Science

Cells and cell structures

Understand that all organisms are made of cells and microorganisms are typically single celled. · Identify and describe the functions of cell structures (limited to cell membrane, cytoplasm, nucleus, cell wall, chloroplast, mitochondria and sap vacuole). · Describe the similarities and differences between the structures of plant and animal cells.

Specialised cells and levels of organisation

Explain how the structures of some specialised cells are related to their functions (including red blood cells, neurones, ciliated cells, root hair cells and palisade cells). · Understand that cells can be grouped together to form tissues, organs and organ systems.

Characteristics of life and classification

Describe the seven characteristics of living organisms. · Discuss reasons for classifying viruses as living or non-living. · Describe a species as a group of organisms that can reproduce to produce fertile offspring. · Use and construct dichotomous keys to classify species and groups of related organisms.

Microorganisms in food chains

Know and describe the ecological role some microorganisms have as decomposers. · Construct and interpret food chains and webs which include microorganisms as decomposers.

Atoms, elements and the Periodic Table

Understand that all matter is made of atoms, with each different type of atom being a different element. · Know that the Periodic Table presents the known elements in an order. · Know metals and non-metals as the two main groupings of elements.

Elements, compounds, mixtures and states of matter

Describe the differences between elements, compounds and mixtures, including alloys as an example of a mixture. · Describe a vacuum as a space devoid of matter. · Describe the three states of matter as solid, liquid and gas in terms of the arrangement, separation and motion of particles. · Use the particle model to represent elements, compounds and mixtures.

Acidity, alkalinity and indicators

Understand that all substances have chemical properties and physical properties. · Understand that the acidity or alkalinity of a substance is a chemical property and is measured by pH. · Use indicators (including Universal Indicator and litmus) to distinguish between acidic, alkaline and neutral solutions.

Gas tests, metals and alloys

Use tests to identify hydrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen gases. · Describe common differences between metals and non-metals, referring to their physical properties. · Understand that alloys are mixtures that have different chemical and physical properties from the constituent substances. · Use the particle model to explain the difference in hardness between pure metals and their alloys.

Chemical reactions and precipitates

Identify whether a chemical reaction has taken place through observations of the loss of reactants and/or the formation of products which have different properties to the reactants (including evolving a gas, formation of a precipitate or change of colour). · Explain why a precipitate forms, in terms of a chemical reaction between soluble reactants forming at least one insoluble product. · Use the particle model to describe chemical reactions.

Neutralisation

Describe neutralisation reactions in terms of change of pH.

Energy changes and dissipation

Describe changes in energy that are a result of an event or process. · Know that energy tends to dissipate and in doing so it becomes less useful.

Gravity and motion in a vacuum

Describe gravity as a force of attraction between any two objects and describe how the size of the force is related to the masses of the objects. · Understand that there is no air resistance to oppose movement in a vacuum.

Sound waves and echoes

Describe the vibration of particles in a sound wave and explain why sound does not travel in a vacuum. · Explain echoes in terms of the reflection of sound waves.

Current as electron flow

Use a simple model to describe electricity as a flow of electrons around a circuit. · Describe electrical conductors as substances that allow electron flow and electrical insulators as substances that inhibit electron flow. · Know how to measure the current in series circuits.

Series circuits and circuit diagrams

Describe how adding components in a series circuit can affect the current (limited to addition of cells and lamps). · Use diagrams and conventional symbols to represent, make and compare circuits that include cells, switches, lamps, buzzers and ammeters.

Plate tectonics and the atmosphere

Describe the model of plate tectonics, in which a solid outer layer (made up of the crust and uppermost mantle) moves because of flow lower in the mantle. · Describe how earthquakes, volcanoes and fold mountains occur near the boundaries of tectonic plates. · Know that clean, dry air contains 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and small amounts of carbon dioxide and other gases, and this composition can change because of pollution and natural emissions.

The water cycle

Describe the water cycle (limited to evaporation, condensation, precipitation, water run-off, open water and groundwater).

Planet formation and the Solar System

Describe how planets form from dust and gas, which are pulled together by gravity. · Know that gravity is the force that holds components of the Solar System in orbit around the Sun.

Tides and eclipses

Describe tidal forces on Earth as a consequence of the gravitational attraction between the Earth, Moon and Sun. · Explain how solar and lunar eclipses happen.

