This Science inquiry learning unit was one I developed more than three years ago as a Year 5 teacher in a Catholic primary school.  I have chosen to redevelop this unit of work to fit into the changed context of Year 5 as our learners are part of a 1:1 iPad Learning program and are learning in modern classrooms with flexible seating, Apple TVs and breakout rooms. This iPad program allows for greater accessibility to other tools and resources not previously accessed with shared laptops when I developed the initial inquiry learning unit. I am excited to redesign the unit of work for this reason, as well as I enjoy learning new things about space and beyond.

 

I have chosen to use the alias of Pope Francis Catholic Primary School to provide anonymity to the students and my colleagues. Pope Francis CPS is located in the western suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and caters for a multicultural population of 550 students. A 1:1 iPad Learning program was introduced the school in 2017 to provide learning enhancement experiences for children and prepare them for the changing world in which we live. This 6 week Year 5 Science Australian Curriculum inquiry learning unit was developed in light of the Primary Connections inquiry learning model and encompasses the Science Understanding of Earth and Space Sciences and Science Inquiry and the General Capabilities. There is scope for cross curricular opportunities which would be further developed in context of who the current learners are, learning styles and different needs. Learnings about space and the phenomena of the planets occurs within only two year levels in primary school, so it needs to be fully embraced in Year 5 to give students the opportunity to learn about Earth, space and beyond. The redesigned unit consists of other inquiry learning tools and frameworks, such as Kuhlthau, Maniotes & Caspari's (2012) ISP and Guided Inquiry, as well as Questioning frameworks and GeSTE Windows. These frameworks help to make this an aspirational inquiry learning unit.

 

The intended learning outcomes of this Science unit for the learners include:

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* to develop an understanding of the fragility of our planet, including sustainability and empathy

* to understand patterns in space phenomena

* to develop questioning techniques  

* to make predictions about what is needed to colonise another planet.

 

Enjoy learning about this inquiry project!