Australia has a National Curriculum to achieve consistency in curriculum, assessment and reporting from Prep to Year 12. At Yandina SS, we deliver The Australian Curriculum for English, Mathematics, Science, Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS), Technologies, Health and Physical Education, Languages and The Arts. The Australian Curriculum values, respects and explores the contribution of Asian and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to its contemporary literature and its literary heritage through their distinctive ways of representing and communicating knowledge, traditions and experience.
Yandina State School utilises the Australian National Curriculum to create units of work that are relevant to our local context and meet the needs of the students enrolled in the school.
English
English helps students to engage imaginatively and critically with literature, which in turn expands the scope of their experiences. Texts provide the means for communication. They can be written, spoken or multimodal, and in print or digital/online forms. The English curriculum is organised into three inter-related strands:
- Language
- Literature
- Literacy
Within the strands, the processes of speaking and listening, reading, viewing and writing are represented. Language elements such as spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary are developmentally sequenced within the strands.
The Yandina School Community places a high value on its student becoming competent and confident readers.
Students do not simply become readers through class time set aside for reading. Reading skills learning opportunities are carefully planned for and explicitly taught. Regular monitoring of every student is essential to meet individual needs. Every week, teachers listen to every student in their class read and use knowledge of their learning needs to inform teaching practices.
Students are instructed in reading through a balanced reading program (which includes Modelled, Shared, Guided and Independent reading) that allows them to develop Fluency; a broad and deep vocabulary; active comprehension strategies, knowledge of texts and textual features, and knowledge of the world.
Mathematics
Mathematics is arranged in three strands:
- Number and Algebra
- Measurement and Geometry
- Statistics and Probability
Within each strand students are encouraged to reason and work mathematically, recognising the connections between the areas using mathematical Understanding, Fluency, Problem Solving, and Reasoning. We encourage students to be confident, creative users and communicators of mathematics enabling them to investigate, represent and interpret situations in their everyday life.
The Australian Mathematics Curriculum expects students to have
• Understanding (connecting, representing, identifying, describing, interpreting, sorting)
• Fluency (calculating, recognising, choosing, recalling, manipulating)
• Problem solving (applying, designing, planning, checking, imagining)
• Reasoning (explaining, justifying, comparing and contrasting, inferring, deducing, proving)
Science
Science provides opportunities for students to develop an understanding of important science concepts and processes, the practices used to develop scientific knowledge, of science’s contribution to our culture and society, and its applications in our lives. Science has three interrelated strands:
- Science Understanding
- Science as a Human Endeavour
- Science Inquiry Skills
Science Understanding provides a solid foundation of knowledge in the biological, chemical, physical, and earth & space sciences.
Humanities and Social Sciences
In the Australian Curriculum, the Humanities and Social Sciences learning area includes a study of history, geography, civics and citizenship and economics and business.
Through studying Humanities and Social Sciences, students will develop the ability to question, think critically, solve problems, communicate effectively, make decisions and adapt to change. Thinking about and responding to issues requires an understanding of the key historical, geographical, political, economic and societal factors involved, and how these different factors interrelate.
The Humanities and Social Science subjects in the Australian Curriculum provide a broad understanding of the world in which we live, and how people can participate as active and informed citizens with high-level skills needed for the 21st century.
Technology
The Australian Curriculum: Technologies describes two distinct but related subjects:
- Design and Technologies, in which students use design thinking and technologies to generate and produce designed solutions for authentic needs and opportunities
- Digital Technologies, in which students use computational thinking and information systems to define, design and implement digital solutions.
The Australian Curriculum: Technologies aims to develop the knowledge, understanding and skills to ensure that, individually and collaboratively, students:
- investigate, design, plan, manage, create and evaluate solutions
- are creative, innovative and enterprising when using traditional, contemporary and emerging technologies, and understand how technologies have developed over time
- make informed and ethical decisions about the role, impact and use of technologies in the economy, environment and society for a sustainable future
- engage confidently with and responsibly select and manipulate appropriate technologies − materials, data, systems, components, tools and equipment − when designing and creating solutions
- critique, analyse and evaluate problems, needs or opportunities to identify and create solutions.
Health and Physical Education (HPE)
HPE provides a foundation for developing active and healthy members of society. The strands of:
- Promoting the Health of Individuals and Communities
- Physical Activity and personal Development
Physical Education is taught to all P-6 classes by a specialist teacher for 40min per week. The younger grades receiving 2 lessons a week for consolidation. These lessons include activities that cover content such as fitness, fundamental movement skills, active play, minor games, early years perceptual motor program and major games. We offer students opportunities to develop the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes for making informed personal decisions. Specialist teachers deliver year level programs to develop specific movement skills as well as allowing students to participate in a range of physical activities including gymnastics, surf skills/swimming programs ,interschool and recreational sports opportunities . Personal Development and Health is promoted across the school through our School Wide Positive Behaviour Program and aspects are also integrated into the classroom program.
Languages - Japanese
Japanese is taught in Years 4, 5 and 6 by specialist Japanese teacher.
The Arts
Specialist Music teacher delivers class lessons for all Prep to Year 6 classes. Additionally students have the opportunity to be a part of Instrumental Music program. Visual Art, Media, Drama and Dance are incorporated into class activities across all year levels.
For more information about the Australian National Curriculum visit: