Alison Eley, subject leader for science at Hampton Hill Junior School, Middlesex has been presented with the Society of Biology Primary Science Teacher of the Year Award. This recognises her outstanding and inspirational teaching of biology. The award is part of the AstraZeneca Science Teaching Trust Awards for primary science teachers.

Dr Amanda Hardy, schools and colleges officer at the Society of Biology, says: "The standard of nominations was extremely high, but what particularly impressed us about Alison was her phenomenal success in sharing her subject knowledge and enthusiasm with colleagues in her own school and beyond through the projects 'Talking Science' and 'I can explain!'."

Alison's particular areas of interest include curriculum design, and how scientific literacy can be developed through group talk.

Alison is also inventive when helping children learn subjects in science which they can't experience first-hand, such as digestion. To help year 3 children grasp this concept, she mashed real food and sent it through a model digestive system, using bowls, potato mashers (teeth), plastic tubes, bags, and sieves. At each stage they watched the relevant part of a human endoscopy video and also located the equivalent point on a specially made life-size cloth model of the human digestive system.

Mark Downs, chief executive of the Society of Biology, says: "The awards recognise innovative and creative work that engages children in the excitement of science and the natural world. Teaching primary science is so important because it is vital that school pupils understand about our environment, wildlife and how our food is produced."