alian Curriculum Year 4 Science Sample assessment | Teacher guidelines

e force of friction
of Queensland (Queensland Studies Authority) and its licensors 2013. All web links correct at time of publication.

Assessment description Category

Students conduct a fair test to establish how friction affects Written
the distance travelled by a toy car.
Technique
Experimental investigation
Context for assessment Alignment
This assessment requires students to explore the force of  Australian Curriculum 5.0,
friction. Year 4 Science Australian Curriculum content and
In Section 1 they investigate how far a toy car will travel achievement standard ACARA — Australian Curriculum,
across different surfaces and explain their observations Assessment and Reporting Authority
using their knowledge of friction. www.australiancurriculum.edu.au
In Section 2 students apply their knowledge of friction to a  Year 4 Science standard elaborations
real-life scenario. www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/ac_sci_yr4_se.pdf
Connections
This assessment can be used with the QSA Australian
Curriculum resource titled
Year 4 plan — Science exemplar
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/ac_science_yr4_plan.
doc
Definitions
Force: a push or pull between objects which may cause
one or both objects to change speed and/or the direction of
their motion (i.e. accelerate) or change their shape
Friction: a force that exists whenever two things move over
or rub against each other
In this assessment Assessment materials
Teacher guidelines Per group:
Student booklet  access to three different surfaces,
Task-specific standards — continua e.g. concrete, carpet, linoleum, tiles
Task-specific standards — matrix  one metre measuring tape or ruler
Sample response  toy car
Assessment resource — Scientific concepts and student’s  ramp
prior understandings
Assessment resource — Scientific inquiry process
Teacher guidelines
Identify curriculum
Content descriptions to be taught
Science Understanding Science as a Science Inquiry Skills
Human Endeavour
Physical sciences Nature and development Questioning and predicting
 Forces can be exerted by of science  With guidance, identify
one object on another  Science involves making questions in familiar contexts
through direct contact or predictions and that can be investigated
from a describing patterns and scientifically and predict what
distance ACSSU076 relationships ACSHE061 might happen based on prior
knowledge ACSIS064
Planning and conducting
 Safely use appropriate
materials, tools or equipment
to make and record
observations, using formal
measurements and digital
technologies as appropriate
ACSIS066
Processing and analysing data
and information
 Use a range of methods
including tables and simple
column graphs to represent
data and to identify patterns
and trends ACSIS068
 Compare results with
predictions, suggesting
possible reasons for findings
ACSIS216
Evaluating
 Reflect on the investigation;
including whether a test was
fair or not ACSIS069
Communicating
 Represent and communicate
ideas and findings in a variety
of ways such as diagrams,
physical representations and
simple reports ACSIS071
General capabilities (GCs) and cross-curriculum priorities (CCPs)
This assessment may provide opportunities to engage with the following GCs and CCPs. Refer
also to the Resources tab on the P-10 Science Curriculum and Assessment page:
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/yr4-science-resources.html

Literacy
Numeracy
ICT capability

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
 Critical and creative thinking
Personal and social capability
Achievement standard
This assessment provides opportunities for students to demonstrate the following highlighted
aspects.
By the end of Year 4, students apply the observable properties of materials to explain how objects
and materials can be used. They use contact and non-contact forces to describe interactions
between objects. They discuss how natural and human processes cause changes to the Earth’s
surface. They describe relationships that assist the survival of living things and sequence key
stages in the life cycle of a plant or animal. They identify when science is used to ask questions
and make predictions. They describe situations where science understanding can influence their
own and others’ actions.
Students follow instructions to identify investigable questions about familiar contexts and predict
likely outcomes from investigations. They discuss ways to conduct investigations and safely use
equipment to make and record observations. They use provided tables and simple column graphs
to organise their data and identify patterns in data. Students suggest explanations for
observations and compare their findings with their predictions. They suggest reasons why their
methods were fair or not. They complete simple reports to communicate their methods and
findings.
Source: ACARA, The Australian Curriculum v5.0, www.australiancurriculum.edu.au

