Report summary

Review of Ofsted school inspection reports 2017 to 2018

In England, science is a core subject which must be taught to all children in primary and secondary schools. Despite this, in recent years performance measures have focused more on maths and English, with science receiving less consideration.

This review looks at how often Ofsted school inspection reports commented on science between September 2017 and July 2018.

What’s inside

• Facts and figures on how often Ofsted reports mention science

Who this is for

• UK policy makers
• anyone who wants to understand how science is reviewed by Ofsted inspectors

To understand how science is reviewed by Ofsted inspectors, we analysed their reports for 2017 to 2018 and compared how frequently the word ‘science’ was used, compared to ‘maths’ in particular.

Key findings

• Mentions of science in primary school inspection reports have increased over the years. In 2017-18 it was mentioned in 61% of reports. This is still much less than maths, which was mentioned in 100% of reports.
• In secondary school inspection reports, mentions of science increased to 87%. This is only 12% behind maths.
  Ofsted inspections should contribute to raising the quality of science in schools. Every effort should be made to ensure science is mentioned in all short and full inspection reports, and this equals mentions of maths and English. This is a critical part of the accountability system and will help to highlight the importance of science to schools and teachers.
• Hands-on, practical science is an invaluable part of science education. All Ofsted reports, especially full inspection reports, should comment on the quality and quantity of a school’s provision of investigative or experimental science work.

If you would like to find out more about how to raise the visibility of primary science learning at your school Click here 

Read the full report Here

Primary science teaching – from the staff and from pupils’ points of view

Is science-specific CPD really worth it? Our continued research into primary science teaching shows strong connections between pupils’ attitudes to science and the practice and expertise of their science leaders. These reports dive deeper into teachers’ interviews around the “State of the Nation” research published in 2017, and look at pupils’ views of science.

Read What pupils think of science in primary schools
Read Understanding the State of the Nation report of UK primary science education

Courtesy: The Wellcome Trust, original post here

Winner ‘Best Holiday Camp Workshops’ – Hoop Awards 2019 

Over 100,000 votes were cast in the 2019 Hoop Awards to find the UK’s favourite kids activities and celebrate the people and organisations that go above and beyond to entertain, educate and inspire your children!

Mother Nature Science were voted Best Holiday Workshops  family activity organisers in London for 2019 below!

> Visit the Holiday Science Activity Camps Homepage Here 

We were in great company as other winners included:

• Natural History Museum – Best for Learning Winner
• The Royal Parks – Best for Outdoor Fun and Best Local Family Service Winner
• Horniman Museum and Gardens! – Best for Creative Fun Winner 

Thank you to everyone who voted for us!

Best,

Team Mother Nature Science 

Find out more about the Hoop App and download it here

In-School Science Workshops and Assembly Shows
British Science Week 2020 – Booking Now
06 – 15 March 2020

Each year for British Science Week, Mother Nature Science visit Primary Schools presenting our fun, hands-on and enquiry based In-School Science Day Workshops, for years Reception to Year 6.

We take all the hassle and stress out of organising science week workshops for teachers – and make it an unforgettable science-week experience to remember for pupils.

Exciting news for 2020, we are delighted to confirm that the new topic for British Science Week, March 2020 the official dates run from 06-15 March 2020 – which are already starting to fill up, don’t miss out!

To reserve your date/s or find out more just scroll down, click on the enquire now link below or drop us a quick call on 020 8863 8832

Applications for British Science Week 2020 

There are three grant schemes available to support British Science Week activities: one for schools, one for community groups, and one for BSA branches.

The deadline for applications is annually in November

The BSA cannot consider applications received after this date.

Kick Start Grants

This scheme offers grants for schools in challenging circumstances to organise their own events as part of British Science Week. There are three options available:

• Kick Start grant: A grant of £300 for your school to run an activity
• Kick Start More grant: A grant of £700 for your school to host a science event or activity which involves your students and the local community
• Kick Start Youth grant: A grant of £150 for your school to run an activity during British Science Week organised by students.

Community Grants

This scheme offers £500 to £1000 grants for community groups that work directly with audiences who are traditionally under-represented and currently not engaged in science activity. Our definition of groups that are underrepresented in science includes:

• people who are Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME)
• people with low socio economic status (SES), including people disadvantaged in terms of education and income
• young people facing adversity, including those not in education, employment or training (NEET)
• people with a disability, defined as a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term effect on someone’s ability to do normal daily activities (Equalities Act 2010)
• people living in a remote and rural location, defined as settlements of less than 10,000 people
• girls and women

BSW Grants for BSA branches

This scheme offers up to £500 of funding for British Science Association branches to take part in our national celebration by running local events during British Science Week.

This scheme is open to BSA volunteer branches only.

Source: https://www.britishscienceweek.org/about-us/grants/

Mother Nature Science is the only Workshops Provider Officially Accredited by the British science Association 

British Science Week 2019 – Journey’s Workshop School Feedback
– Five Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

School Name: Our Lady Queen of Heaven RC School

Workshop Date: Tuesday 12th February 2019

Workshop Topic: Journeys – New for British Science Week 2019

Overall Rating?

The MNScience Professor very entertaining, informal and positive with the children. All the children had a great experience and one comment I heard as they were leaving the school at the end of the day was “that was the best day ever!” As you had said, there was a time constraint but we managed to get everyone’s cars made. It had helped that I had passed around the instructions to the teachers and had organised plenty of teaching assistants to be on hand during the workshops so that there was plenty of help for the children to make the cars (particularly helpful to have some of the teaching assistants following the classes so doing the sessions over again and being able to help further and clear up and set up with the professor). The jumping frogs were easier and perfectly appropriate for the younger ages. The professor remained cheerful throughout!

