Science Department

A shout from the bath

The story goes that Archimedes was so pleased with his idea that he ran through the streets without stopping to dress. Whether or not it happened quite like that, “Eureka!” captures the best moment in science: the second when an observation suddenly makes sense. The Science Department is planned around creating as many of those moments as possible.

Investigations with what is in the cupboard

Real science needs real things. We plan step-by-step investigations using ordinary materials – cups, salt, ice, magnets, seeds, a flashlight – each with a fair-test planner, a safety box and a results table that draws its own graph. What learners find is recorded as Evidence kept at home or in class, and it stays private to them.

On-screen experiments for the things you can't do

Some experiments are too slow, too dangerous or too big for a classroom. For those we plan interactive on-screen experiments: a circuit builder, a pendulum and ramp for forces, a particle model of melting and boiling, a food web you can disturb, and a germination timer that fast-forwards a week of growth. Each will finish with a few questions Marked by Classfern.

Science across the ages

For the youngest learners (preschool and kindergarten), science means noticing: sorting leaves, sinking and floating, watching ice melt. In elementary school it grows into planned tests and simple explanations of plants, animals, materials, light and sound. Middle and high school students will meet biology, chemistry and physics in depth, with practice on equations and practical skills, while university starters get help with lab reports and handling data. The science practice tests already on Classfern – Grades 3–8 for the US, plus Key Stages 2 and 3 and GCSE combined science for the UK – will slot straight in.

Madame Curie's lab rules

Marie Curie remains the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different sciences, and much of her early research was done in a drafty shed. Our Madame Curie will be patient, precise and very keen on safety – fitting, since the radioactive materials she studied harmed her health. Expect her to remind learners to wash their hands, label everything and write results down straight away.

Curious? Visit Music

If you would like to see where Classfern is heading, visit our flagship Music Department. It already lets learners play along on a dozen instruments, test their ear and have a go at reading music, with clear feedback at every step. Science will aim for the same mix of curiosity and confidence.

Not yet built – but ready

Every part of this plan is waiting on funding. If you are a science teacher, technician or researcher with an experiment children adore, please tell us – it could become one of the first investigations we build.