Department of Science
Curriculum Leader:
Mrs Donnamarie Benvin-Duffield (dbenvinduffield@stmichaels.bhcet.org.uk)
Assistant Curriculum Leader:
Miss K Stewart
Mrs V Bryson
Departmental staff:
Mrs J Iley
Miss C Flynn
Miss J Mellor
Mr D Price
Mrs S Trattles
Dr A Frank
Subject Background:
“I am neither clever nor especially gifted, I am only very very curious” - Albert Einstein
The intent of the science department at St. Michael’s is to develop scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding of the processes and methods of science across the five years from Year 7 to Year 11. It provides students with the opportunity to realise their potential by providing breadth, depth, stretch and challenge.
The curriculum is designed so that the fundamental knowledge and skills are introduced early and then revisited regularly, strengthening retrieval of key knowledge and extending it as students move through the academy by using increasingly detailed models and theories of the concepts involved. Topics are sequenced so that they link logically together and build upon each other, term-by-term and year-by-year.
We follow the AQA KS3 syllabus and AQA GCSE specifications, which fully cover the KS3 and KS4 Programmes of Study. The AQA KS3 syllabus is structured in a way that secures the knowledge needed to access the subject skills and to apply knowledge. Concepts are structured into 10 Big Ideas, ensuring that they are delivered in a coherent way, helping students to grow a connected body of knowledge for each subject discipline.
The AQA courses aim to secure knowledge before moving on to the next stage of learning. This enables us to develop engaging components and lessons that will embed the scientific knowledge, working scientifically skills, mathematical skills and command words from the AQA GCSE syllabus in to KS3, to act as a solid foundation for GCSE.