🔬 Science at Cottesbrooke

At Cottesbrooke Infant & Nursery School, we want our children to grow up full of questions — and excited to explore the world around them.

Science helps us understand how things work, why things change, and how we can ask and answer questions through observation, investigation and discovery.

🌱 What We Learn

Science at Cottesbrooke covers a range of fascinating topics including:

• Plants and animals

• Everyday materials

• Seasonal changes

• Ourselves and healthy living

• Forces

• Seasonal changes

• Simple experiments and investigations

• Sustainability

🧪 Science in the Early Years (Nursery & Reception)

In the Early Years, children learn through first-hand, practical experiences.
They explore:

• Natural objects like leaves, seeds and minibeasts

• Changes in materials, such as ice melting or mixing colours

• Weather and the seasons

• The world around them — including the school garden, playground and outdoor areas

We provide rich opportunities for investigation and talk, encouraging children to develop their curiosity and begin using scientific vocabulary in real contexts.

🔍 Science in Key Stage 1

In Years 1 and 2, Science teaching follows the National Curriculum.
Children build knowledge through carefully sequenced units and hands-on activities.
They learn to:

• Ask scientific questions

• Make predictions

• Observe and compare

• Record results

• Use the correct vocabulary to explain what they’ve discovered

We make Science fun, active and relevant, helping children see how it connects to real life. Lessons spark curiosity with boundless experiences of practical learning to engage and enthuse our little learners. 

We provide rich opportunities for investigation and talk, encouraging children to develop their curiosity and begin using scientific vocabulary in real contexts.

🌍 Wider Science at Cottesbrooke

At Cottesbrooke, we believe in bringing learning to life.
Our children benefit from regular visits and collaborations with a range of outside organisations and services, including local vets, Severn Trent, Veolia, and the RSPCA. These partnerships help to enrich our curriculum and give pupils a broader, real-world experience of science and the environment.

We are proud to have built strong community links and make full use of our outdoor spaces, including nearby Millennium Green, to support hands-on, inquiry-based learning.

Most recently, we’ve enhanced our outdoor provision with the installation of an air pollution monitor, giving children the opportunity to engage with live environmental data and deepen their understanding of sustainability and climate science.

Our pupils have also planted trees generously provided by the Woodland Trust. We're proud to say they are growing well, and it's been wonderful to see the children take ownership in caring for their environment.