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Science

A good science education gives our students a better appreciation of themselves and the world around them. To this end, our students are encouraged to think about things differently and there is rarely a lesson in which they are not challenged in some way.

Our Science Department likes to encourage wonder and curiosity, and opportunities are provided to allow immersion and greater understanding.

Our Science Faculty is passionate about Science and excited about enthusing our students about the wider world of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. Science staff continually seek opportunities to develop the way Science is taught at Cobham Hall, in order to keep the curriculum engaging and relevant for our students.

The students benefit from the stability of tried and tested methods of learning whilst also enjoying more up-to-date and relevant ways of engagement that suit many of our students. The perfect mix!

In Years 7 and 8, Science is combined. From Year 9 onwards, Science is separated into Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

I just wanted to say thank you to my teachers for inspiring me to achieve in Biology and Chemistry. I am now an Aseptic Pharmacist and I am working towards my degree in Pharmaceuticals. I know that I wouldn’t have got the job without their help. – Grace, Cobham Hall Elder

Years 7 and 8

Key to Year 7 and 8 Science is the wide variety of experiences available to students. From the practical to the creative, this helps boost practical and thinking skills. As well as laboratory practicals, visitors enrich our students’ experience, such as hands-on experiences with mini-beasts and birds of prey, which give a visual demonstration of variation and adaptation. In Year 8, as part of the Digestion topic, students might be invited to eat an insect – a healthy source of protein!

There are also opportunities to be creative. In Year 7, students make Energy Islands to reflect the range of energy sources available to us. They often go beyond the brief to produce extraordinary projects.
Apart from the excitement of learning how to light a Bunsen burner, Year 7 students are trusted to look after a raw egg for a week, encouraging responsibility and bringing to the surface some strong parental instincts! Students really go to town on the optional decoration, showing high levels of creativity and motivation.

Year 9

From Year 9, Sciences are separated to make distinctions between the different areas of science. Topics are studied in more depth and students are required to apply knowledge from earlier teaching. After Easter, students begin their GCSE course.

Biology

Years 10 and 11: IGCSE Biology

Students carry out enzyme experiments, dissect a heart and an eyeball, make working models of the lungs, measure the rate of photosynthesis in pond weed and much more. Students learn to describe and explain patterns in data and learn to evaluate the social, environmental and economic impact of scientific developments.

The study of the organ systems enables students to understand how their bodies function, learning important facts about themselves and the relevance of a healthy diet and lifestyle.

Years 12 and 13: A Level Biology

A Level Biology is relevant to everyone – it delves into complex aspects of inheritance, genetics, biochemistry and homeostasis, and also covers transport in plants, nerve message transmission and the mechanism of muscle contraction.

Biology is essential for enhancing our understanding of living organisms and is a vital gateway subject for further study in the diverse arena of the health and life sciences industry.

Chemistry

Years 10 and 11: IGCSE Chemistry

Students acquire practical and investigative skills and learn to appreciate the importance of accurate experimental work. Students learn to describe and explain patterns in data and learn to evaluate the social, environmental and economic impact of scientific developments. There is emphasis on the widespread importance of chemistry and its impact on environmental issues.

Years 12 and 13: A Level Chemistry

Chemistry is the study of matter and energy and the interaction between them. Students develop the skills required of a good chemist: the ability to describe and explain observations and patterns in data, think about abstract ideas, and to carry out practical work effectively to obtain good quality results.

Physics

Years 10 and 11: IGCSE Physics

Students acquire practical and investigative skills and learn to appreciate the importance of accurate experimental work. Forces and motion, electricity and radioactivity are all part of the course.

Students learn to describe and explain patterns in data and learn to evaluate the social, environmental and economic impact of scientific developments.

Years 12 and 13: A Level Physics

Physics is the subject for those who are curious about the laws that govern the behaviour of everything from the smallest quarks to the largest Super Novae. Studying Physics requires not only data handling, Mathematics and ICT, but also imagination, creativity and communication skills and so helps develop girls as an all-round learner.

Outside the Classroom

The Science Department are keen to promote and encourage learning around the subject. Information is provided to develop knowledge further, with details of lectures taking place elsewhere that girls can attend.

British Science week is supported with a series of activities and events, and the Department also organise a cross-curricular trip to Iceland with our Geographers.