AC9S8I08 Year 8 Science

AC9S8I08 – Year 8 Science: Communicating

Strand

Science inquiry

Substrand

Communicating

This Content Descriptor from Year 8 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

write and create texts to communicate ideas, findings and arguments for specific purposes and audiences, including selection of appropriate language and text features, using digital tools as appropriate

Elaborations

• exploring the role of active and passive voice in scientific writing and analysing contemporary journal articles to identify the use of language features such as voice or tense
• writing a report on a scientific investigation using appropriate scientific conventions and representations, including a discussion of how assumptions and possible sources of error may have affected the results
• modifying the method for an investigation and explaining where and why the original was changed with reference to any assumptions and sources of error
• constructing a persuasive text on the use of artificial organs including scientific explanations and principles to influence a specified audience
• filming a documentary on the dynamic nature of the geosphere and selecting appropriate language, models or analogies to engage a specific audience
• creating a digital infographic to compare and contrast different forms of energy, highlighting examples of energy transfer and transformations within each
• acknowledging and exploring First Nations Australians’ ways of communicating their understanding of the internal systems of organisms

Achievement Standard This Supports

This Content Descriptor contributes to the following Achievement Standard:

Year 8 ASSCIY8

Year 8 Science Achievement Standard

By the end of Year 8 students explain the role of specialised cell structures and organelles in cellular function and analyse the relationship between structure and function at organ and body system levels. They apply an understanding of the theory of plate tectonics to explain patterns of change in the geosphere. They explain how the properties of rocks relate to their formation and influence their use. They compare different forms of energy and represent transfer and transformation of energy in simple systems. They classify and represent different types of matter and distinguish between physical and chemical change. Students analyse how different factors influence development of and lead to changes in scientific knowledge. They analyse the key considerations that inform scientific responses and how these responses impact society. They analyse the importance of science communication in shaping viewpoints, policies and regulations. Students plan and conduct safe, reproducible investigations to test relationships and explore models. They describe potential ethical issues and intercultural considerations needed for specific field locations or use of secondary data. They select and use equipment to generate and record data with precision. They select and construct appropriate representations to organise and process data and information. They analyse data and information to describe patterns, trends and relationships and identify anomalies. They identify assumptions and sources of error in methods and analyse conclusions and claims with reference to conflicting evidence and unanswered questions. They construct evidence-based arguments to support conclusions and evaluate claims. They select and use language and text features appropriately for their purpose when communicating their ideas, findings and arguments to specific audiences.