AC9S6H01 Year 6 Science

AC9S6H01 – Year 6 Science: Nature and development of science

Strand

Science as a human endeavour

Substrand

Nature and development of science

This Content Descriptor from Year 6 Science provides the specific knowledge and skills students should learn. Use it to plan lessons, create learning sequences, and design assessments that align with the Australian Curriculum v9.

Content Descriptor

examine why advances in science are often the result of collaboration or build on the work of others

Elaborations

• investigating how contemporary restorative ecology adapts and builds on the traditional ecological knowledges of First Nations Australians
• exploring how international scientific collaboration can answer complex questions about the abiotic factors that affect the growth and survival of living things in Antarctica
• examining why ecologists collaborate with engineers and computer scientists to develop remote sensing techniques, identify patterns in habitat change and make predictions
• constructing a timeline to show how contributions and collaboration of scientists, mathematicians and astronomers from many countries have advanced our ideas about space and the solar system through development of models, gathering of evidence and, more recently, space exploration
• investigating how astronauts and scientists from many different countries have collaborated in the International Space Station program
• investigating why scientists changed the phosphate levels in detergents to prevent algal blooms

Achievement Standard This Supports

This Content Descriptor contributes to the following Achievement Standard:

Year 6 ASSCIY6

Year 6 Science Achievement Standard

By the end of Year 6 students explain how changes in physical conditions affect living things. They model the relationship between the sun and planets of the solar system and explain how the relative positions of Earth and the sun relate to observed phenomena on Earth. They identify the role of circuit components in the transfer and transformation of electrical energy. They classify and compare reversible and irreversible changes to substances. They explain why science is often collaborative and describe different individuals’ contributions to scientific knowledge. They describe how individuals and communities use scientific knowledge. Students plan safe, repeatable investigations to identify patterns and test relationships and make reasoned predictions. They describe risks associated with investigations and key intercultural considerations when planning field work. They identify variables to be changed, measured and controlled. They use equipment to generate and record data with appropriate precision. They construct representations to organise and process data and information and describe patterns, trends and relationships. They identify possible sources of error in their own and others’ methods and findings, pose questions for further investigation and select evidence to support reasoned conclusions. They select and use language features effectively for their purpose and audience when communicating their ideas and findings.