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Years 3–4 Years 7–8 Years 9–10Foundation Years 1–2 Years
5–6Information for parentsTHE AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM – YEARS 5 AND
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Foundation Years 1–2 Years 3–4 Years 7–8 Years 9–10Years 5–6
THE AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUMThe Australian Curriculum is designed
to develop:
• successfullearners• confidentandcreativeindividuals•
activeandinformedyoungpeoplewho
arereadytotaketheirplaceinsociety.
Itsetsthegoalforwhatallstudentsshouldlearnastheyprogressthroughtheirschoollife–wherevertheyliveinAustraliaandwhateverschooltheyattend.
TheAustralianCurriculumwithitseightlearning areas provides a
modern curriculum foreverystudentinAustralia.Includedinthecontent
of learning areas are seven general
capabilitiesintendedtohelpprepareyoungAustralianstolearn,liveandworkinthe21stcentury.Therearethreecross-curriculumpriorities
that are also a focus across the learningareas.
TheAustralianCurriculumisflexiblesothatteachers can plan the
learning for all their
students,alsotakingintoaccounttheirlocalschoolcommunity.
For more information, see our fact sheet: The Australian
Curriculum – an overviewforparents.
YEARS 5 AND 6
In Years 5 and 6, students develop an
abilitytotakepositiveactionsfortheirwellbeing;theyrelatetoothersandcommunicatewellwithothers;theyaskchallengingquestionsandseekanswers;theymakeinformeddecisionsandactresponsibly.
The development of information and
communicationtechnologyskillsincreasesacrossthecurriculumatthislevel.
Years 5-6 Learning Areas
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English
Maths
Science
Health & PE
Technologies
The Arts
Humanities
Languages
School choice
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Years 3–4 Years 7–8 Years 9–10Foundation Years 1–2 Years 5–6
EnglishStudentsreadandcomparecomplextexts,forenjoymentandlearning,andcanexpresstheirthoughts
andopinionsaboutwhattheyhaveread.Theycanwriteawidevarietyofwell-constructedtexts
suchasreviews,reportsandnarratives.Studentsdevelopskillstocommunicatewithothersinmost
settings.TheycantransfertheliteracyskillsdevelopedinEnglishtoothersubjects.
Typically, students will:
analyseandexplainhowauthorsorganisetheirtexts
selectvocabularytorepresentideas,charactersandevents
compareandanalyseinformationindifferenttexts
useevidencefromatexttoexplaintheirresponsetoit
usingelectronicdevices,createdetailedtextsaboutarangeoftopics,includingtopics
theyhavebeenstudying
demonstrateunderstandingofgrammar,includingtheabilitytowritecomplexsentences
developanexpandingvocabulary
use accurate spelling and punctuation
usespeakingstrategiesincludingquestioning,clarifyingandrephrasingtocontribute
toclassdiscussions.
MathematicsStudentsextendtheirknowledgeofthekeyareasofmathematics,
particularlyoffractionsanddecimals.Theyincreasinglyusemodels,
picturesandsymbolstorepresentandcommunicatemathematicalideas.Typically,
students will:
place positive and negative numbers on a number line add and
subtract fractions and decimals compare and interpret statistical
graphs convertbetween12-and24-hourtimeandinterprettimetables
continueandcreatesequences,involvingwholenumbers,fractionsanddecimals,
and describe rules
measurelength,area,volume,capacityandmass,andcalculateperimeterandarea
of rectangles listoutcomesofchanceexperiments
applyfractions,decimals,percentages,anglesandmeasurementstosolveproblems
explainmentalstrategiesforcalculations
poseappropriatequestionsforstatisticalinvestigations.
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Years 3–4 Years 7–8 Years 9–10Foundation Years 1–2 Years 5–6
HealthandPhysicalEducationStudentsbecomeevenmoreconnectedwiththeirpeersandtheworldaroundthem.
