EYFS
Within the EYFS framework, ‘Understanding the World’ is one of the key areas of learning and development and supports the indirect introduction of Science. It involves helping children to make sense of their physical world and their community through exploration and observation of people, places, technology and the environment. Activities, like those shown below, encourage a scientific mindset to develop and provides opportunities to problem solve, make predictions and think about the world around them.
Examples of provision in EYFS that has inspired scientific thinking includes:
- Cooking – which lays the foundation and experiences for understanding irreversible changes (Year 4) and also, electricity (Year 4)
- Exploring the size of puddles – which lays the foundation of understanding parts of the water cycle (Year 4) and how water travels.
- Exploring the outside environment at different time of the year – lays the foundations for understanding seasons and seasonal changes (Year 1)
