Year 3 science is where your child learns to test ideas and explain what they see. Our programme explores plants, strong structures, forces and soil through hands-on investigations and examples from Aotearoa, like pōhutukawa and the Sky Tower.

Key Topics Covered:

Plant parts and life cycles, strong and stable structures, magnets, static electricity, gravity and friction, soil types and layers, soil care and fair test skills.

Parent Tip:

Take a walk in the bush or along a beach and ask your child to look for plants, soil and structures. Curiosity is the foundation of science learning.

Describe how plants grow, what they need and how they change through the seasons

Explain what makes a structure strong and stable

Show how magnets, static electricity, gravity and friction act on objects

Compare types of soil and what lives in them

Plan a fair test, record results and share conclusions

Design, build and improve a simple solution to a problem

Parent and child practising Year 3 science at home in New Zealand

No.	Topic	What We Cover
01	Plant Parts and Their Jobs	Name roots, stems, leaves and flowers and explain what each part does.
02	What Plants Need	Predict and test whether plants need light, water and air to grow.
03	Plant Life Cycles	Follow a plant from seed to adult plant and back to seed.
04	Seeds and Germination Investigation	Plan and run an investigation with bean seeds and record how they sprout and grow.
05	Plants in New Zealand	Explore native trees, ferns and crops across NZ, such as the pōhutukawa, silver fern and kiwifruit.
06	Plants and the Seasons	Compare how evergreen natives such as kauri and deciduous trees such as oaks change through the seasons.
07	How People Use Plants	Look at how plants give us food, shelter, clothing and oxygen.
08	Caring for Plants	Learn how to grow and look after plants in a garden, school grounds or community garden.
09	Plants and Animals Working Together	See how pollinators, seed spreaders and plants depend on each other, such as tūī and kōwhai.
10	Term 1 Review	Revise plant parts, needs and life cycles. A termly mock test and parent report follow.

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Student in a tutoring session with their tutor

Warm-up (5 min)

Quick review of the previous session and a what-do-you-notice question

Core Teaching (25 min)

New idea from the lesson eBook, with demonstrations and examples

Guided Practice (15 min)

Student explores a simple investigation with tutor support

Independent Practice (10 min)

Student completes the in-class quiz independently

Wrap-up (5 min)

Summary, 2 take-home quizzes and a preview of the next session

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Year 3 Maths

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No.	Topic	What We Cover
11	What Is a Structure?	Sort structures into natural and human-made and describe what each is for.
12	Loads and Forces	Explore how weight and other forces act on a structure and what happens when it is too much.
13	Strong Shapes	Test triangles, squares and arches to see which shapes hold the most weight.
14	Materials for Structures	Compare materials such as wood, steel and paper for strength and flexibility.
15	Stability and Balance	Show how a wide base and a low centre of mass make a structure more stable.
16	Paper and Straw Challenge	Design and build a tall, stable structure using only paper and straws.
17	Bridges and Towers	Study famous structures, such as the Sky Tower or the Auckland Harbour Bridge, and how they are built to be strong.
18	Test and Improve a Structure	Test a structure, find its weak points and redesign it.
19	Structures in Our Communities	Spot structures near you, such as bridges, shelters and playground equipment, and how they stay safe in wind and earthquakes.
20	Term 2 Review	Revise structures, shapes and stability. A termly mock test and parent report follow.

No.	Topic	What We Cover
21	Forces Make Things Move	Explore how pushes and pulls start, stop and change the movement of objects.
22	Magnetic Force	Test which materials are magnetic and how a magnet pulls at a distance.
23	Magnets: Poles and Attraction	See how like and unlike poles push and pull, and map a magnet's strongest parts.
24	Static Electricity	Rub a balloon on hair and observe how static electricity attracts light objects.
25	Gravity	Find out how gravity pulls objects toward Earth and test dropping different objects.
26	Friction	Compare how different surfaces slow or speed up a moving object.
27	Contact and Non-Contact Forces	Sort forces by whether they need touching, such as a push versus a magnet.
28	Planning a Fair Test with Forces	Change one thing at a time, such as ramp height, and measure how far a toy car travels.
29	Forces in Everyday Life	Spot forces in sport and play, such as a netball bouncing or a scooter rolling downhill.
30	Term 3 Review	Revise magnets, static electricity, gravity and friction. A termly mock test and parent report follow.

No.	Topic	What We Cover
31	What Is Soil Made Of?	Look at the parts of soil: rock pieces, air, water and bits of dead plants and animals.
32	Types of Soil	Compare sand, silt, clay and loam by texture and how they hold water.
33	Soil Layers	Explore topsoil, subsoil and bedrock and how soil forms over a long time.
34	Soil and Water	Test how fast water drains through different soils and what it means for plants.
35	Living Things in Soil	Meet worms, insects and fungi and how they help soil stay healthy.
36	Soil and Farming	Find out why soil matters for farms and orchards across NZ, such as dairy pasture and kiwifruit.
37	Soil Erosion	Model how wind and water wash soil away, as on hill country after heavy rain, and what protects it.
38	Caring for Soil	Explore composting, mulching and other simple ways people look after soil.
39	Mini Science Project	Choose a question, test it fairly and share the results in a short presentation.
40	Year 3 Review and Year 4 Readiness	Revise the year's science and preview Year 4 topics. A termly mock test and parent report follow.

Year 3 Science Tutoring Across New Zealand

By Term 4 of Year 3 Science, Your Child Will...

Year 3 Science Curriculum, Term by Term

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Programme

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Programme

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Programme

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Programme