Part B: ACARA and Science Curriculum

Science Understanding: Chemical sciences

Foundation Year: Chemical Sciences – Objects are made of materials that have observable properties (ACSSU003)

ACARA Science Aims	Learning Activities for Prep Science Students
Aim 1  (see appendix)	Read a big book called the “3 Little Pigs.” Ask the children a series of questions throughout the reading.  Some questions could include, but are not limited to: What do you think will happen to this house?  Will it be blow over?  Do you think you could blow it over? Which house would you prefer to live in if you were one of the three little pigs? What would happen to the house if it was windy, raining, snowing etc.? What house would be suitable for the climate we live in here in Rockhampton?
Aim 2 (see appendix)	Class brainstorming on the activity and the housing choices of the three little pigs.  As a class, we could investigate all of the advantages and disadvantages of the materials that the houses were made of within the story.
Aim 1, Aim 6  (see appendix)	Research houses around the world: The children could try to find houses throughout the world that match those of the three little pigs.  They could discover how and why the pigs may have made their houses that way.  The children could also look at the traditional housing in other countries and why they build them that way. This would help the children to test their predictions from the brainstorming activity and help them to draw conclusions.
Aim 3, Aim 4 (see appendix)	The children can then make a model house and justify their choice of materials etc. by: Discussing the weather/climate within the region that their house is built Give examples of other houses that are built the same and why those people made similar decisions. They could use but shouldn't be limited to: -      Pebbles to make a rock/brick house -      Toothpicks/paddle pop sticks to make a wooden house -      Drinking straws to make a straw house
Aim 3, Aim 7 (see appendix)	Conduct an investigation and test their houses against natural forces such as wind, rain, flooding and earthquakes and extend to remedies for their models.  They could improvise and use: -      a hose/spray bottle to create floods/rain -      a fan to imitate the wind (different speeds to increase the force of the wind) -      chipped ice for snow
Aim2, Aim 3 (see appendix)	Re-evaluate their model homes and make improvements, if need be, to withstand most/all the natural forces. Present their final model to the class, explaining all of their decisions throughout the activities.

3. Ecology Online Simulator

Tuesday, 1 April 2014

Ecology Simulator Personal Review

By Katy Birse

Even after doing extensive readings and obtaining knowledge before completing the ecology simulator investigation, I found it extremely difficult to follow and complete with ease. I also found that I was becoming quite bored with the online experiment. 

As an experiment/investigation for primary students, particularly lower primary, I think they would have a similar experience to mine. Aside from difficulty I believe that they will find the stimulator boring. Boredom would result in the children taking great enjoyment in just adding and taking away factors to make a major impact on the ecology system rather than grasping the concepts of balance etc. Even having the chance to play around beforehand would not deter all of the students from mucking around after becoming bored.

From an Early Childhood Educator's point of view, I think the children would benefit more from building their own ecology system within the school grounds and being able to care and observe for the environment themselves. Even though it wouldn't be able to give the same range of impacts or the speed as the stimulator, the children would enjoy and appreciate their environment a lot better. It would also give them a more realistic approach.