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Draft curriculum content
This page is based on the draft Year 1 content for Science, which is currently open for feedback. Schools are not required to implement changes until the consultation process is confirmed.
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In Year 1, your child will begin to explore and ask questions about the world around them, how things move, what organisms (living things) need for life, what materials are made of, and what’s happening in the sky and on Earth.
They will begin to act like young scientists: asking why, making simple observations, experimenting in hands-on ways, and communicating what they notice. A lot of this will be done through structured play-based learning and invitations to engage with the natural materials and forces around them.
Physical Science#
Materials#
With your child, you could:
- talk about everyday objects and what they are made of, for example, books are made of paper, toys are made of plastic or wood
- discuss the texture (smooth, rough, bumpy), shape (rounded or pointy), colour and other features of objects
- encourage them to look closely at objects and describe them using their senses, asking open-ended questions such as:
- How does it feel when you touch it? Encourage them to close their eyes and feel the objects.
- What does it look like?
- What does it smell like?
- What kind of sound does it make?
- How easy or hard is it to carry and why?
What the teacher will focus on
The teacher will focus on developing your child’s understanding of their environment. This includes materials, such as wood, rocks, and sand, as well as materials made by humans, including concrete and metal. The teacher will encourage children to experience textures, colours and features of these materials using their senses. Your child will develop their ability to question and learn new words to describe their experiences.
For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:
- identify naturally occurring materials and objects (rocks, sand, wood) and man-made materials and objects (concrete, asphalt, plastic)
- describe materials and objects using their senses, including colour, shape, texture
- describe how materials and objects are expected to behave, including how well they hold their shape and how hard they are to break apart
- group objects by their shared characteristics, such as colour, shape, taste, smell or texture
- explain how materials and objects are similar or different based on their characteristics, using clear and specific language
- ask questions and test their ideas by exploring different materials and objects.
With your child, you could:
- talk about the features (feathers, wings, fur, tails) of organisms you come across in daily life, for example, pets, birds, plants on land and in water
- group organisms based on similarities and/or differences you observe together
- spend time in the garden or at a local garden centre and notice the different kinds of plants there and how they are similar or different to plants at home, for example, moss, grass, flowering plants or fruits.
What the teacher will focus on
The teacher will focus on developing your child’s understanding of their environment, which contains organisms, including humans, each with its own unique features, textures, and parts. They will expand their knowledge of new words to include the names of organisms they encounter in both English and te reo Māori.
For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:
- group organisms by their features, for example, mammals have fur, fish have scales, plants have roots
- describe organisms using knowledge of their features, for example, birds have beaks, feathers and wings
- identify familiar organisms by name in both English and te reo Māori, for example, tuna | eel, skink, tūi, flax, pōhutukawa
- understand that many people have developed knowledge about our living world over hundreds of years.
Body systems#
With your child, you could:
- name and describe the different sections of body parts and how they interconnect, for example, arms are made up of shoulders, elbows, forearms, wrists, palms and fingers
- identify and explain which body parts help us get information from the world around us, for example, eyes help us see, noses help us smell
- encourage them to take care of their body by actions like brushing their teeth to avoid cavities and showering to keep their body clean.
What the teacher will focus on
The teacher will focus on developing your child’s understanding that the human body is made up of many parts that help us move, explore and respond to our environment, and that we need to take care of it in specific ways. Your child will learn the names of body parts by engaging in songs, rhymes and games.
For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:
- name all major body parts and some precise parts, for example, elbows, knees
- name the body parts that are responsible for the 5 major senses, sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell
- understand that we need to look after our body
- engage in songs, rhymes and chants about our bodies and the names of each part.
Ecosystems#
With your child, you could:
- look for organisms interacting with their environment and each other, such as birds using sticks and grass to build nests, tūi eating the nectar from flowers and flowers attracting bees
- observe the daily routines of animals and plants, for example, birds sing in the morning, bees are active during the day, moths come out at night and some flowers close at night
- discuss how animals and plants live in different places
- find plants and animals that live alone or in groups, for example, harakeke is often found naturally in clumps, and ants live together in a colony.
What the teacher will focus on
The teacher will focus on developing your child’s understanding that organisms are everywhere and have specific life rhythms and patterns. They will develop their ability to observe how organisms behave and interact with their environment by noticing, gathering information through pictures, drawings and speech, and using new words to describe their findings.
For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:
- identify where different organisms can be found and describe some conditions of those areas, for example, sunny, shady, underwater
- explain that some animals come out at night and others during the day, for example, kiwi compared to tūi
- examine the way some plants and animals live together as part of a group, while others live alone
- understand that our knowledge about organisms has been developed by many people over hundreds of years.
