The following resources have been developed to support teachers to implement the F–10 Science curriculum.
This teaching resource includes sample learning activities, detailed tasks and case studies based on local and Victorian contexts – from exploring the variations that occur in local and other Victorian frog species to investigating the effects of drought on farms and farm animals in rural Victoria.
Learning science concepts in relation to local and relevant contexts supports students in making connections and links to scientific ideas in the physical world. It helps them to see the ‘why’ behind their learning and provides a rationale for exploring and understanding the world around them.
This resource draws on content from the Biological sciences, Science as a human endeavour and Science inquiry skills sub-strands of the Science curriculum.
Biological sciences in local and Victorian contexts, Foundation to Level 6
These teaching resources support a conceptual development of the understanding of forces and motion from Foundation to Level 10. Sequences of sample learning activities provide students with hands-on exploration of the relationship between pushes and pulls and changes in motion such as starting and stopping (Foundation to Level 2); common physical phenomena that we experience every day, such as pushing, rubbing, sticking and pulling (Levels 3 and 4); changes in the direction of motion that occur when we turn or move in a circle (Levels 5 and 6); the motion of objects in terms of all the forces acting on an object, both contact and non-contact (Levels 7 and 8); and the connection between force and energy and how to apply Newton’s laws and the principle of conservation of energy to quantitatively predict and explain motion (Levels 9 and 10).
Each resource incorporates content from either the Physical sciences or Earth and space sciences sub-strand, plus the Science as a human endeavour sub-strand and the Science Inquiry Skills strand of the Science curriculum.
How do we stop and start? Foundation to Level 2, Physical sciences
How do forces affect our everyday lives? Levels 3 and 4, Physical sciences
How do the planets go around our Sun? Levels 5 and 6, Earth and space sciences
How do forces cause change? Levels 7 and 8, Physical sciences
How can the laws of physics predict our moves? Levels 9 and 10, Physical sciences
An accompanying overview document demonstrates how student learning at Foundation to Level 10 fits into a broader forces and motion story. It also unpacks some common student misconceptions about forces and motion.
Making moves and staying still: Connecting forces and motion – An overview of forces and motion in the Victorian Curriculum F–10
This resource explores how the context of 'dinosaurs' can be used to teach science content and skills. Although not explicitly in the curriculum, the topic of dinosaurs is an exciting and engaging lens that can be used to teach some of the key ideas of science, particularly that function relies on form. This resource shines a light on where links can be made between the Victorian Curriculum F–10 and the theme of dinosaurs, provides advice on practical hands-on activities as a stimulus for customising your own school program, and examines how activities can be designed to individualise student learning, including for multi-level classrooms.
This resource has been adapted from an online presentation to F–10 Science teachers.
Where are dinosaurs in Victorian Curriculum F–6 Science
Where are dinosaurs in Victorian Curriculum F–6 Science
Cross-curriculum resources
This resource will help teachers and schools identify strong links between Science and the capabilities. It will also help teachers design learning activities.
The resource assumes familiarity with the Science curriculum. It links aspects of this curriculum with Ethical Capability, Critical and Creative Thinking, Intercultural Capability and Personal and Social Capability.
Note: It is a school decision as to which capabilities are linked to which learning area(s). To help support these decisions, this resource provides general advice on teaching and assessment, as well as specific illustrative advice related to Science.
Why link learning in Science to a capability?
The knowledge and skills learnt through the capabilities are highly transferable across learning areas and are applicable throughout schooling and in later life.
The capabilities support Science as a dynamic, collaborative and creative human endeavour arising from our desire to make sense of our world by exploring the unknown, investigating universal mysteries, making predictions and solving problems.
Identifying a strong link between a capability and Science supports learning in both curriculum areas. There is strong justification to link a learning area and a capability in instances where:
- knowledge and skills taught in a capability would deepen students’ understanding of particular knowledge and skills in the learning area
- the learning area would provide context, background knowledge and other skills for the development of the capability.
How do we find strong links between Science and the capabilities?
Looking over each capabilities curriculum, we begin to see broad links between the strands in different capabilities and in aspects of various strands and sub-strands of the Science curriculum.
Linking the Critical and Creative Thinking strands to Science
Critical and Creative Thinking consists of three interrelated strands. The table below provides an overview of each strand and how it links to Science.
Questions and Possibilities
Explore the nature of questioning and a range of processes and techniques to develop ideas
Science and Critical and Creative Thinking mutually support students to …
develop their curiosity and construct investigable questions
Reasoning
Explore how to compose, analyse and evaluate arguments and reasoning
Science and Critical and Creative Thinking mutually support students to …
collect, analyse and evaluate evidence, and communicate findings
Meta-Cognition
Explore the use of strategies to understand, manage and reflect on thinking, problem-solving and learning processes
Science and Critical and Creative Thinking mutually support students to …
manage their learning, thinking and problem-solving skills to construct explanations of scientific ideas and to make informed, evidence-based decisions about science-related matters
Linking the Ethical Capability strands to Science
Ethical Capability consists of two interrelated strands. The table below provides an overview of each strand and how it links to Science.
