GradeG1–3: Lower PYP
- What your child learns
- Your child learns the concepts and English vocabulary for materials, plants, animals, and habitats.
- Grade details
- See Lower PYP science
Science
Your child learns science concepts and explains why things happen, using evidence from experiments and observations.
Grades 1–5 start with things children see in everyday life, like materials, plants and animals, and the seasons. Grades 7–12 study physics, chemistry, and biology, practice writing exam answers, design experiments, and read graphs.
Science classes at a glance
What your child learns in each grade
*Hover over or tap a card to see the details and its link.
GradeG3–12: Global Science Mastery
- What your child learns
- Your child learns and explains concepts in English, from cells, matter, and forces up to AP and IB HL level.
- Grade details
- See Global Science Mastery
GradeG6–8: KS3
- What your child learns
- Your child reads English science articles one level above their own and sums them up in a 3-2-1 reflection.
- Grade details
- See KS3 science article reading
GradeG7–12: Korean school science
- What your child learns
- Middle schoolers learn how things work; high schoolers learn a set order for solving problems within exam time.
- Grade details
- See Korean middle and high school science
Learning steps and assessments
Global Science Mastery: What your child learns at each level
Students in grades 3–8 work at the Foundation and Pre-secondary levels; students in grades 8–12 work at the Secondary and Advanced levels.
- Level: Foundation (G3–8)
At this level, your child: Defines concepts like cells, matter, and forces and describes what they observe in English.
- Level: Pre-secondary (G3–8)
At this level, your child: Learns core middle school science concepts, solves calculation problems, and writes out in sentences why things happen in science situations.
- Level: Secondary (G8–12)
At this level, your child: Studies physics, chemistry, and biology as separate subjects and writes IB, GCSE, and AP answers in PEE (Point–Evidence–Explanation) order.
- Level: Advanced (G8–12)
At this level, your child: Works on AP-, IB HL-, and science olympiad-level problems and research, and practices oral interviews in English.
From concepts to explaining in English
- Learn science concepts and what key terms meanConcept
- Apply them to multi-step problemsApplication
- Find evidence through calculations, experiment design, and reading data and graphsReasoning
- Explain the evidence and reasoning in academic English writingExpression
Assessment
Your child is assessed with a science rubric that scores Knowing and Understanding separately from Inquiring and Designing, and you receive the results in a Science Evaluation Report.
From review to homework: your child's steps in each science class
Depending on their level, your child works through the Study Book and Workbook on material ranging from UK KS3 science (biology, materials, energy, forces, and earth science) to AP Biology prep. How much each class covers is adjusted for your child.
- Step: Start with review
At this step, your child: Answers questions or a quiz on the last homework and key concepts.
- Step: Learn new concepts
At this step, your child: Learns key terms and principles and works through examples.
- Step: Apply
At this step, your child: Applies concepts to workbook problems and real situations; students in grades 7–12 also read graphs and design experiments.
- Step: Homework and feedback
At this step, your child: Fills in their concept notes, corrects their problem work, then redoes the problems the instructor went over.
A quiz every class, an end-of-month assessment every month, and a quarterly achievement assessment check how well your child understands the material. Inquiry notes, lab reports, and assessment results go into a portfolio. See how parents get progress updates
Writing science answers and reports
Your child practices writing out experiment designs, data interpretations, and answers that explain why something happens.
- What your child practices: Lab and inquiry reports
How it works: Your child writes lab and inquiry reports based on science articles and school concepts. Science Fair reports follow the same approach.
- What your child practices: Showing the reasoning behind equations and answers
How it works: Your child explains in English how they got the equation and justifies why the answer is right (Evaluate, Justify).
- What your child practices: PEE answers
How it works: Your child writes the point first, then the evidence, then the explanation.
G1–5 science
Lower PYP: Science in everyday life
With Oxford textbooks, your child learns the key concepts and English vocabulary for materials, plants, animals, and habitats.
Topics your child learns
Everyday Materials & Uses of Materials
Your child observes objects, compares what materials are like and what they're used for, and finds ways to reuse them.
Plants & Seasons, Growing Plants
Your child observes and records how plants grow with the seasons and with sunlight, water, and temperature.
Animals & Human Body
Your child learns what the body's organs do, what animals are like, and where they live.
Habitats
Your child finds what animals need to survive and thinks about what happens when habitats are destroyed.
First, learning concepts and vocabulary
- Your child learns key concepts and English vocabulary through back-and-forth questions.
- Your child sums up what they learned in a workbook.
Then, applying and explaining
- Your child applies the concepts to everyday objects and situations.
- Your child explains out loud what they observed.
Homework after class
After class, your child writes their own sentences with the day's English vocabulary (Vocabulary Sentences).
