Year 6 · Science · Autumn 1.2
Scheme of work & lesson plans · 7 lessons
This White Rose sustainability block is spread across the whole of Autumn 1.2. Seven lessons take pupils from “what is renewable energy?” through solar and wind power to a culminating plan-and-present proposal for their own school. Each lesson runs the same structure — Arrival → Starter → I do → We do → Independent → Exit — in about 44 minutes, differentiated across three primary tiers.
| # | Lesson | Learning objective | Key vocabulary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What is renewable energy? | Know the difference between renewable and non-renewable sources; fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) run out. | renewable, non-renewable, fossil fuels, solar, wind | Open → |
| 2 | Fossil fuels & the environment | Know that burning fossil fuels releases greenhouse gases, causing global warming and climate change. | greenhouse gases, global warming, climate change | Open → |
| 3 | Solar power | Know that solar panels turn the Sun’s light into electricity; give advantages and disadvantages. | solar power, solar panels, renewable | Open → |
| 4 | Wind power | Know that wind turbines use wind to generate electricity; give advantages and disadvantages. | wind power, wind turbine, generator | Open → |
| 5 | Weighing it up | Compare renewable and non-renewable sources fairly; renewables don’t run out but can be weather-dependent. | renewable, non-renewable, evidence | Open → |
| 6 | Renewable energy in our community | Research how communities use renewable energy to limit global warming; find local opportunities. | sustainability, community, environment | Open → |
| 7 | Plan & present for our school | Design and present a renewable-energy proposal for the school, giving evidence-based reasons. | proposal, evidence, reason, sustainability | Open → |
Builds on (Y5): Earth and space, and global warming / the greenhouse effect. Cross-curricular: the Year 6 electricity unit — circuits and generating electricity.
Leads to (KS3): energy resources, generating electricity, and climate science.
Every lesson is a single interactive web page: six-phase structure with on-screen timings; three tiers on the four pupil-facing tasks; a short teaching video; a self-contained animation targeting the lesson’s key misconception; TA Focus and Cold Call prompts; and a one-click print pack.
Differentiation tiers map to attainment bands: 🌱 Seedling = working towards · 🌿 Sapling = expected · 🌳 Oak = greater depth.
LO: Understand the difference between renewable and non-renewable energy sources, and know that fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) are non-renewable because they run out.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | New topic — recap Y5 global warming and Y6 electricity. |
| Starter | 5 | “Will it run out?” — sort sources into runs-out / keeps-going. |
| I do 1 | 6 | Renewable vs non-renewable; fossil fuels run out (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Sort sources renewable / non-renewable together. |
| I do 2 | 4 | One keeps going, one runs out (animation: sun vs shrinking coal). |
| We do 2 | 5 | True/false on the two myths. |
| Independent | 10 | Energy source sorter (renewable / non-renewable / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Understand that burning fossil fuels releases greenhouse gases, which trap heat and cause global warming and climate change.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L1 (renewable vs non-renewable). |
| Starter | 5 | Recall Y5: greenhouse gases, the greenhouse effect, climate change. |
| I do 1 | 6 | Greenhouse gases, global warming and climate change (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Build the burn → gases → heat → warming chain. |
| I do 2 | 4 | Heat gets trapped (animation: the greenhouse effect). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Add or cut? Sort actions together. |
| Independent | 10 | Greenhouse gas sorter (releases / cuts / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Know that solar panels absorb light from the Sun and convert it into electricity, and give advantages and disadvantages of solar power.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L2 (fossil fuels & the environment). |
| Starter | 5 | Power from the Sun — where have you seen solar panels? |
| I do 1 | 6 | How solar panels turn light into electricity (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Build a pros/cons list for solar. |
| I do 2 | 4 | Sunlight becomes electricity (animation: panel powers a home). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Advantage or disadvantage? Sort statements. |
| Independent | 10 | Solar power sorter (advantage / disadvantage / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Know that wind turbines use wind to turn blades and generate electricity, and give advantages and disadvantages of wind power.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L3 (solar power). |
| Starter | 5 | Power from the wind — where have you seen turbines? |
| I do 1 | 6 | How wind turbines generate electricity (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Build a pros/cons list for wind. |
| I do 2 | 4 | Wind becomes electricity (animation: turbine lights a bulb). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Advantage or disadvantage? Sort statements. |
| Independent | 10 | Wind power sorter (advantage / disadvantage / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Compare renewable and non-renewable sources fairly, recognising that renewables don’t run out or make greenhouse gases but can be weather-dependent, and are now often cheaper.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L4 (wind power). |
| Starter | 5 | Compare the sources — strengths and limitations. |
| I do 1 | 6 | The honest picture: renewables aren’t perfect (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Build a two-column pros/cons table. |
| I do 2 | 4 | Weighing it up (animation: a balance scale). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Strength, limitation or myth? Sort statements. |
| Independent | 10 | Weighing-it-up sorter (strength / limitation / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Research how renewable energy is used in communities to limit global warming, and identify where renewable energy could be used locally.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L5 (weighing renewable vs non-renewable). |
| Starter | 5 | Renewables near us — what have you spotted? |
| I do 1 | 6 | Renewables in real communities; why they cut warming (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Spot greener choices in a pretend town. |
| I do 2 | 4 | A greener community (animation: solar roofs + community turbine). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Where could our area add renewables? |
| Independent | 10 | Greener community sorter (cuts carbon / adds warming / myth) + tiered write-up. |
| Exit | 4 | Three tiered questions. |
LO: Use knowledge from the block to design and present a renewable-energy proposal for the school, giving evidence-based reasons.
| Phase | Min | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | 4 | Recap L6 and review the whole block. |
| Starter | 5 | Set the task: a proposal for the head teacher — claim, evidence, reason. |
| I do 1 | 6 | Strong reason vs weak reason; gather ideas (video). |
| We do 1 | 6 | Draft a class proposal together. |
| I do 2 | 4 | Our plan brought to life (animation: school gains solar + turbine). |
| We do 2 | 5 | Strong reason or not? Sort statements. |
| Independent | 10 | Proposal reason sorter (strong / weak / not relevant) + write & present the proposal. |
| Exit | 4 | Tiered questions; block review. |