STEM

STEM (MR LESLIE)

This term in STEM we will be delving into the fascinating world of Chemical Science.
Junior students will be introduced to the concept that everyday objects are made of materials that have
observable properties. They will have the opportunity to practise sorting and grouping materials on the
basis of properties such as colour, texture and flexibility. Students will be comparing the traditional
materials used for clothing from around the world and will be thinking about how the materials used in
buildings and shelters are suited to local environments. Junior students will participate in guided
investigations, including making observations using the senses, to explore and answer questions.

Middle students will be furthering their understanding of the ways in which a change of state between solid
and liquid can be caused by adding or removing heat. They will be investigating how liquids and solids
respond to changes in temperature, and how these changes affect their properties. Students will also be
exploring how changes in the properties of materials are important to recycling. They will be working in
groups, with teacher guidance, to plan ways to investigate questions and evaluate which ways might be
most successful.

Senior students will be examining how substances can undergo changes that are reversible, such as
through the processes of evaporation and freezing, or irreversible, such as through the processes of
burning and rusting. They will be discussing how diagrams can represent these scientific phenomena and
constructing physical models to demonstrate their understanding. Senior students will be using a variety of
communication modes, for example, explanations, debates and procedural accounts, to communicate
scientific and technological ideas.