Australia · ACARA Content Descriptions
Year 3 Science
A comprehensive inquiry into how living things grow, how the Earth changes, and how forces and heat influence our daily lives. Students develop scientific habits of mind through hands-on investigation and data collection.
Living Cycles and Survival
Students investigate the life cycles of diverse organisms and understand how specific features help them survive in their environments.
Comparing the birth, growth, and reproduction stages of various animals and plants.
Examining how physical characteristics and behaviors help organisms thrive in specific habitats.
Investigating how external factors like water, light, and temperature affect the development of living things.
The Changing Earth
Exploration of how the Earth's surface changes over time through natural processes and human activity.
Studying how wind and water reshape the landscape over long periods.
Investigating sudden geological events like earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides.
Analyzing how human construction and land use alter the natural environment.
Heat and Energy Transfer
An investigation into how heat is produced, how it moves, and how it affects different materials.
Identifying various ways heat is generated, from friction to electricity and the sun.
Exploring how heat travels through different objects and materials.
Testing materials that slow down the transfer of heat to keep things warm or cool.
Pushing and Pulling
Understanding how forces act on objects to change their motion or shape.
Distinguishing between forces that requires physical touch and those that act from a distance.
Investigating how different surfaces affect the ease of movement.
Exploring what happens when forces of different strengths act on an object.
Material Science and Sustainability
Analyzing the properties of materials and how they can be reused or recycled to protect the environment.
Classifying materials based on their observable physical properties.
Investigating how materials are processed and transformed for new uses.
Using knowledge of material properties to create products that minimize waste.
The Scientific Inquiry Process
Developing fundamental skills in planning, conducting, and communicating scientific investigations.
Learning how to turn curiosity into a structured scientific question.
Understanding the importance of controlled variables in scientific experiments.
Using tables, graphs, and reports to share scientific discoveries with others.