Australian Curriculum

The Australian Curriculum V9.0 covers Earth and Environmental Science in the ‘Earth and Space Sciences’ content stream for F-10 and ‘Earth and Environmental Science’ in Stage 5 and 6 (Senior Secondary).

• Year 1/2

  AC9S1U02 describe daily and seasonal changes in the environment and explore how these changes affect everyday life.

  AC9S2U01 recognise Earth is a planet in the solar system and identify patterns in the changing position of the sun, moon, planets and stars in the sky.
• Year 3/4

  AC9S3U02 compare the observable properties of soils, rocks and minerals and investigate why they are important Earth resources.

  AC9S4U02 identify sources of water and describe key processes in the water cycle, including movement of water through the sky, landscape and ocean; precipitation; evaporation; and condensation.
• Year 5/6

  AC9S5U02 describe how weathering, erosion, transportation and deposition cause slow or rapid change to Earth’s surface.

  AC9S6U02 describe the movement of Earth and other planets relative to the sun and model how Earth’s tilt, rotation on its axis and revolution around the sun relate to cyclic observable phenomena, including variable day and night length.
• Year 7

  AC9S7U03 model cyclic changes in the relative positions of the Earth, sun and moon and explain how these cycles cause eclipses and influence predictable phenomena on Earth, including seasons and tides.
• Year 8

  AC9S8U03 investigate tectonic activity including the formation of geological features at divergent, convergent and transform plate boundaries and describe the scientific evidence for the theory of plate tectonics.

  AC9S8U04 describe the key processes of the rock cycle, including the timescales over which they occur, and examine how the properties of sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks reflect their formation and influence their use.
• Year 9

  AC9S9U03 represent the carbon cycle and examine how key processes including combustion, photosynthesis and respiration rely on interactions between Earth’s spheres (the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere).
• Year 10

  AC9S10U03 describe how the big bang theory models the origin and evolution of the universe and analyse the supporting evidence for the theory.

  AC9S10U04 use models of energy flow between the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere to explain patterns of global climate change.
• Year 11 (Stage 5)

  Module 1: Earth’s Resources.

  Module 2: Plate Tectonics.

  Module 3: Energy Transformations.

  Module 4: Human Impacts.
• Year 12 (Stage 6)

  Module 5: Earth’s Processes.

  Module 6: Hazards.

  Module 7: Climate Science.

  Module 8: Resource Management.