Sequence learning
Suggested learning experiences
This assessment leads on from the learning experiences outlined in the QSA’s Year 4 Science
Year level plan. The knowledge, understanding and skills in the Year level plan will prepare
students to engage in this assessment.
See Year 4 plan — Science exemplar
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/ac_science_yr4_plan.doc
Adjustments for needs of learners
To make adjustments, teachers refer to learning area content aligned to the student’s
chronological age, personalise learning by emphasising alternate levels of content, general
capabilities or cross-curriculum priorities in relation to the chronological age learning area content.
The emphasis placed on each area is informed by the student’s current level of learning and their
strengths, goals and interests. Advice on the process of curriculum adjustment for all students and
in particular for those with disability, gifted and talented or for whom English is an additional
language or dialect are addressed in Australian Curriculum — Student Diversity materials.
For information to support students with diverse learning needs, see:
 Queensland Studies Authority materials for supporting students with diverse learning needs
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/10188.html
 Australian Curriculum Student Diversity
www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/StudentDiversity/Overview
 The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians
www.mceecdya.edu.au/mceecdya/melbourne_declaration,25979.html
 Disability Standards for Education http://deewr.gov.au/disability-standards-education.

Develop assessment
Preparing for the assessment
Learning experiences in preparation for the assessment could include:
Revising key concepts

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
 Revise from Year 2 how pushes and pulls change the speed, direction or shape of an object.
Exploring forces
 Investigate questions about forces, for example:
- What is a force?
- What is a contact force?
- What is a non-contact force?
- What is friction?
- Where are forces acting in my everyday life?
 Explore different contact and non-contact forces and the effects of these forces on the
movement of objects.
 Consider how non-contact forces are similar to contact forces in terms of objects pushes and
pulls.
 Draw labelled and force-arrow diagrams to show the forces that are acting on an object.
- Arrows pointing away indicate that a pull is being applied while an arrow pointing into
the object indicates a push.
- The size of the arrows can also represent the size of the force that is applied.
 Explore friction (forces working against each other) through pushing an object across different
surfaces This would be demonstrated in a force diagram as an arrow pointing in the opposite
direction from the movement.
 Experience how the application of additional forces to objects upset balance and cause
motion. For example, kicking a ball, knocking down dominoes.
 Explore everyday situations where friction is an advantage and where it is a disadvantage.
 Explore the concept of measuring forces and that they have unit of measurement (Newton: N)
just as distance can be measured and has a unit of measurement (metres: m; centimetres:
cm).
Conducting investigations to explore forces
 Identify questions in familiar contexts that can be investigated scientifically and predict what
might happen.
 Guide students to suggest ways to plan and conduct safe and fair investigations about the
characteristics of liquids and solids and their change in state.
 Support students to carry out simple investigations in small groups.
 Support students to record and represent data using tables, column graphs and labelled
scientific diagrams and model the appropriate features of these.
 Practise using and reading a spring balance to measure force.
 Support students to calculate averages when multiple trials are conducted.
 Discuss any data collected as a class in order to identify and explain patterns in the data,
justify findings and compare with predictions.
 Support students to communicate ideas using a simple report format.

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
Implementing
Section 1: Question and prediction
Student role Teacher role
 Participate in a discussion about the  Introduce the assessment and relate to
purpose of the assessment. students’ prior understandings of forces.
 Clarify your understanding of the  Present the investigation question, clarifying
investigation question (if necessary). student understanding of this where
 Write your prediction and explain why you necessary.
think it will happen.  Monitor students as they complete their
predictions. Explain the importance of
providing an explanation (justification) for
their answers.
Section 1: Keeping the investigation fair
Student role Teacher role
 Participate in a discussion about the factors  Lead the discussion about the factors that
that have to be considered to ensure the have to be considered to ensure the
investigation is a fair test. investigation is a fair test, i.e. what will
 Complete the table, i.e. what will change, change, what will be measured and what
what will be measured and what will be kept will be kept the same.
the same.
Section 1: Method
Student role Teacher role
 Clarify your understanding of how the  Ensure all students understand how the
equipment is to be assembled (if equipment is to be assembled.
necessary).  Read the method and explain each step in
 Clarify your understanding of the method the process clearly to students. Clarify
(if necessary). student understanding where necessary.
 Assemble the equipment and conduct the  Using your knowledge of the students’
investigation in a small group, following the personalities and abilities, place students in
teacher instructions. groups of three.
 Discuss behavioural and safety
expectations for the investigation (e.g.
working safely, cooperating and sharing,
listening to each other).
 Provide each group with the necessary
materials and equipment.
 Support and guide students to assemble the
equipment and conduct the investigation.
Section 1: Results
Student role Teacher role
 Measure the friction or distance. Record the  Support and guide students as they collect
data in the table provided in the Student their measurements. Ensure that all
booklet. students are recording their data in the table
 Identify the middle value from the multiple provided.
trials for each surface. Record in the  Read, explain and discuss with students
Student booklet. why the middle value will be the best to use
 Use coloured pencils to create a column when drawing the column graph.
graph on the grid provided in the Student  Provide students with coloured pencils to
booklet. complete their column graphs.