School science units
Elementary science units at US, UK, and IB schools
School science units in grades 1–5
Unit order and grade placement can vary by school.
| Grade | US | UK | IB |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | Nature, weather, animals | Materials, plants | PYP Science |
| G2 | Plants, habitats | Living things, habitats | PYP Science |
| G3 | Earth, forces, the body | Rocks, light, forces | PYP Science |
| G4 | Energy, life cycles | Sound, electricity, animals | PYP Science |
| G5 | Light, ecosystems | Earth, space, living things | PYP Science |
- GradeG1
- US
- Nature, weather, animals
- UK
- Materials, plants
- IB
- PYP Science
- GradeG2
- US
- Plants, habitats
- UK
- Living things, habitats
- IB
- PYP Science
- GradeG3
- US
- Earth, forces, the body
- UK
- Rocks, light, forces
- IB
- PYP Science
- GradeG4
- US
- Energy, life cycles
- UK
- Sound, electricity, animals
- IB
- PYP Science
- GradeG5
- US
- Light, ecosystems
- UK
- Earth, space, living things
- IB
- PYP Science
G6–8 science
KS3: Reading science articles and writing a 3-2-1 reflection
Students in UK KS3 (Year 7–9) read English science articles one level above their current level.
- Step: Read the article
At this step, your child: Reads a science article and uses its photos, graphs, and their own background knowledge to understand it.
- Step: Thinking questions
At this step, your child: Thinks through questions about the article and answers them with evidence from the text.
- Step: 3-2-1 reflection
At this step, your child: Writes down 3 new facts, 2 interesting points, and 1 question they still want answered.
- Step: Review in the next class
At this step, your child: Starts the next class with reading questions and a Review Mini Test that check understanding.
What the articles cover
Your child reads articles on space, animals, AI, the environment, medicine, and technology, and uses background knowledge to guess what unfamiliar words and concepts mean.
School science units
Science units and courses in the US, UK KS3, and IB MYP
School science units in grades 6–8
In the UK, this is KS3 science; in the IB, it's MYP science.
| Grade | US | UK | IB |
|---|---|---|---|
| G6 | Earth systems, cells | KS3 biology, chemistry, physics | MYP Integrated Science |
| G7 | Genetics, chemistry basics | KS3 Science | MYP Integrated Science |
| G8 | Physical science, the human body | Final KS3 units | MYP Integrated Science |
- GradeG6
- US
- Earth systems, cells
- UK
- KS3 biology, chemistry, physics
- IB
- MYP Integrated Science
- GradeG7
- US
- Genetics, chemistry basics
- UK
- KS3 Science
- IB
- MYP Integrated Science
- GradeG8
- US
- Physical science, the human body
- UK
- Final KS3 units
- IB
- MYP Integrated Science
G7–12 science
G7–12: Korean school science
G7–9: Understanding concepts and how things work
- Your child studies in order: concept, then principle, then applying it to problems.
- Your child practices figuring out where to start on a problem.
G10–12: A solving order that fits within exam time
- Your child sorts the problem types that come up often.
- For each type, your child learns a short, fixed solving order (Practical Solution Method).
- Your child applies this method to problems they haven't seen before.
School science courses
AP, IB, IGCSE, A Level, and Korean science courses
School science courses in grades 9–12
| Grade | US (incl. AP) | IB | UK (IGCSE, A Level) | Korean curriculum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| G9 | Pre-AP Biology, Chemistry | General Science | IGCSE Combined Science | Integrated Science |
| G10 | AP Biology, advanced Chemistry | Pre-IB Sciences | IGCSE Bio, Chem, Phys | Physics, Chemistry, Life Science I/II |
| G11 | AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based | Bio, Chem, Physics SL/HL | AS Bio, Chem, Phys | Science Inquiry I (life science, physics, chemistry, earth science, and more) |
| G12 | AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, AP Environmental Science | Continue HL/SL science courses | A2 Bio, Chem, Phys | Science Inquiry II (choose 2 subjects) |
- GradeG9
- US (incl. AP)
- Pre-AP Biology, Chemistry
- IB
- General Science
- UK (IGCSE, A Level)
- IGCSE Combined Science
- Korean curriculum
- Integrated Science
- GradeG10
- US (incl. AP)
- AP Biology, advanced Chemistry
- IB
- Pre-IB Sciences
- UK (IGCSE, A Level)
- IGCSE Bio, Chem, Phys
- Korean curriculum
- Physics, Chemistry, Life Science I/II
- GradeG11
- US (incl. AP)
- AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based
- IB
- Bio, Chem, Physics SL/HL
- UK (IGCSE, A Level)
- AS Bio, Chem, Phys
- Korean curriculum
- Science Inquiry I (life science, physics, chemistry, earth science, and more)
- GradeG12
- US (incl. AP)
- AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, AP Environmental Science
- IB
- Continue HL/SL science courses
- UK (IGCSE, A Level)
- A2 Bio, Chem, Phys
- Korean curriculum
- Science Inquiry II (choose 2 subjects)
Enrollment
What we'll go over in consultation
| What to settle | Details |
|---|---|
| Homework and textbooks | How much homework there is, and which Study Book and Workbook your child uses |
| Starting level | Which Global Science Mastery level your child starts at |