Hello Explorify User!

Welcome to the Primary Science Teaching Trust

If you like using Explorify, we have lots of similar resources to help you with doing a great job of teaching primary science. We have selected things you might find particularly useful – click on the options below:

Pictures for Talk

Easy to run activities similar to Explorify

A picture can be a very good stimulus for children to engage in effective talk in science. Using pictures is an inclusive approach which facilitates high levels of participation. Pictures can also be used as a starting point for inquiry. The discussions the children have will generate questions that they want to investigate.

Pictures for Talk

Getting started

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

Each time you do an Explorify activity with your class, you are building the children’s Thinking, Talking and Explaining skills, and (whether you realise it or not!) you are developing your own skills in leading children’s scientific discussions. The Primary Science Teaching Trust has lots of resources to help you and your children take this further. Click through to see the resources available.

UK Wildlife

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

These activities use pictures to stimulate discussion about animals, plants and fungi that can be found in the UK. Suitable for children 3 to 11 years, these activities are intended to develop subject knowledge, observational skills and scientific literacy through group talk.

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"I Can Explain!"

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

These activities are picture based and help children learn to explain and justify their ideas. These materials are designed to support teachers in developing a range of strategies which will enable children to give rational explanations and to make cognitive gains in science through group talk activities.

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See Through Science

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

These activities are also picture based to develop children’s observation, questioning and discussion skills. Images cover a range of scientific phenomena, enabling children to explore and discuss science in a variety of contexts.

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Pictures for Talk

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

These activities are very similar to Explorify, using a picture as stimulus for talk. Starting with a picture is an open-ended, easily usable and inclusive approach to group talk in science. Pictures can be used with any age, and are hugely flexible; what might start out as a fifteen minute stand-alone activity, could lead to all sorts of other possibilities.

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Something extra

Resources to get children Thinking, Talking and Explaining

You might be interested to learn more about Thinking Doing Talking Science: another project underpinned by the research that informed the Explorify approach.

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What you need next

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

Lots of Explorify activities end up with children having lots of questions! Some of these might be things they can investigate in the classroom. The Primary Science Teaching Trust has resources and support for how you might get going with this. Click through to see the resources available.

Science Fun at Home

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

Originally developed in the pandemic when schools were closed, these simple and topic-themed practical science ideas are a great starting point for science investigations. Activities are open ended, adaptable for any age and can be done at home or school.

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Starters for Science

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

These 5-minute videos are ideal to support teachers getting started with practical science enquiry. Videos include questions linked to the real world, demonstrations and allotted time for children to think of their own questions.

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Science for One

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

Originally developed to support teachers with practical science in a socially distanced classroom. Each activity uses one easy to obtain resource. Children work independently and are encouraged to talk in pairs or groups to further discuss their practical work.

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Enquiry Approaches

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

It’s important that over the course of a year, children are given the opportunity to carry out many different types of investigations in science. We introduce six different types of enquiry approaches that children may use to find out answers to investigable questions.

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Enquiry Skills

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

Whichever curriculum your school follows, pupils should have the opportunity to carry out practical investigations in science that help them to develop their scientific skills. We introduce seven science skills which children (ages 5-12) develop through scientific investigation.

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Teacher Assessment in Primary Science

Resources to get children started with Practical Science Enquiry

The Teacher Assessment in Primary Science (TAPS) project aims to develop support for a valid, reliable and manageable system of primary school science assessment. In this resource, you will find a database of plans that focus on the assessment of enquiry skills (working scientifically), focused assessment examples of children’s learning and more.

 

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