Science - Belconnen High School

The Science course at Belconnen High School is designed to provide a highly engaging learning experience where students will develop the skills to conduct experiments safely and learn through investigation. Teachers of Science provide a rich and diverse learning programme for our students where developing the skills of inquiry are a focus. Students across all year levels will continue to develop their skills in conducting scientific investigations and writing scientifically. They will develop their skills in Numeracy and Literacy in order to write a scientific investigation report which analyses and explains their findings.

The units cover the branches of Science; namely Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Earth Science.

The content of each year of study is varied, and follows the Australian Curriculum. In each year group there is an enrichment class and general classes. The Pinnacle Enrichment Program (PEP) course is available to students in all year levels who are able to work at a faster pace than those in the standard courses and is aimed at students with above average ability. All classes of the same year level study the same curriculum. There are also some opportunities for excursions within our local community to extend the learning beyond our classroom. Some excursions that students have attended have included The Pinnacle, Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex, CSIRO Discovery Centre and the Future Skills Academy at Lake Ginninderra College.

Education Perfect is used in the teaching and learning of Science in classes and students are required to complete assessable tasks. This Online tutorial program assists students and parents with the learning of Science.

In Science, each of the year groups will study the following topics:

Year Groups	Topics
Year 7	Introduction to Scientific Skills Sustainability and formation of resources Forces and gravity Resources and Phenomena of Earth Classification and Ecology
Year 8	Reproduction, Growth and Living Things Elements and Compounds The Earth, Rocks and Fossils Energy and Change
Year 9	Human Body Systems Radioactivity and Chemical Reactions Ecosystems Plate Tectonics Energy Transfer and flows of matter
Year 10	Heredity and Evolution Use the Periodic Table to make predictions about the properties of elements Energy, Force and Motion and the transfer and conservation of energy Analyse interactions and cycles between Earth’s Spheres The origin of the Universe

Enrichment in Science is offered through a wide range of activities that are open to all students.

These include:

National Chemistry Quiz
Science Fair (Years 7-8)
WINGS (Girls in STEM event)

When students reach years 9 and 10 they are able to choose electives. At Belconnen High we currently run STEM, Forensic Science, Marine Science and Oceanography. Each of these electives combines the skills of Science Inquiry Skills and applies these to real world concepts that are not explored within the Science Curriculum.

For further information on the curriculum, please look at the Australian Curriculum website: Science