This Science video introduces teachers to the five main types of scientific inquiry and how they support pupils in developing the skills to ask and answer questions about the world around them. It explains how pupils can identify the most suitable approach for their question – whether sorting and classifying, observing over time, pattern seeking, carrying out a comparative or fair test, or researching using secondary sources – and how these methods build confidence in scientific thinking. The video also clarifies the differences between comparative and fair tests and how results should be presented, from bar charts for categorical data to line graphs for continuous data.

This video is part of Kapow Primary’s Science – enquiry. It provides practical ways to help pupils recognise inquiry types, make informed choices about their investigations, and reflect on their methods and findings. Through repeated use of these approaches across the Kapow scheme, pupils strengthen their understanding of scientific processes, develop curiosity, and are encouraged to pose new questions to continue the cycle of inquiry.

Science, Mixed-age, Y1/2 (B): Living things: Microhabitats, Y1/2 (B): Lesson 2: Introduction to scientific enquiry