Integrated Studies

Year Level Description

Integrated curriculum and inquiry develop the Year 6 student's skills across a number of subject areas – Geography, Health Education, History and Science – and are closely linked to the Year 6 Learning Journey.

By the end of the year students are expected to:

• pose focus questions to guide research;
• use information management when note-taking;
• consider possible outcomes before selecting options.

Geography

The primary focus for Year 6 is to understand the location of the major countries of the Asia region in relation to Australia and the geographical diversity within the region.

Students explain the characteristics of diverse places in different locations at different scales from local to global. They describe the interconnections between people and places, identify factors that influence these interconnections and describe how they change places and affect people. They describe the location of selected countries in absolute and relative terms and identify and compare spatial distributions and patterns.

Students identify and describe alternative views on how to respond to a geographical challenge and propose a response. They develop geographical questions to frame an inquiry. They locate relevant information from a range of sources to answer inquiry questions. They represent data and the location of places and their characteristics in different graphic forms, including large-scale and small-scale maps that use cartographic conventions of border, source, scale, legend, title and north point. Students interpret data and other information to identify and compare spatial distributions, patterns and trends, infer relationships and draw conclusions. They present findings and ideas using geographical terminology and graphic representations in a range of communication forms.

By the end of the year students are expected to:

• use geographical tools, for example, a globe wall map or digital application such as Google Earth to identify the geographical division of Asia into North-East, South-East, South Asia and West Asia (the Middle East);
• explore the diversity of environments, in the Asia region, or in part of the region, or in a country in either North-East, South-East or South Asia;
• investigate the differences in the population size, density, life expectancy and per capita income between countries across the world;
• describe the location of places in countries of the Asia region in absolute terms using latitude and longitude;
• research the population size and density of a selection of countries around the world;
• research connections between Australia and countries in the Asia region, for example, in terms of trade, migration, tourism;
• present findings and ideas in a range of communication forms, for example, written, oral, graphic, tabular, visual and maps, using geographical terminology and digital technologies as appropriate;
• use mapping skills to read, interpret and construct maps;
• compare and contrast the features of different countries within Asia and the Pacific.

Health Education

This area of study is designed to equip students for the challenging world of the 21st century to ensure that they develop as people who take increasing responsibility for their own physical wellbeing, learning, relationships with others and their role within the local, national and global community. Students participate in the Life Education Program, which aims to empower children to make informed choices for a safe and healthy life.

By the end of the year students are expected to:

• identify the physical, emotional and social changes that occur during puberty;
• explain significant transitions in human development and ways in which people deal with them;
• describe actions that students can take if they feel unsafe;
• interact with a variety of individuals and groups;
• identify and use effective strategies to resolve conflicts;
• work collaboratively and co-operatively in teams;
• identify their preferred learning style and describe factors that promote learning;
• work independently and respond to and act upon constructive criticism;
• negotiate learning goals and have implemented plans to achieve them;
• understand themselves as leaders, identify their own leadership qualities and set goals to develop their leadership;
• describe what is in a cigarette and the effects of smoking;
• describe some of the myths and facts about smoking;
• explain some strategies to reduce the harmful effects of smoking.

History

The Year 6 curriculum moves from colonial Australia to the development of Australia as a nation, particularly after 1900, and explores Australia’s Westminster system of government.

  By the end of the year students are expected to:

• examine the various forms and purposes, techniques and influences of leaders in the community;
• demonstrate knowledge of democratic processes and structures within all three levels of government;
• compare the model of Australian federalism with the original model of the United States of America to identify the US influence on Australia’s system of government;
• understand and explain how rules and laws are made;
• study Australia’s path to Federation through an examination of key people e.g. Henry Parkes, Edmund Barton and events e.g. referendum held in the colonies from 1898 to 1900.

Science

Science​ covers the areas of Science Knowledge and Understanding and Science at Work. Through investigation, students learn about the important features of science experiments and encouraged to form questions that guide their investigations. They identify the type of evidence needed to answer particular scientific questions.

By the end of the year students are expected to:

• describe the relevance of science to their own and others’ lives;
• understand that scientific discoveries are a result of the human need to question and explore;
• explain cause and effect relationships;
• understand that changes to materials can be reversible, such as melting, freezing, evaporating; or irreversible, such as burning and rusting;
• understand that electrical circuits provide a means of transferring and transforming electricity;
• understand that energy from a variety of sources can be used to generate electricity.