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
 Implementing
Section 1: Discussion and conclusion
Student role Teacher role
 Clarify your understanding of the discussion  Read the discussion questions to students,
questions in the Student booklet clarifying understanding of these where
(if necessary). necessary.
 Answer the discussion questions in the  Monitor students as they complete the
Student booklet and use the evidence from discussion questions. Reiterate the
the results summary table and column importance of using the evidence collected
graph to explain your decisions. and recorded in the results summary table
 Clarify your understanding of the conclusion and column graph to provide an explanation
questions in the Student booklet (justification) for their answers.
(if necessary).  Read the conclusion questions to the
 Complete the conclusion in the Student students.
booklet.  Monitor students as they complete the
conclusion.
Section 2: Applying your science knowledge
Student role Teacher role
 Clarify your understanding of the information  Read the information and questions to the
and question in the ‘Applying your science students, clarifying understanding of these
knowledge’ section of the Student booklet where necessary.
(if necessary).  Monitor students as they complete the
 Select one of the photos and apply your questions. Reiterate the importance of
science knowledge to complete the providing an explanation (justification) for
questions in the Student booklet. their answers.

Make judgments
When making judgments about the evidence in student responses to this assessment, teachers
are advised to use the task-specific standards provided. The development of these task-specific
standards has been informed by the Queensland Year 4 standard elaborations. See
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/ac_sci_yr4_se.doc.

The Queensland standard elaborations for Science

The Queensland Year 4 standard elaborations for Science is a resource to assist teachers to
make consistent and comparable evidence-based A to E (or equivalent) judgments. It should be
used in conjunction with the Australian Curriculum achievement standard and content
descriptions for the relevant year level.
The Queensland Science standard elaborations provide a basis for judging how well students
have demonstrated what they know, understand and can do using the Australian Curriculum
achievement standard.
The Australian Curriculum achievement standards dimensions of Understanding and Skills are
used to organise the Queensland Science standard elaborations. Understanding and Skills in
Science are organised as Understanding dimension and Skills dimension.
The valued features of Science drawn from the achievement standard and the content
descriptions for Understanding dimension and Skills dimension are organised as:
 Science Understanding
 Science as a Human Endeavour
 Questioning and predicting

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
 Planning and conducting
 Processing and analysing data and information
 Evaluating
 Communicating.

Task-specific standards
Task-specific standards give teachers:
 a tool for directly matching the evidence of learning in the student response to the standards
 a focal point for discussing student responses
 a tool to help provide feedback to students.
Task-specific standards are not a checklist; rather they are a guide that:
 highlights the valued features that are being targeted in the assessment and the qualities that
will inform the overall judgment
 specifies particular targeted aspects of the curriculum content and achievement standard
 aligns the valued feature, task-specific descriptor and assessment
 allows teachers to make consistent and comparable on-balance judgments about student work
by matching the qualities of student responses with the descriptors
 clarifies the curriculum expectations for learning at each of the five grades (A–E or the early
years equivalent)
 shows the connections between what students are expected to know and do, and how their
responses will be judged and the qualities that will inform the overall judgment
 supports evidence-based discussions to help students gain a better understanding of how they
can critique their own responses and achievements, and identify the qualities needed to
improve
 encourages and provides the basis for conversations among teachers, students and
parents/carers about the quality of student work and curriculum expectations and related
standards.

Task-specific valued features

Task-specific valued features are the discrete aspects of the valued features of Science targeted
in a particular assessment and incorporated into the task-specific standards for that assessment.
They are selected from the Queensland Science standard elaborations valued features drawn
from the Australian Curriculum achievement standard and content descriptions.

