How do we know that a toy is old? What happens to our toys when they get played with lots? Children explore different toys and look for the signs of age. They choose precise words and explain their reasoning in detail. Suitable for Years 1 and 2.

Take part in more practical workshop activities including separating sand and stones by sieving, using ICT to research rocks, looking up vocabulary in dictionaries, sorting and naming rocks and testing the effect of vinegar on rocks. Suitable for Y3 pupils.

Make a water container out of a paper towel to get children thinking about the importance of understanding material properties. Look closely at some great new vocabulary to describe materials and make a large glossary for the classroom. Suitable for Y3 pupils.

Children learn the word ‘texture’. They look carefully at their favourite toy and talk about the feel and appearance. They decide which media they want to use to represent it and do a beautiful drawing! They talk about their work and the work of other people. Suitable for years 1 and 2.

Find out about stars and how they are grouped into constellations, despite being a long way from each other. Make a simple telescope to study the stars and a planisphere to identify them. Study the phases and apparent movement of the moon. Suitable for Y6 pupils.

Think big and create a class mural based on the work of Afewerk Tekle. Children work collaboratively to plan and paint a mural with a biblical subject in the same style as Tekle.

Explore with Children the basis needs to ensure good health, and how they are interconnected using the concept of a ‘healthy box’. Suitable for years 5 and 6.

Play circle games to practice greeting each other confidently. How many ways do children know to say hello in a different language? Learn 3 new ways.

Hatch eggs and study the life cycle of chickens. Build understanding that exercise makes the heart work harder and that it is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. Find out about healthy lunch box foods before designing and sharing your own snack. Includes 6 session plans & resources 01 - Hatching eggs! 02 - Babies! 03- Stranded! 04 - Healthy hearts! 05 - Deep inside my lunch box! 06 - Pack a healthy picnic! Hamilton’s science scheme provides children with a broad but comprehensive experience of primary science that systematically covers all of the National Curriculum for England objectives. Each year group is split into 6 blocks of 6 sessions, each of which can be completed within a half-term. We present them in a recommended teaching order, but you may adapt this to fit your requirements. Working scientifically, investigations and meaningful outcomes are fully incorporated in each block.

Go on a walk in the school grounds to discover there are different plants and animals in the local environment. Collect minibeasts. Think about where we might find them. Name, label and draw minibeasts back in the classroom. Suitable for Year 2 pupils.

In this session children investigate how the shape and surface area of a boat can affect how easily it can move through the water. Children test a variety of designs before creating bar charts to show their results. Suitable for Y4 pupils.

Discuss how the cartoons seen yesterday link to the book We Are All Born Free. Discuss how with rights come responsibilities and what responsibility means. Play the String Game using rights and responsibilities and discover how strong a net can be made. Suitable for years 5 and 6.

Focus on the sense of sight. Play ‘Kim’s Game’ and identify some animal eyes. Discuss sensitivity of eyes and safety. Collect and group information about eye colour and create a pictogram of the results. Draw pictures of animals that can see in the dark. Suitable for Year 1 pupils.

Revisit vocabulary about properties of materials. Explore ‘what we know’ and ‘what we would like to know’. Go for a walk to identify how materials that come from rocks are used around the school. Suitable for Y3 pupils.

Children study old Roman maps and look at the walls that the Romans built to protect their empire. They study Hadrian’s wall and look at pictures. They create their own map of the boundaries of the Roman empire, drawing walls, marking rivers, coasts etc. Suitable for years 3 and 4.

Children research the internet and non-fiction texts and look for information about Roman mosaics. They talk about the images that Romans used in creating these, and then use a software package to create their own mosaics. Some chn do further research. Suitable for years 3 and 4.

Africa is a large continent with over 50 countries – usually there is an election going on somewhere! Children research a current/recent election in Africa and/or the election of Barack Obama as President of USA. Discuss the significance of Obama’s election. Suitable for years 5 and 6.

Use celebrity profiles to decide what children might include in their personal profile to introduce themselves to their link school friends. Listen to Ghanaian children describing themselves and their families. Prepare own profiles on screen or as recordings.

Sketch maps of the local area and plans of homes and other places will help their link school friends understand the children’s daily lives as described in their diaries. Look at OS maps and street plans. Children use symbols and a key to clarify their maps and plans. Suitable for years 5 and 6.

Show children that white light is actually a mixture of colours and that the Sun provides heat! Investigate sunspots using shadows and the rotation of the earth around its axis. Finally draw a graph of the number of sunspots a year and identify a pattern. Suitable for Y6 pupils.