Joints and antagonistic muscles

Identify ball-and-socket and hinge joints, and explain how antagonistic muscles move the bones at a hinge joint.

Blood and the respiratory system

Describe the components of blood and their functions (limited to red blood cells transporting oxygen, white blood cells protecting against pathogens and plasma transporting blood cells, nutrients and carbon dioxide). · Describe how the structure of the human respiratory system is related to its function of gas exchange (in terms of lung structure and the action of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles) and understand the difference between breathing and respiration. · Describe the diffusion of oxygen and carbon dioxide between blood and the air in the lungs.

Balanced diet and health

Identify the constituents of a balanced diet for humans as including protein, carbohydrates, fats and oils, water, minerals (limited to calcium and iron) and vitamins (limited to A, C and D), and describe the functions of these nutrients. · Understand that carbohydrates and fats can be used as a store of energy in animals, and animals consume food to obtain energy and nutrients. · Discuss how human growth, development and health can be affected by lifestyle, including diet and smoking.

Aerobic respiration

Know that aerobic respiration occurs in the mitochondria of plant and animal cells, and gives a controlled release of energy. · Know and use the summary word equation for aerobic respiration (glucose + oxygen -> carbon dioxide + water).

Ecosystems, bioaccumulation and invasive species

Identify different ecosystems on the Earth, recognising the variety of habitats that exist within an ecosystem. · Describe the impact of the bioaccumulation of toxic substances on an ecosystem. · Describe how a new and/or invasive species can affect other organisms and an ecosystem.

Atomic structure and purity

Describe the Rutherford model of the structure of an atom. · Know that electrons have negative charge, protons have positive charge and neutrons have no charge. · Know that the electrostatic attraction between positive and negative charge is what holds together individual atoms. · Know that purity is a way to describe how much of a specific chemical is in a mixture.

Solutions and chromatography

Understand that the concentration of a solution relates to how many particles of the solute are present in a volume of the solvent. · Describe how paper chromatography can be used to separate and identify substances in a sample.

Word equations and energy changes

Use word equations to describe reactions. · Know that some processes and reactions are endothermic or exothermic, and this can be identified by temperature change.

Reactivity, solubility and inert substances

Describe the reactivity of metals (limited to sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, gold and silver) with oxygen, water and dilute acids. · Know that reactions do not always lead to a single pure product and that sometimes a reaction will produce an impure mixture of products. · Describe how the solubility of different salts varies with temperature. · Understand that some substances are generally unreactive and can be described as inert.

Speed and motion graphs

Calculate speed (speed = distance / time). · Interpret and draw simple distance / time graphs.

Forces, moments and pressure

Describe the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on motion. · Identify and calculate turning forces (moment = force x distance). · Explain that pressure is caused by the action of a force, exerted by a substance, on an area (pressure = force / area).

Particles, pressure and diffusion

Use particle theory to explain pressures in gases and liquids (qualitative only). · Describe the diffusion of gases and liquids as the intermingling of substances by the movement of particles.

Reflection and refraction

Describe reflection at a plane surface and use the law of reflection. · Describe refraction of light at the boundary between air and glass or air and water in terms of change of speed.

Dispersion and colour

Know that white light is made of many colours and this can be shown through the dispersion of white light, using a prism. · Describe how colours of light can be added, subtracted, absorbed and reflected.

Magnetic fields and electromagnets

Describe a magnetic field, and understand that it surrounds a magnet and exerts a force on other magnetic fields. · Describe how to make an electromagnet and know that electromagnets have many applications. · Investigate factors that change the strength of an electromagnet.

Earth's magnetic field and resources

Know that the reason the Earth has a magnetic field is that the core acts as a magnet. · Identify renewable resources (including wind, tidal and solar power, and bioplastics) and non-renewable resources (including fossil fuels), and describe how humans use them.

Climate cycles, atmospheric change and weather

Understand that there is evidence that the Earth's climate exists in a cycle between warm periods and ice ages, and the cycle takes place over long time periods. · Understand that the Earth's climate can change due to atmospheric change. · Describe the difference between climate and weather.

Galaxies and asteroids

Describe a galaxy in terms of stellar dust and gas, stars and planetary systems. · Describe asteroids as rocks, smaller than planets, and describe their formation from rocks left over from the formation of a planetary system.

