This Science upd8 activity draws on the 1957 launch of the satellite Sputnik 1 which heralded a new stage in human exploration and prompted the development of rockets in the Space Race. In this role play, students consider the benefits and costs of space exploration. 

This Practical Action resource presents a fun hands-on and brains-on challenge for Key Stages Two to Five.

The problem:...

This document from the Department of Education looks at how teachers at schools in the White Horse Federation lead by example to encourage good behaviour and academic achievement. The resource explores strategies including teacher induction on behaviour, language skills and celebrating diversity, as part of the...

This resource is a compilation of reports by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and Ofqual reviewing standards over time in science subjects at GCSE and A levels.

...

This report, jointly published by the School Curriculum and Assessment Authority (SCAA) and Ofsted under the chairmanship of Ron Dearing, presents the findings of an investigation into whether standards in GCSE and A level examinations were maintained in the period up to 1995. The improving examination grades...

This collection includes some activities for primary and secondary aged pupils which could be linked to Star Wars day.  

There are several activities looking at exoplanets and the search for alien life elsewhere in the Universe, which could be used to challenge the scientific validity of the film series....

This resource, from the Royal Observatory Greenwich, is a beautifully animated video giving a short overview of the life cycle of stars, but crucially how, from Earth, we can observe the different phases of star evolution by plotting all the...

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces the sidereal day and shows how star trials can be used to calculate the length of one sidereal day. Included in the booklet are instructions on how to create a star trial photograph using a DSLR or bridge camera. Supporting documents that help the...

This Nature of Science book looks at the history of astronomy and how scientists understanding of the solar system, forces and gravity has developed. The story includes the revolutionary ideas of Copernicus, Galileo and Newton and the theory of magnetism.

The chapters are:

1. Stars and gods

2....

This resource explores the types and number of animals used in research. The activity is best conducted with a whole class or as group work. The resource includes a lesson plan for the teacher. The resource was produced by Nuffield Council on Bioethics.

In this activity, students are required to question the assumptions they may make when presented with visual images of animal research. They need to consider an image carefully before they come to any conclusions about what is happening to the animal. The activity is best conducted in groups.The resource, from the...

A Catalyst article looking at strategies for ensuring that there is a plentiful food supply in the future and how this can be sustained.

The article looks at three main areas for scientific investigation:

*Fertilisation

*Pest control

*Genetic modification

It also looks at...

This video covers the basics of state changes in water. It explains how the distance between molecules and their motion can be used to explain the three states of water (solid, liquid and gas).  

Contrails occur when water vapour from jet engines condenses – only when the temperature and humidity conditions of the air is right. Contrails act like greenhouse gases. Marc Stettler from Imperial College, London is interested in guiding aircraft to fly where conditions are right, reducing contrail formation....

This Mathematics Matters case study, from the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, discusses the importance of statistics and computing to developments in medical research. Sequencing the human genome was a fantastic achievement, but it was only the beginning. Now, statisticians are coming up with new...