Science

Welcome Back to the Lab!

Welcome back to a very exciting 2025! We are in a brand new location this year, so if you are looking for Science we will be in Room 1, next to the gym.

Our new Foundation students will be welcomed to our Science program by exploring how they fit into the world. They will look at themselves and all members of their families, including those not of the human variety. Homes for humans and animals, as well as our different features will all be sung, acted, drawn and labelled throughout this term as students get used to the procedures and expectations for this space. 

Year 1s have a lot to look forward to as well. We will be looking at what makes a good home for different types of animals, including going on our Schoolyard Safari lesson to find (not to touch) the different types of life living in our school grounds. Sustainability and conservation are topics that are important in our Science lessons throughout the year levels, however Year 1s start this off with their Portfolio tasks this term. 

The Year 2s look at different types of life, both animal and plant, through use of technology and our Lab Pets and Plants. Students will start using lots of different scientific notations, play games to reinforce our learning and look at our conservation efforts at school, specifically water usage. 

Back by popular demand, students from Year 3 will be working on their Nature Journals with the first lesson in the classroom using our many displays and installations, followed by becoming school explorers and finishing off with a students’ choice lesson. Students enjoy these journals because although they need to complete two scientific entries per lesson, this is their first opportunity to take more responsibility for what they learn and how they present their findings.

With the assistance of Sir David Attenborough, Year 4 students work through a unit of learning based on the series, A Life On Our Planet. Students finish this unit by combining the most impactful parts for them into an Exploration Notebook, consolidating their learning with their own ideas, thoughts and opinions. They will also be looking at ecosystems from the perspective of producers, consumers, decomposers and food webs. 

Year 5s are very focussed on plant life in all its forms, but especially those that live in Australia, Antarctica and extreme environments. We explore how different plants have adapted to thrive and survive, how humans currently use plants, students create their own closed terrariums to observe plants growing requirements and closed water cycles and spend two lessons looking at fungus (both edible and otherwise). We will also be working with classroom teachers on our new STEMpals program, where students can get their science questions answered by real scientists using a penpal system. 

Whereas the Year 5s were plant based, the Year 6s go in depth with animal life. Their focus is animals who live in difficult environments, humans impact on the animal life on our planet and specifically the Australian ecosystems as we have some of the most varied and unique on Earth. Many species of life in Australia are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else on earth, with ecosystems ranging from lush rainforests to arid deserts, and everything in between. 

I am so excited to be exploring our Biological Sciences units with all levels of the school this term, and if any parents would like any further information (or if we have any parents who could provide us with more information) please do not hesitate to get in touch.