HASS F-6 / Year 4 / Skills / Questioning and researching

Curriculum content descriptions

locate, collect and record information and data from a range of sources, including annotated timelines and maps (AC9HS4S02)

Elaborations
  • identifying the types of sources suited to historical, geographical, civic inquiry contexts (for example, paintings, maps and written records/accounts to investigate the First Fleet or a local environment; newspaper articles and database information to investigate the cultural diversity of the local community or to respond to a civic or geographic issue such as recycling; traditional ballads and stories to investigate historical events or cultural groups in the community) and discussing why particular sources might be suitable for a particular context
  • brainstorming ways that information might be collected for an inquiry, such as surveys, interviews and tallying, and choosing, with teacher guidance, the most effective sources of data; for example, the internet, thematic maps, photographs, satellite imagery, field data collection, interviewing members of local government
  • exploring stories about the groups people belong to; for example, cultural groups such as groups that value First Nations Australian or Asian heritage; interest and community groups such as recreational and volunteering organisations; and gender or religious groups
  • using graphic organisers, timelines, maps, graphs or tables to display data and information (for example, a food web; consequence wheels for an issue; creating a timeline related to the First Fleet; mapping locations of different types of vegetation, the loss of native species, the movement of peoples over time, or social, cultural and religious groups in Australia’s society) and using digital applications as appropriate
General capabilities
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Literacy Literacy
ScOT terms

Chronological order,  Historical sources,  Data representation,  Maps (Geographic location),  Data collection,  Information retrieval

Interactive

BBC Landscapes: map skills - symbols and keys

This interactive resource engages students in mapping activities with the focus on the meaning and interpretation of map symbols and legends. Students are introduced to the symbols via text descriptions and examples. Students demonstrate their learning by responding to multiple-choice questions. This resource is one of ...

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My Place - Episode 19: 1828: Alice, Pig forgery

This 3-minute film clip is from the ABC My Place series and follows the fictional experiences of Alice, a young girl in 1828 in Australia. In this clip, she learns about the convict history of Freddie as she and Freddie work to ‘fix’ a pig race. There is an accompanying set of downloadable worksheets. One history-related ...

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My Place - Episode 15: 1868: Minna, The legend of Bloody Mary

This 3-minute film clip is from the ABC My Place series and tracks the experiences of young girls Minna and Adelaide in 1868 in Australia. In this clip, the children play the nineteenth century game 'Bloody Mary' and scare each other with stories about what she is like. Minna is offered some money for a dare. There is an ...

Downloadable

School water use audit (Year 4)

In this activity, students identify the water use areas in the school and the water use items found in those areas. On the ‘Water walk’, students also identify any leaking water use items. They assess how water savings can be made in each of these areas.

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Making Maps

In this teaching activity, students explore cartography and the role of a cartographer. They will analyse map features and discuss how maps have changed over time. Then they’ll create a papier-mâché map representing a route from one destination to another.

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Dirk Hartog 1616 – 2016: A Resource for Year 3 and 4 History Teaching

This resource uses the story of Dirk Hartog, in the context of the Dutch East India Company and journeys to the Spice Islands, to develop historical inquiry skills as well as sequencing and use of historical terms. A shorter resource has also been included to support Year 3 teachers to explore the significance of Hartog's ...

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Sustainable transport – sustainability action process (Years 3–6)

This sustainable transport learning resource will guide students through an extended school based investigation. Students will develop and implement a chosen sustainability action and then evaluate and reflect on their success and their learning.

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Waste and materials – sustainability action process (Years 3–6)

This resource guides students through an extended school-based or local investigation focussed on waste and materials using the five-step sustainability action process. The resource supports the investigation of a real-world issue or problem. Students develop and implement a chosen sustainability action and then evaluate ...

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Thermal comfort – sustainability action process (Years 3–6)

This thermal comfort learning resource will guide students through an extended school based investigation. Students will develop and implement a chosen sustainability action and then evaluate and reflect on their success and their learning.

Interactive

Kitchen gardens – sustainability action process (Years 3–6)

This resource guides students through an extended school-based or local investigation focussed on kitchen gardens using the five-step sustainability action process. The resource supports the investigation of a real-world issue or problem. Students develop and implement a chosen sustainability action and then evaluate and ...

Interactive

Biodiversity – sustainability action process (Years 3–6)

This biodiversity learning resource guides students through an extended school based investigation. Students develop and implement a chosen sustainability action and then evaluate and reflect on their success and their learning.

Interactive

Rainforest: use compass points

Use compass points and a scale to find places on a map. Understand abbreviations such as N, W, SW and E. Follow instructions to find four locations. As you go, look up the meaning of tricky words.

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Say hello in Dharug

Watch this video to learn how to greet someone in the Dharug language, spoken by the Indigenous people of the Sydney Basin area. How do you say 'hello, how are you?' in Dharug? And what are the words for good and bad? Practise these phrases with Jacinta Tobin and then teach them to a friend or family member.

Image

Sled dogs at the South Pole, 1911

This is a 1911 black-and-white sepia-toned photograph, taken by Roald Amundsen (1872-1928) at the South Pole, of a dog team hitched to a loaded sled on the snow. A figure dressed in Arctic-style cold weather gear stands beside the sled and a Norwegian flag is stuck in the snow. Apart from three other dogs tethered behind ...

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Impact of European settlement on Aboriginal Tasmanians video

Aboriginal Tasmanians had inhabited Tasmania for over 40,000 years before the arrival of European settlers. What do you think life was like for Aboriginal Tasmanians before then? Why might have they embarked on a war, called the 'Black War', once settlers began arriving in Tasmania, despite existing relatively peacefully ...

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Australian Disaster Resilience Knowledge Hub: Australian disasters

This is a curated collection of articles, photographs and internet links related to natural, technological and human-caused events including bushfires, cyclones, tsunamis, earthquakes, shipwrecks, urban fires, chemical and industrial events in Australia. Events included have posed a serious threat to a community or property ...

Downloadable

Commemorating Anzac through engaging learning

This resource supports quality teaching and learning through specific curriculum learning opportunities to engage students, as well as enhancing whole school and community interactions and events commemorating Anzac. Part of the Bringing communities together series in response to the NSW State Anzac Centenary.

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BTN: Life on 'HMS Endeavour'

Imagine sailing with 94 people on board a ship for three years! That's exactly what Captain James Cook did when he sailed on Endeavour and eventually landed on the east coast of Australia. Find out what life was like on this ship for the people on board.

Interactive

Environmental and Zoo Education Centres – primary school resources

A collection of digital resources for primary school teachers and students to support teaching and learning from home, with a particular focus on geography, science and history. The resources were developed by Department of Education teachers from 25 Environmental and Zoo Education Centres in NSW and include Google Sites, ...

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John Forrest's 1874 expedition

This is a 52.5 cm x 69 cm, black-and-white photoengraving, of John and Alexander Forrest, James Sweeney, James Kennedy, Tommy Windich and Tommy Pierre with their horses after crossing the Great Victoria Desert in 1874. On the far right is the Overland Telegraph Line, about 120 kilometres north of Coober Pedy in South Australia. ...