Task-specific valued features for this assessment

The following identifies the valued features for this assessment and makes explicit the
understandings and skills that students will have the opportunity to demonstrate. This ensures that
the alignment between what is taught, what is assessed and what is reported is clear.

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
 Australian Queensland standard Task-specific valued features
Curriculum elaborations valued features
achievement
standard
dimensions
Understandin

Science understanding Application of knowledge about forces and

g dimension

friction to an everyday scenario

Section 2: Applying your science
knowledge

Questioning and predicting Makes a prediction about the effect of friction

Section 1: Prediction

Planning and conducting Collection and recording of data in the results

tables and use of data to draw a column graph
Section 1: Results
Skills dimension

Processing and analysing data Use of data in the results tables and column
and information graph to explain findings
Section 1: Discussion

Evaluating Identification of factors that need to be

considered to make the investigation fair
Section 1: Keeping the investigation fair

Communicating Communication of ideas and findings in a

variety of ways (short responses, tables,
column graph)
Sections 1 and 2

The task-specific standards for this assessment are provided in two models using the same
task-specific valued features:
 a matrix
 a continua.

Matrix and Continua

Task-specific standards can be prepared as a matrix or continua. Both the matrix and continua:
 use the Queensland standard elaborations to develop task-specific descriptors to convey
expected qualities in student work — A to E or equivalent
 highlight the same valued features from the Queensland standard elaborations that are being
targeted in the assessment and the qualities that will inform the overall judgment
 incorporate the same task-specific valued features i.e. make explicit the particular
understanding / skills students have the opportunity to demonstrate for each selected valued
feature
 provide a tool for directly matching the evidence of learning in the student response to the
standards to make an on-balance judgment about student achievement
 assist teachers to make consistent and comparable evidence-based A to E or equivalent
judgments.
Continua
The continua model of task-specific standards uses the dimensions of the Australian Curriculum
achievement standard to organise task-specific valued features and standards as a number of

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science
reference points represented progressively along an A–E continuum. The task-specific valued features
at each point are described holistically. The task-specific descriptors of the standard use the relevant
degrees of quality described in the Queensland standard elaborations.
Teachers determine a position along each continuum that best matches the evidence in the students’
responses to make an on-balance judgment about student achievement on the task.
The continua model is a tool for making an overall on-balance judgment about the assessment and for
providing feedback on task specific valued features.
Matrix
The matrix model of task-specific standards uses the structure of the Queensland standard
elaborations to organise the task-specific valued features and standards A to E. The task-specific
descriptors of the standard described in the matrix model use the same degrees of quality described in
the Queensland standard elaborations.
Teachers make a judgment about the task-specific descriptor in the A to E (or equivalent) cell of the
matrix that best matches the evidence in the students’ responses in order to make an on-balance
judgment about how well the pattern of evidence meets the standard.
The matrix is a tool for making both overall on-balance judgments and analytic judgments about the
assessment. Achievement in each valued feature of the Queensland standard elaboration targeted in
the assessment can be recorded and feedback can be provided on the task-specific valued features.

Use feedback
Feedback to Evaluate the information gathered from the assessment to inform teaching and
students learning strategies. Focus feedback on the student’s personal progress and the
next steps in the learning journey.
The task-specific standards for this assessment can be used as a basis for
providing feedback to students.
Offer feedback that:
 maximises the students’ opportunities to succeed in the assessment by
providing feedback on investigations carried out during the term, specifically
about:
– making reasoned predictions
– accurately collecting and recording data in tables and column graphs
– using the data in tables and column graphs as evidence to give reasoned
explanations for investigation findings
 involves students in the process by providing opportunities to ask follow-up
questions
 focuses on each student’s personal progress relative to their previous
achievements
 identifies the characteristics of a high quality response that aligns with the
descriptors in the task-specific standards.

Resources For guidance on providing feedback, see the professional development

packages titled:
 About feedback
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/as_feedback_about.doc
 Seeking and providing feedback
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/downloads/p_10/as_feedback_provide.doc.

Australian Curriculum
The force of friction Teacher guidelines
Year 4 Science