Prep Year standard elaborations — Australian Curriculum: Science
REVISED DRAFT
The Australian Curriculum achievement standards are an expectation of the depth of understanding, the extent of knowledge and the sophistication of
skills that students should typically demonstrate at the end of a teaching and learning year. In Queensland, the Prep Year Australian Curriculum
achievement standard represents a C standard — a sound level of knowledge and understanding of the content, and application of skills.
Prep1 Year Australian Curriculum: Science achievement standard
By the end of the Foundation year, students describe the properties and behaviour of familiar objects. They suggest how the environment affects them and other
living things.
Students share observations of familiar objects and events.
Source: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), Australian Curriculum v6.0 Science for Foundation–10, www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Curriculum/F-10
The standards elaborations (SEs) should be used in conjunction with the Australian Curriculum achievement standard and content descriptions for the
relevant year level. They provide additional clarity about using the Australian Curriculum achievement standard to make judgments on a five-point
scale.
The SEs for Science have been developed using the Australian Curriculum content descriptions and the achievement standard.
They promote and support:
 aligning curriculum, assessment and reporting, connecting curriculum and evidence in assessment, so that what is assessed relates directly to what
students have had the opportunity to learn
 continuing skill development from one year of schooling to another
 making judgments on a five-point scale based on evidence of learning in a folio of student work
 planning an assessment program and individual assessments
 developing task-specific standards and grading guides.
Prep in Queensland is the Foundation Year of the Australian Curriculum and refers to the year before Year 1. Children beginning Prep in January are required to be five years
of age by 30 June.
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Prep Year Science standard elaborations
Applying
(AP)
Making connections
(MC)
REVISED DRAFT
Working with
(WW)
Exploring
(EX)
Becoming aware
(BA)
Guided description of
the properties and
behaviour of familiar
objects
Directed statements about:
Guided suggestions of
how the environment
affects people and
other living things
•
Science Understanding &
Science as a Human Endeavour
Science Inquiry Skills
Skills dimension
Understanding dimension
The folio of a child’s work has the following characteristics:
•
•
Clear description and
explanation, with links
to science knowledge,
of the properties and
behaviour of familiar
objects
•
•
Explained suggestions,
with links to science
knowledge, of how the
environment affects
people and other living
things
Description, with links
to science knowledge,
of the properties and
behaviour of familiar
objects
Suggestions, with links
to science knowledge,
of how the environment
affects people and
other living things
•
•
Description of the
properties and
behaviour of familiar
objects
Suggestions of how the
environment affects
people and other living
things
•
•
•
the properties and
behaviour of familiar
objects
how the environment
affects people and
other living things
Refer to the Foundation Australian Curriculum achievement standard for the depth of conceptual understanding for each of the sub-strands
Biological sciences, Chemical sciences, Earth and space sciences and Physical sciences
•
•
Response to questions
and making of accurate
observations
Sharing of observations
using relevant scientific
terminology
•
•
Response to questions
and making of linked
observations
Sharing of observations of
familiar objects and events
Guided sharing of
observations of familiar
objects and events
Directed sharing of
observations of familiar
objects and events
Sharing of observations
of familiar objects and
events using linked
scientific terminology
Note: Colour highlights have been used in the table to emphasise the qualities that discriminate between the standards.
Prep Year standard elaborations — Australian Curriculum: Science
REVISED DRAFT
Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority
July 2014
Page 2 of 5
Key
AP
The child applies the curriculum content and demonstrates a thorough understanding
of the required knowledge. The child demonstrates a high level of skill that can be
transferred to new situations.
EX
The child is exploring the curriculum content and demonstrates understanding of
aspects of the required knowledge. The child uses a varying level of skills in
situations familiar to them.
MC
The child makes connections using the curriculum content and demonstrates a clear
understanding of the required knowledge. The child applies a high level of skill in
situations familiar to them, and is beginning to transfer skills to new situations.
BA
The child is becoming aware of the curriculum content and demonstrates a basic
understanding of aspects of required knowledge. The child is beginning to use skills
in situations familiar to them.
WW
The child can work with the curriculum content and demonstrates understanding of
the required knowledge. The child applies skills in situations familiar to them.
Prep Year standard elaborations — Australian Curriculum: Science
REVISED DRAFT
Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority
July 2014
Page 3 of 5
Notes
The SEs describe the qualities of achievement in the two dimensions common to all Australian
Curriculum learning area achievement standards:
 understanding
 skills.
Dimension*
Description
Understanding*
The concepts underpinning and connecting knowledge in a learning area,
related to a student’s ability to appropriately select and apply knowledge
to solve problems in that learning area
Skills*
The specific techniques, strategies and processes in a learning area
The following terms and key words are used in the Prep Year Science SEs. They help to clarify
the descriptors and should be used in conjunction with the ACARA Australian Curriculum Science
glossary www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Glossary
Term
Description
Accuracy; Accurate
Consistent with a standard, rule, convention or known fact
In the context of Science:
 accurate measurements are close to the accepted value

*
accurate representations are a true representation of observations or
collected data.
Clear; Clearly
Easy to perceive, understand, or interpret
Communicating
(sub-strand)*
Conveying information or ideas to others through appropriate
representations, text types and modes
Description; Descriptive;
Describe*
Give an account of characteristics or features
Direction; Directed
Following the instructions of the facilitator
Explanation;
Explanatory; Explain*
Provide additional information that demonstrates understanding of
reasoning and/or application
Fragmented
Disjointed, incomplete or isolated
Guided
Visual and/or verbal prompts to facilitate or support independent action
Link
To connect with
Planning and conducting
(sub-strand)*
Making decisions regarding how to investigate or solve a problem and
carrying out an investigation, including the collection of data
In Prep, this includes exploring and making observations by using the
senses.
Processing and
analysing data and
information
(sub-strand)*
Representing data in meaningful and useful ways; identifying trends,
patterns and relationships in data, and using this evidence to justify
conclusions
In Prep, this includes:
 engaging in discussions about observations
 using methods such as drawings to represent ideas.
The asterisk (*) denotes dimensions and terms described by ACARA. Unmarked terms are described by QCAA.
Prep Year standard elaborations — Australian Curriculum: Science
REVISED DRAFT
Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority
July 2014
Page 4 of 5
Questioning and
predicting (sub-strand)*
Identifying and constructing questions, proposing hypotheses and
suggesting possible outcomes
In Prep this includes responding to questions about familiar objects and
events.
Relevance; Relevant
Applicable and pertinent
Science knowledge*
Science knowledge refers to facts, concepts, principles, laws, theories and
models that have been established by scientists over time.
From Foundation (Prep) to Year 2, students learn that observations can be
organised to reveal patterns, and that these patterns can be used to make
predictions about phenomena. For year level specific information, refer to
the Foundation (Prep) Year Level description and content descriptions
www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Curriculum/F-10#levelF
Science understanding*
Science understanding is evident when a person selects and integrates
appropriate science knowledge to explain and predict phenomena, and
applies that knowledge to new situations.
The Foundation Year Australian Curriculum achievement standard outlines
the depth of conceptual understanding for each of the Science
understanding sub-strands:
Biological sciences
 Living things have basic needs, including food and water
Chemical sciences
 Objects are made of materials that have observable properties
Earth and space sciences
 Daily and seasonal changes in our environment, including the weather,
affect everyday life
Physical sciences
 The way objects move depends on a variety of factors, including their
size and shape.
Statement; State
A sentence or assertion
Prep Year standard elaborations — Australian Curriculum: Science
REVISED DRAFT
Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority
July 2014
Page 5 of 5