Plant transport, excretion and chromosomes

Describe the pathway of water and mineral salts from the roots to the leaves in flowering plants, including absorption in root hair cells, transport through xylem and transpiration from the surface of leaves. · Describe the structure of the human excretory (renal) system and its function (limited to kidneys filtering blood to remove urea, which is excreted in urine). · Know that chromosomes contain genes, made of DNA, and that genes contribute to the determination of an organism's characteristics.

Fertilisation, sex inheritance and fetal development

Describe the fusion of gametes to produce a fertilised egg with a new combination of DNA. · Describe the inheritance of sex in humans in terms of XX and XY chromosomes. · Discuss how fetal development is affected by the health of the mother, including the effect of diet, smoking and drugs.

Variation and natural selection

Describe variation within a species and relate this to genetic differences between individuals. · Describe the scientific theory of natural selection and how it relates to genetic changes over time.

Photosynthesis

Know that plants require minerals to maintain healthy growth and life processes (limited to magnesium to make chlorophyll and nitrates to make protein). · Know that photosynthesis occurs in chloroplasts and is the process by which plants make carbohydrates, using the energy from light. · Know and use the summary word equation for photosynthesis (carbon dioxide + water -> glucose + oxygen, in the presence of light and chlorophyll).

Population change and extinction

Describe what could happen to the population of a species, including extinction, when there is an environmental change.

Periodic Table and atomic structure

Understand that the structure of the Periodic Table is related to the atomic structure of the elements and the Periodic Table can be used to predict an element's structure and properties.

Covalent and ionic bonding

Understand that a molecule is formed when two or more atoms join together chemically, through a covalent bond. · Describe a covalent bond as a bond made when a pair of electrons is shared by two atoms (limited to single bonds). · Describe an ion as an atom which has gained at least one electron to be negatively charged or lost at least one electron to be positively charged. · Describe an ionic bond as an attraction between a positively charged ion and a negatively charged ion.

Periodic trends, density and structure

Understand that the groups within the Periodic Table have trends in physical and chemical properties, using group 1 as an example. · Describe how the density of a substance relates to its mass in a defined volume. · Calculate and compare densities of solids, liquids and gases. · Know that elements and compounds exist in structures (simple or giant), and this influences their physical properties.

Equations and displacement reactions

Use word equations and symbol equations to describe reactions (balancing symbol equations is not required). · Identify examples of displacement reactions and predict products (limited to reactions involving calcium, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, gold and silver salts).

Salt preparation, rates and conservation of mass

Describe how to prepare some common salts by the reactions of metals with acids, and metal carbonates with acids, and purify them, using filtration, evaporation and crystallisation. · Describe the effects of concentration, surface area and temperature on the rate of reaction, and explain them using the particle model. · Understand that in chemical reactions mass and energy are conserved.

Density and floating

Use density to explain why objects float or sink in water.

Heat, temperature and thermal transfer

Describe the difference between heat and temperature. · Know that energy is conserved, meaning it cannot be created or destroyed. · Know that thermal energy will always transfer from hotter regions or objects to colder ones, and this is known as heat dissipation. · Describe thermal transfer by the processes of conduction, convection and radiation. · Explain cooling by evaporation.

Waveforms and wave interaction

Draw and interpret waveforms, and recognise the link between loudness and amplitude, pitch and frequency. · Use waveforms to show how sound waves interact to reinforce or cancel each other.

Parallel circuits and resistance

Describe how current divides in parallel circuits. · Know how to measure current and voltage in series and parallel circuits, and describe the effect of adding cells and lamps. · Calculate resistance (resistance = voltage / current) and describe how resistance affects current. · Use diagrams and conventional symbols to represent, make and compare circuits that include cells, switches, resistors (fixed and variable), ammeters, voltmeters, lamps and buzzers.

Plate tectonics — mechanism and evidence

Explain the movement of tectonic plates in terms of convection currents. · Explain why the jigsaw appearance of continental coasts, location of volcanoes and earthquakes, fossil record and alignment of magnetic materials in the Earth's crust are all evidence for tectonic plates.

Carbon cycle and climate change

Describe the carbon cycle (limited to photosynthesis, respiration, feeding, decomposition and combustion). · Describe the historical and predicted future impacts of climate change, including sea level change, flooding, drought and extreme weather events.

Asteroids, the Moon and nebulae

Describe the consequences of asteroid collision with the Earth, including climate change and mass extinctions. · Describe the evidence for the collision theory for the formation of the Moon. · Know that nebulae are clouds of dust and gas, and can act as stellar nurseries.