Science
Juniper House School – Science Curriculum Intent
At Juniper House School, Science provides students with meaningful opportunities to understand the world around them through curiosity, enquiry and discovery. The curriculum is designed to be inclusive, therapeutic, and ambitious for all learners, particularly those with identified SEN needs and disrupted prior education.
Our Science Intent Is To:
Deliver a coherent and sequenced curriculum that builds knowledge and skills progressively from KS3 to KS4, fully aligned with the Oak National Academy 2025–2026 spine and the Edexcel Combined Science (IGCSE) pathway.
Promote depth over breadth, allowing students to master key scientific ideas through repetition, practical exploration and retrieval.
Embed the B² progression framework, ensuring pupils develop competence in Knowing About Science, Using Scientific Enquiry, and Recording and Communicating Findings.
Foster confidence, curiosity, and resilience by providing accessible, hands-on experiences that connect Science to daily life, wellbeing and the wider environment.
Support preparation for adulthood and next steps, developing skills for independence, decision-making and post-16 pathways.
Implementation
The Science Curriculum Is Implemented Through:
Integrated, SEN-responsive planning, using Oak Academy as a structured foundation while adapting pacing, scaffolding and vocabulary to individual needs.
A spiral structure where key concepts (Energy, Matter, Life, and Earth) are revisited and deepened each year, ensuring knowledge retention and cognitive reinforcement.
Therapeutic and relational approaches that prioritise emotional regulation, safety, and engagement in practical learning, including small-group and outdoor enquiry.
Assessment through B² statements, formative observation, and practical evidence, allowing all learners to demonstrate progress through accessible, visual and oral means.
A consistent focus on language and literacy for learning, with visual modelling, pre-teaching of vocabulary and sentence scaffolds to support communication.
Close alignment with Personal Development and PSHE, embedding respect, collaboration and responsibility across all scientific contexts.
The Schools paddock provisions are fully planned to strengthen depth of understanding and provide opportunities for practical experiments.
Teaching across KS3 gradually transitions from guided enquiry and conceptual understanding to greater independence and formal application at KS4, ensuring learners are ready for accredited outcomes and post-16 progression.
Impact
The Impact Of Science At Juniper House School Is Evidenced Through:
Students’ ability to recall and apply key scientific concepts confidently across contexts.
Demonstrable progress in B² skill strands, showing increased independence in observation, enquiry and reasoning.
Students develop as curious, motivated, and reflective learners, able to link scientific ideas to personal experiences and real-world issues.
Improved engagement in practical learning and regulation through consistent therapeutic routines.
A clear pathway from KS3 foundational knowledge to KS4 accredited learning, culminating in meaningful outcomes that reflect each learner’s starting point and potential.
A growing sense of environmental awareness, responsibility, and participation, key attributes for adulthood and community life.
Ultimately, Science at Juniper House School inspires learners to Be Safe, Belong, and Be Inspired, fostering both scientific understanding and personal growth.
Developing the key concepts and skills that both support and transcend academic learning and are essential to employability, within a rapidly changing global economy.
Contact Us Today, We Are Welcoming Of All Queries And Available To Provide Information Relating To Our School.
For all general enquiries please contact the main office where a member of our Reception staff will be able to put you in contact with the right person.
