Science / Year 9 / Science Inquiry Skills / Communicating

Curriculum content descriptions

Communicate scientific ideas and information for a particular purpose, including constructing evidence-based arguments and using appropriate scientific language, conventions and representations (ACSIS174)

Elaborations
  • presenting results and ideas using formal experimental reports, oral presentations, slide shows, poster presentations and contributing to group discussions
  • using secondary sources as well as students’ own findings to help explain a scientific concept
  • using the internet to facilitate collaboration in joint projects and discussions
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
ScOT terms

Creating texts,  Evidence,  Data representation,  Reasoning,  Discussions (Texts)

Audio

WA students compete in US BioGENEius challenge

Yasmin Soliman and Kayla Mizzi are the two high school students who are finalists from Western Australia for the BioGENEius challenge in Atlanta Georgia. Both girls share their research and enthusiasm for science. Download the audio or view the transcript of this ABC radio interview.

Interactive

Syllabus Bites: Traditional knowledge and sustainable ecosystems

This resource supports students to assess how the knowledge and cultural practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is being used to conserve and manage sustainable ecosystems and a sustainable future. Numerous short videos and links provide a rich variety of case studies. A task, including marking guidelines ...

Video

Meet the BFFs: Four fundamental forces

We all know something about gravity, but what about the other fundamental forces of physics? Explore the properties of two familiar forces experienced in daily life, and of two less familiar ones. How do they interact, and what keeps everything from falling apart? This video was Kate Dent's entry into the 2013 Sleek Geeks ...

Text

Animal survivor

This resource provides a scaffold for students to analyse the features of a Queensland animal and relate them to its survival success. Students then conduct the animal design challenge: Engineering new features for their animal to increase its chance of survival and future success. Students also make predictions about how ...

Online

English as an Additional Language: Science Language Literacy Pilot Project

This teacher resource describes a pilot project in which selected Victorian science teachers learnt functional and systemic pedagogical strategies to support English as an Additional Language (EAL) students to understand and use science literacy genres. Organised in nine sections: Summary; Target student group; Method; ...

Online

Fertility Research in Beef Cattle

This is a resource about fertility research on cattle raised in northern Australia. It consists of a unit of work and two data sets from the Belmont Research Station in Queensland presented as spreadsheets. The unit of work supports students to understand the important role research and data gathering play in improving ...

Online

Biosecurity

This is a unit of work about the biosecurity of Australia’s agriculture. The unit focuses on how introduced species can affect the balance of ecosystems. The major activities in this unit focus on the concept of interdependence in ecosystems; the importance of biosecurity and control of outbreaks. A simple experiment models ...

Interactive

Biodiversity – sustainability action process (Years 7–10)

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.

Text

Sniffing out disease lesson

In this lesson, students consider contemporary research approaches to disease identification. First, they conduct an experiment to test how sensitive their sense of smell is and explore how our sense of smell functions. Students then learn about at how animals are trained to use their sense of smell to detect human disease. ...

Text

Work sample Year 9 Science: Radioactivity

This work sample demonstrates evidence of student learning in relation to aspects of the achievement standards for Year 9 Science. The primary purpose for the work sample is to demonstrate the standard, so the focus is on what is evident in the sample not how it was created. The sample is an authentic representation of ...

Text

Visualising climate change | The GiST

In this STEM lesson students explore local temperature and rainfall datasets over time and represent trends in innovative ways.

Text

Thermoregulation in spacesuits

Space exploration demands technological advances that enable survival in extremely harsh environments. In this lesson, students will explore contemporary spacesuit design and create their own representation of the suit’s thermoregulation system.

Interactive

Thermal comfort – sustainability action process (Years 7–10)

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.

Text

Going nuclear

In this unit students are guided to complete a short investigation into the considerations of siting a nuclear power station and then submitting a brief report and reflection.

Text

Sound waves

In this unit students explore energy transfer through different mediums using wave and particle models.

Text

Renewable sources of energy

This is a worksheet consisting of a blank data table designed for students to record information resulting from their research into renewable energy resources. It specifies the types of energy resources to be investigated and suggests topics for research focus.

Interactive

Laptop wrap: Persuasive Writing

A resource with a focus on persuasive writing with information, links and activities. Includes a list of print, digital and other resources needed to teach the unit. This resource supports the BOS NSW Syllabus for the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Interactive

Science under the microscope

A student-focused mobile web application that tests students? knowledge of the NSW Science curriculum. It will reuse videos and other components of 2010 Murder under the Microscope (Shockwave on the Shoreline) to provide a series of clues that unfold as the student answers science questions correctly. After receiving all ...

Interactive

Digestion Experiments

This resource consists of 3 sets of illustrated slides with voice over presenting detailed information and explanations of an experiment used to investigate the action of amylase on starch and the optimum pH for the action of protease on egg white protein. Results are provided and interpreted using tables and graphs. More ...

Audio

Chemicals on the Great Barrier Reef

This program deals with a range of human impacts on the Great Barrier Reef. Herbicides from land runoff have been traced to algae and sea grasses in river mouths and coastal zones along the Great Barrier Reef. Effects include retardation of photosynthesis and growth of corals. Other pressures on the reef include high water ...