Understanding Concepts
Understanding and applying key concepts and ideas concerned with ethical issues, outcomes, principles and values
Science and Ethical Capability mutually support students to …
identify, analyse and evaluate the contribution of science to society and its application in our lives; and identify world views underlying different perspectives
Decision Making and Actions
Understanding ways to respond to ethical problems and factors and challenges that influence ethical decision-making and action, and applying this understanding to different contexts
Science and Ethical Capability mutually support students to …
identify, analyse and evaluate the scientific and ethical implications of possible actions and solutions in a broad range of scientific contexts
Linking the Intercultural Capability strands to Science
Intercultural Capability consists of two interrelated strands. The table below provides an overview of each strand and its broad links to Science.
Cultural Practices
Describing, observing and analysing characteristics of their own cultural identities and those of others; and using critical reflection to better understand the perspectives and actions of individuals and groups in specific situations and how these can be shaped by culture
Science and Intercultural Capability mutually support students to …
consider different world views and analyse the ways intercultural relationships and experiences contribute to the development of attitudes, beliefs and behaviours in different scientific contexts
Cultural Diversity
Understanding the nature of cultural diversity and critically examining the concept of respect, challenges and opportunities created by cultural diversity and the way in which cultural diversity shapes and contributes to social cohesion
Science and Intercultural Capability mutually support students to …
explore how the values and needs of contemporary societies influence the focus of scientific research, and the challenges and opportunities associated with working scientifically in an interconnected and culturally diverse world
Linking the Personal and Social Capability strands to Science
Personal and Social Capability consists of two interrelated strands. The table below provides an overview of each strand and its broad links to Science.
Self-Awareness and Management
Develop the knowledge and skills to regulate, manage and monitor their emotions and interpret and assess their personal characteristics in the context of development of resilience
Science and Personal and Social Capability mutually support students to …
develop knowledge and skills to work independently and show initiative
Social Awareness and Management
Learn to participate in positive, safe and respectful relationships; critique societal constructs and discrimination; and negotiate with others and work collaboratively
Science and Personal and Social Capability mutually support students to …
develop skills for collaborative work
Asking the following questions can be a first step in identifying strong links:
- Which of the learning area content descriptions reflect concepts or other knowledge and skills in a capability?
- Would explicit teaching and learning related to the identified link support progress towards the achievement standards for the learning area and/or capability?
The example below identifies a link between a Levels 3 and 4 Science content description and a Levels 3 and 4 Ethical Capability content description. The identified link is between the effects of actions (Science) and the concept of harm (Ethical Capability).
Once a strong link is identified, a learning activity can be designed that enables progression towards the appropriate Science achievement standard as well as the appropriate capability achievement standard (again, see the example below). This may involve incorporating other relevant content descriptions to create a sequence of learning.
Example: Linking a Levels 3 and 4 Science content description and a Levels 3 and 4 Ethical Capability content description
This table includes a selected content description and achievement standard extract for both Science Levels 3 and 4 and Ethical Capability Levels 3 and 4, plus linking notes and an activity idea.
| | Science, Levels 3 and 4 | Linking notes and activity idea | Ethical Capability, Levels 3 and 4 |
|---|
Content description | Science knowledge helps people to understand the effects of their actions
(VCSSU056) | Can both Ethical Capability and Science help us to understand why we might tolerate harm differently in different situations? Yes. Ethical Capability can help us understand the concept of harm in relation to good, bad, better or worse, and Science can help us understand types of harms and their causes and effects. Students use the biological sciences and Ethical Capability to explore reasons for the recent decline in bogong moth numbers and the possible consequences this decline may have on the critically endangered mountain pygmy possum. They use examples to demonstrate their knowledge of science and the concept of ‘harm’ in terms of threats to the bogong moth, and they identify ways that they can personally take action to help minimise these threats. | Explore the contested meaning of concepts including fairness and harm and how they can seem to differ in different situations
(VCECU004) |
Achievement
standard extract | By the end of Level 4, students describe situations where science understanding can influence their own and others’ actions. | By the end of Level 4, students use concrete examples from a range of contexts to explain the contested meaning of concepts and significance of acts. |
How do we assess the capabilities?
Student understanding of a capability’s knowledge and skills is assessed against its achievement standards. The key to formative and summative assessment is explicit teaching of the discrete knowledge and skills underpinning the capability’s content descriptions in such a way that students are supported to progress towards the targeted achievement standard. Explicit teaching builds shared understanding of knowledge and skills, which provides a foundation for setting transparent expectations of what should be shown in student work and for feedback.
For general advice on teaching and assessment and transfer of learning, see
General resources for the capabilities.
Ideas for learning activities that link Science and the capabilities
All examples are illustrative only and assume familiarity with the Science curriculum.
Learning activity idea: Students predict and compare how the shapes of objects made from different materials can be physically changed through different actions to create an object for a specific purpose. They reflect on how comparing observations and predictions with those of others helps them refine their ideas and persist in a challenging task.
This activity would strengthen learning in both Science and Personal and Social Capability through identifying that comparison of results with peers is a learning strategy (see the Personal and Social Capability content descriptions
VCPSCSE003 and
VCPSCSE010).