Theylearnwhatinfluencesthem,howrelationshipschangeovertimeandhowtopromotehealth.Theydevelopmorecomplexmovementskills.Typically,
students will:
learnskillsforcopingwithpuberty
learnskillstoestablishandmanagerespectfulrelationships,includingdealingwithfriendships
understandhowmediaandimportantpeopleintheirlivesinfluencethem
experienceandlearnaboutrolesandresponsibilitiesinteams
developtheirabilitytoparticipateinoutdooractivitiesandlearnhowthiscansupportwellbeing
learnhowtofindoutplacestheycangetreliableinformation
orhelpabouthealth,safetyandwellbeing
developmorespecialisedskillsforgames,
sportsandotherphysicalactivities,andplay
gamesfromtheirownandothercultures.
Humanities and Social
SciencesStudentsdrawontheirgrowingexperienceofthe
widerworldanduseconcreteinformationsourcestolearnabouthistory,geography,civicsandcitizenship,andeconomicsandbusiness.Typically,
students will:
investigateAustralia’sdevelopmentfromcolonyto nation, migration
and settlement patterns, and contributions of people and groups
exploregeographiccharacteristicsofEurope,NorthAmericaandAsia,andtheworld’sculturaldiversity
learnaboutstrugglesforcitizenshipandhumanrights
indifferentgroups,inAustralia’spastandpresent
explorepeople’suseofnaturalresourcestosatisfyneedsandwants,andhowconsumerchoices
affect other people and the environment
learnaboutAustralia’sdemocraticvalues,laws,government and elections
investigatepeople’sparticipationinthecommunity
toachievecivicgoals.
ScienceStudentslearnhowtolook
forpatternsand
relationships.Theyrecognisetheimportant
roleofvariablesininvestigations.They
developexplanationsbasedonevidence.
Typically, students will:
investigate adaptations in living things and
theirinteractionswiththeenvironment
addgasestotheirstudyofmaterialsand
investigate chemical changes
investigatethesolarsystemandthe
behaviour of light
investigatevolcanoesandearthquakes
deepen their understanding of historical
and cultural contributions to science
understandhowscienceinfluences
community decisions.
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Communicates ideas
using labelled graphic
representations and text
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Years 3–4 Years 7–8 Years 9–10Foundation Years 1–2 Years 5–6
The Arts
Studentsexplorethewaytheworldis
representedbyartistsaswellascontinue
todeveloptheirownunderstandingsand
experiences.Theyfurtherdeveloptheirtechnical
skillsandexplorehowotherscreateartworks.
Typically, students will:
in Dance, dance using balance and
coordination,byfollowingasetofsteps
in Drama, rehearse and perform a
varietyofplays,usingexpressionto
engage an audience
inMediaArts,explore,planandproduce
mediaartworkssuchasadvertisements
in Music, rehearse, sing and perform
musicwithrhythmandpitch
inVisualArts,explorewhyartistscreate
artworksandwhomtheartworksare
createdfor.
LanguagesStudentsmayhaveanopportunitytolearnalanguage
otherthanEnglish.Typically, when learning a language, students
will:
usethelanguagetocommunicatemoreaccuratelyandfluentlytoexchangeinformation,expressideasandfeelings
usevocabularyandgrammaticalresourcestocompose
andcomprehendvarioustypesoftexts use a range of cues and strategies
to assist their comprehension
reflectontherelationshipbetweenlanguage, cultureandidentity.
TechnologiesStudents use design processes to produce
solutions.Theyfurtherdeveloptheirknowledgeandunderstandingofdigitalsystemsanddata;theyimprovetheircomputationalthinking.Typically,
students will:
in Design and Technologies usematerialsortechnologieswhen
designing, producing and evaluating
solutions,forexample,aplanforanewkitchengarden
representideasandsolutionsinavariety
ofways,suchassketchesandmodels
developplanstocompletetasks
in Digital Technologies use simple coding to develop and
evaluate
digitalsolutions,suchasgamesorquizzes
acttoensuretheirpersonalsafetywhen
engaging online collect, interpret and manage a range of
data,usingdigitalsystems.
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To learn more about the Australian Curriculum, visit the
‘Parents’sectionoftheAustralianCurriculumwebsite.Formoreinformationaboutyourchild,talktoyourschool.
http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources-and-support/parent-information/introduction