Educational Content?

It was well differentiated for age groups

Entertainment Value?

The children were so excited during the assembly show it was hard to quieten them down! We even liked the fact that one experiment didn’t go to plan because it showed that this is the nature of science investigations – sometimes you have to keep trying and retesting!

General Safety?

The wow factor of danger (fire, explosions, water etc) was brilliant and perfectly safe (apart from a bit slippery after!)

 The Instructors?

Enthusiastic, entertaining, great with the kids, a good informal attitude and very accommodating.

The Way We Communicate?

Helpful, effective, speedy email correspondence.

Would you Recommend Us?

Yes – Highly recommended!

Final Comments?

Thank you very much for a great day of chemistry and physics – a wow part of our STEM week.

British Science Week 2019 – Booking Now
08 – 17 March 2019

Each year for British Science Week, Mother Nature Science visit Primary Schools presenting our fun, hands-on and enquiry based In-School Science Day Workshops, for years Reception to Year 6.

We take all the hassle and stress out of organising science week workshops for teachers – and make it an unforgettable science-week experience to remember for pupils.

Exciting news for 2019, we are delighted to confirm that the new topic for British Science and Engineering Week, March 2019 is Journeys and the official dates run from 08-17 March 2019 – which are already starting to fill up, don’t miss out!

What’s more, our Professors in the MNS Lab have created a brand-new Journeys Workshop Topic and Assembly Show in line with the official theme – especially for your school. Information can be found here

To reserve your date/s or find out more just scroll down, click on the enquire now link below or drop us a quick call on 020 8863 8832

Mother Nature Science is the only Workshops Provider Officially Accredited by the British science Association 

Pupil Premium Funding and Mother Nature Science 

Introduced in 2011, the pupil premium is a sum of money given to schools each year by the Government to improve the attainment of disadvantaged children.

This is based on research showing that children from low income families perform less well at school than their peers. Often, children who are entitled to pupil premium face challenges such as poor language and communication skills, lack of confidence and issues with attendance and punctuality. The pupil premium is intended to directly benefit the children who are eligible, helping to narrow the gap between them and their classmates.

How can Mother Nature Science assist Schools effectively allocate their Pupil Premium funds

Schools can choose how to spend their pupil premium money, as they are best placed to identify what would be of most benefit to the children who are eligible.

Common ways in which schools spend their pupil premium fund with Mother Nature Science Include:

After-School Science Club 

Running a school breakfast club can improve attendance and an after-school science club can boost boost children’s learning and act as a form of fun hands-on learning for for example for children who need extra help. It can also cat as a form of informal tuition, with our method they’re too busy having fun with science, to even notice they are learning amazing things. 

More Information About This  Service Here 

In-School Science Week Workshops

This is an important service that where schools can fund an in-school STEM educational visit from us to inspire pupils with hands-on, enquiry based workshops with take-home experiments. 

More Information About This Service Here

Holiday Science Camp Places

Schools can fund single or multiple child places on our highly acclaimed Holiday Science Activity Camps, this has also proven to assist children with improving their language problems. 

More Information About This Service Here

Investing in Resources that boost Children’s Learning,

We have a number of award winning educational toys that can aid cogitative STEM learning for children.

More Information About This Service Here

More Information:

You can find more information about Pupil Premium Funding here

Headteacher Interview – The Mother Nature Science – After School Science Club

Interview with Lynne Sumner, Headteacher The Breakspear School, and Mother Nature Science.

Q: Hi Lynne, can you believe the club has been running now for eight years, after such a long period of time why did you (the school) not take a break and why you think parents have continually kept enrolling their children term after term?

A: The school was extremely happy to continue working with Mother Nature Science  as we always found them to be both personable and professional – always taking the needs of the children into account as well as respecting the ethos and expectations of the parents and school.

The children really enjoyed the interactive and highly practical and informative sessions; these, in turn, reinforced and added to the learning both at school and home.  The sessions were extremely well planned, delivered and the instructors took time to really get to know the children and cater to their individual needs and interests.

The club was so well received that we were able to increase the provision from 1 session a week to 3 sessions a week!

Q: As you have discovered, our science club caters for children ages 5-12 of all abilities, can you think of a specific example where a child became more inspired and confident in their regular classes due to our club?

A: I can think of 2 children, in particular with very different needs.  One child who was wary of changes in routine and experienced anxiety with establishing new relationships found the lessons very interesting and highly enjoyable. This child was, through the successful working partnership of the School and the Mother Nature Science instructor, able to access a great learning experience which supported his intellectual as well as social and emotional needs. The other child responded well to the sessions as they promoted his self-esteem as well as providing him with mentally stimulating activities.     For both children the sessions stimulated their natural curiosity, promoted their self-confidence and provided an opportunity, outside the school classroom, to both learn and establish effective relationships with other children and adults.

Science Club Quick Rate Questionnaire:

And finally Lynne, please could you quickly ‘rate’ the following key club elements:

Q: Educational content?

A: Children were always excited by the topics and enjoyed both the investigative and practical aspects.

Q: Classroom management?

A: Instructors had very good behaviour and class management skills/strategies.

Q: Tidiness? (i.e. state we leave your classroom)

A: High respect given to the space provided.

Q: Entertainment value?

A: Children enjoyed the novelty as well as the fun aspect of the teaching – making learning visible and purposeful.

Q: General safety?

A: Instructors well trained in this respect.

Q: Communication with your school?

A: The club has always communicated with school in a professional and understanding manner.  An excellent partnership has been established.

Q: Would you recommend a Mother Nature Science Academy to other schools?

A: Yes.

Thank you again for taking the time to speak with us.