlight skills and teach them • Add challenges to your investigations • Sometimes start at the end • Use story settings

13. Different ways of finding out about the world • Carrying out a fair test, where we change one factor, measure or observe the effect it has on something else whilst keeping all other factors the same e.g. which type of paper absorbs most water • Carrying out a survey and looking for trends in populations e.g. do taller people jump higher • Observing or measuring something over time e.g. how does a growing plant change; what happens to the temperature of hot water when we leave it in the classroom

14. Different ways of finding out about the world • Problem Solvinge.g.can I find a way to ….’ (separate salt and sand, make a bulb light) • Classifying things according to characteristics (materials/mini-beasts) or according to behaviour (materials which do/do not allow light to pass through)

15. Carrying out a survey - parts of the bodySkillfocus: Interpreting patterns • Which parts of the body can be measured? • Ask children whether they think that any parts are related in size to any other parts? • Ask children whether they think that any parts are NOT related in size to any other parts? • Ask them to predict (quick sketch) what class scatter graphs might look like • Compare with actual class results • Visit Planet Peculiar and Planet Odd and have some fun

16. What is the effect of sample size?

17. Planet Peculiar Length of feet Length of hair

18. Planet Odd

19. Dissolving Sugar – Fair Test Featured skills: Having ideas for investigation and setting up the fair test How hot the water is Volume of water Type of sugar Number of stirs Number of spoonfuls Size of the lumps Type of liquid

20. We will change How hot the water is We will measure or observethe effect it has on Time it takes sugar to dissolve We will keep these things the same to make it fair Volume of water Number of stirs Type of sugar Size of the lumps Number of spoonfuls Type of liquid

21. Analysing Questions Yes Yes No Yes No Yes No No

22. What we change What we measure Number of stirs Time it takes sugar to dissolve

23. What would you say? Sensible Range, Equal Intervals, Enough Readings

24. Dissolving Sugar (Y5) We will change the number of stirs We will measure the time it takes to dissolve We will keep these things the same:Temp. of water, Vol. of water, Mass of sugar, Type of sugar

25. Check the value of your control variables If needed, write value of the control variables on the post-its at the planning stage

26. Starting at the end to help with planning a fair test • Here are the results from another class • They’ve already investigated how good different fabrics are at keeping things warm • What do you notice about their results?

28. The results are different – why? • They left them for different times • One (beaker) might have been by a window or not have a lid • They might not have started them at the same time or used the same temperature water • They might have left a lid off • They could be bad at using thermometers

29. What you will need 4 Thermometers Hot water 4 beakers 4 different materials 4 lids Timer Do a fair test Same amount of water Same size pots Put the lids on at the same time Same temperature of water at the start Instructions Heat the water Measure the same amount of water and pour into each beaker equally Put in thermometers and put lids on the beakers After 10 minutes take the thermometer slightly out so you can read it but do not take out of the water Be careful you read it carefully Which material is the best insulator? Advice for someone planning an investigation about which material is the best insulator – Y 5 Safety Put the pots in a safe place Don’t be silly with hot water Be careful when you pour the water out What to check Make sure the lids are on properly Don’t drop lids in the beakers Read the thermometers properly Don’t forget and leave the pots for an hour

30. Added to back of a poster Questions to ask yourself when doing the investigation • Do you like doing this investigation? • Do you have the right amount of water? • Have you measured correctly? • Why do you think the results came out this way? • Have the results changed dramatically in the last five minutes?

31. Observing/measuring over time.Hot water cooling down Featured skill: Interpreting line graphs Sketch the graph- what will it look like?

32. Temp. of water Time

33. Temp. of water Hot day Normal day Cold day Time

34. Breaking Threads Featured skills: Repeat Readings Evaluating Evidence

35. Repeat readings • Choose activity where repeat readings give different results e.g. breaking threads • Get class to do activity quickly in groups • Write up all the results • Ask ‘if we were do to this one more time, what do you think would be the most likely result?’ • ‘If we had only done one reading, what would we say?’ • Establish that doing repeat readings gives us a better idea of the more likely result (it does not give us ‘the rightanswer)

36. Questions to ask to link repeat readings to evaluation of results • We all carried out our tests sensibly. Why do you think we got different readings? • How much trust would you have in repeat readings that were / were not closely clustered? • How closely clustered were our readings? • How much trust do you have in our results?

37. Table for Repeat Readings What we change What we measure Most likely 1st go 2nd go 3rd go 4th go

38. Science Enquiry GamesRepeat Readings Bull’s Eye Reason why we repeat tests

39. Science Enquiry GamesRepeat Readings Bull’s Eye • Look at reasons for repeat readings • Discuss where they should go • Best goes closest to the bull • Worst goes furthest away • Talk about differences and amend positions

40. To check results • To make the test fair • So we can get a better idea of the likely result • To use scientific equipment • Because readings are always a bit different so we need to do them more than once • Because things change a little bit so we need to take an average • Because the first reading might not be right • So we can get more evidence • So we can change the equipment

41. Possible order First six responses would be credited in the KS2 tests: We repeat tests… • … so we can get a better idea of the likely result • … because readings are always a bit different so we need to do them more than once • … because things change a little bit so we need to take an average • … so we can get more evidence • … to check results • … because the first reading might not be right • … to use scientific equipment • … so we can change the equipment • … so we can make the test fair

42. How to record Posers: Stand in a pose to show how you would record this investigation

43. Getting Graphs Right • Research show that over 75% of children’s graphs were incorrectly constructed in tests • Pupils often drew conclusions with little or no reference to their graphs • Most pupils regarded graphs as an end in themselves, rather than something they could use to help them interpret their evidence

45. What we measure What we change

46. Which Graph?

47. Which Graph? We tried hanging a 500g mass on pieces of elastic. The elastic pieces were the same width and made of the same material but they were different lengths. We measured how much they stretched. Type of graph: Line Graph We dropped the same ball from different heights. We made sure we used the same ball and the same surface. We found out how high it bounced. Type of graph: Line Graph

48. Which Graph? I did different exercises like walking running & skipping. I did each one for two minutes and then took my pulse rate. Type of graph: Bar chart We got out three beakers and put 150ml of water in each one. We added a level teaspoon of different things to each beaker. We used salt, sugar and bath salts. We timed how long each substance took to dissolve. Type of graph: Bar chart

49. An interactive way to explore graphs and to help children to see how to label axis correctly

50. For line graphs fists make the points and a rope creates the line. The children can respond instantly to changes and show how that effects the line. e.g. A fall in temperature