Note: For resources covering bioethics and socio-scientific issues, including relevant links to the capabilities, see the VCAA’s
Science Teaching Resources.
Learning activity idea: Students explore how living things can be grouped according to whether they are producers or consumers, and how all animals depend on other living or once-living things for food. They describe how animals can be grouped as herbivores, omnivores or carnivores and identified by the type of teeth they have. They consider that while humans are omnivores, some people, for cultural or ethical reasons, choose to eat vegetarian or vegan diets. They also consider that some people eat an omnivore diet but for cultural reasons choose to exclude particular meats such as pork or beef.
This activity would strengthen learning in both Science and Intercultural capability through allowing students to:
- compare their own and others’ cultural practices relating to food, showing how these may influence the way people relate to each other (see Intercultural Capability content description
VCICCB005)
- describe what they have learnt about themselves and others from intercultural experiences relating to food (see Intercultural Capability content description
VCICCB006).
Note: For resources covering bioethics and socio-scientific issues, including relevant links to the capabilities, see the VCAA’s
Science Teaching Resources.
Learning activity idea: As part of a broader sequence of lessons on responding to floods, storms and cyclones, students undertake research to examine and compare different options for dealing with beach erosion, including deliberating with each other on the pros and cons of different solutions and writing a recommendation suitable for presenting to a local council.
This activity would strengthen learning in both Science and Critical and Creative Thinking through introducing different types of evidence and how the strength of these can be evaluated, and consolidating the importance of giving reasons when comparing advantages and disadvantages and trying to reach an on-balance judgment (see the Critical and Creative Thinking content description
VCCCTR025).
Note: This example builds on a Levels 5 and 6 learning activity in ‘How can we predict and respond to floods, storms and cyclones?’, which is one of the ‘Exploring socio-scientific issues using scientific thinking’ resources on the VCAA’s
Science Teaching Resources webpage. Explore this webpage for more resources covering bioethics and socio-scientific issues, including relevant links to the capabilities.
Learning activity idea: Following a sequence of lessons on human body systems, students investigate the use of emerging technologies to replace organs – such as electronic hearts, dialysis machines and cochlear implants – and explore the ethical implications of organ transplants.
This activity would strengthen learning in both Science and Ethical Capability through:
- introducing four common principles of bioethics – autonomy (freedom), beneficence (the duty to ‘do good’), non-maleficence (the duty to ‘not do bad’) and justice (the duty to treat people equally and equitably) – and applying these to analyse various scenarios and dilemmas involving organ transplants and to develop a response (see Ethical Capability content description
VCECU014)
- comparing responses and analysing the thinking underlying different perspectives (see Ethical Capability content descriptions
VCECU015,
VCECD017 and
VCECD018).
Note: This example builds on a Levels 7 and 8 learning sequence in ‘Teaching bioethics in the Victorian Curriculum F–10, Levels 7–10’ on the VCAA’s
Science Teaching Resources webpage. Explore this webpage for more resources covering bioethics and socio-scientific issues, including relevant links to the capabilities.
Learning activity idea: Students develop their understanding of the application of science to people’s lives as well as geological processes and global systems through a case study that considers arguments for and against fracking.
This activity would strengthen learning in both Science and Critical and Creative Thinking through:
- introducing problem-solving strategies to assist in reaching a solution, including how to identify and apply suitable criteria for assessing alternative ideas (see Critical and Creative Thinking content description
VCCCTM053)
- examining how cognitive biases can affect the quality of an argument and strategies to mitigate these (see Critical and Creative Thinking content description
VCCCTM051).
Note: This example builds on a Levels 9 and 10 learning activity in ‘Fracking – should we or shouldn’t we?’, which is one of the ‘Exploring socio-scientific issues using scientific thinking’ resources on the VCAA’s
Science Teaching Resources webpage. Explore this webpage for more resources covering bioethics and socio-scientific issues, including relevant links to the capabilities.
For more resources to support the teaching of all four capabilities, see the individual capability resources webpages and
General resources for the capabilities
External resources
The following external links are for teacher reference purposes. They do not constitute VCAA endorsement of the views or materials contained on these sites.
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Education Programs
Explore the range of engaging science programs based on real CSIRO science for schools and students. Includes CREST, Scientists and Mathematicians in Schools, and Sustainable Futures
Cool Australia
A not for profit organisation that provides curriculum-linked free access resources for teachers and students including online materials and teacher professional development. The learning activities are year level specific and align with the Victorian Curriculum.
MoneySmart Teaching
ResourceSmart Schools
ResourceSmart Schools helps schools reduce costs while giving students the opportunity to learn about sustainability in a tangible and realistic environment.
Teacher Earth Science Education Programme
The Teacher Earth Science Education Programme (TESEP) is supported by the Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA) as well as a range of industry partners and offers primary and secondary school resources related to Earth and space sciences.
Academy of Science-Primary Connections
Primary Connections: Linking science with literacy is the Australian Academy of Science's flagship primary school science program. It is an innovative approach to teaching and learning which aims to enhance primary school teachers' confidence and competence for teaching science.
Science by Doing
A senior secondary resource for students in Years 7-10.