These are the buttons for going to teacher resources.
Above right is the search button. You can get to this 'toolkit' screen from the search, too. Most useful when students have a specific word in mind.
This is the main textbook. It opens in a new tab or window. To close the book, close the tab or window. On a mobile you can swipe to turn pages and also pull corners. On the top right there is a button for searching within the book. You can also zoom in on a page and drag the page to where you want it. Some books have videos embedded.

If there is an 'explorer' book opposite with a similar title it is also a textbook, but with a 2 year reading level lower than the main book.
These creative topics books cover specific topics and reinforce the main book. Use them as further reading, or when more detail is needed for project work.

The books are colour banded using a system of reading ability levels as is standard across British schools. If there are coloured dots, they tell of reading level and also guide you as to how hard the subject matter is: the more dots the harder it is.
This is the interactive topic. It covers the same ground as the book, but with less text and it focuses on read-outs. Suited to whiteboards as well as individual use. Each text passage can be read out and stopped by mouseover or tap. There is a question with interactive answer. Especially helps those with reading challenges.
This is the video gallery. It contains all of the videos in the i-topic and more. You can use this if you wish to manage videos rather than have them as part of the i-topic.
This is an interactive audio-visual experience. It contains a wide variety of topics to help students approach a topic in a less formal way. They select items and hear them read out. Copyright restrictions apply: the material cannot be used in other websites.
These are additional resources, such as topic books.
  • Statutory programme of study.

• The books below cover the ground needed for each statutory requirement.

• If you need guidance on how to teach the topic, take the academy course by clicking the 'Lessons' icon. (Also suited to parent use.)

• Remember you can enhance this by using our safe search. For example, search voltage, current, switch.
• Also remember each book has its own search, top right immediately above the page.
• For teacher guides and more visit the academy links (teachers only).

Year 4 has the following 5 themes. This page is about Electricity.

1. Groups of living things

2. Teeth, digestion and food chains

3. States of matter

4. Sound

5. Electricity (this page; scroll down)

5. Electricity

• (a) identify common appliances that run on electricity

It is assumed that this part of the work will take very little time, but that it might be a good place to talk about generating power using renewables and also how many more things are running on batteries or low voltage mains (USB, 5V supplies) and how you can find 5V supplies in most new home wall sockets as well as traditional 230V supplies. It would also be worth emphasising that adults should, in general, plug in and pull out appliances.

Textbooks and academy to use. The main textbook is 4F Simple electricity, but as students vary widely in how they understand electricity we have added simpler and more advanced books at each stage:


Very basic as a quick introduction.

Simple, in case you need to underpin.

The main textbook.

Advanced reference.
topic890ElectromagnetsCover

Reader.



• (b) construct a simple series electrical circuit, identifying and naming its basic parts, including cells, wires, bulbs, switches and buzzers



Textbooks and academy to use:


The main textbook (pages 8-13).

The main textbook for yr6, but can be dipped into.

The most comprehensive textbook. Note this book uses the alternative bulb symbols which some students will find easier to understand than the X symbol mostly used in modern circuit diagrams. See which one they find easiest to understand as a starting point.




• (c) identify whether or not a lamp will light in a simple series circuit, based on whether or not the lamp is part of a complete loop with a battery (textbook pages 8-13).
• recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit (textbook page 14).
• recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors (textbook page 22).


The main textbook (pages 8-13).

The main textbook for yr6, but can be dipped into.

The most comprehensive textbook. Note this book uses the alternative bulb symbols which some students will find easier to understand than the X symbol mostly used in modern circuit diagrams. See which one they find easiest to understand as a starting point.




Go to section 1: Grouping living things