Year 5 Science explores how living things adapt, how Earth's surface changes, how light behaves and how matter changes. The focus is on linking ideas to real Australian examples.

Key Topics Covered:

Adaptations of living things, erosion and weathering, light and shadows, and states of matter.

Parent Tip:

Talk about everyday examples like shadows at the beach, a kangaroo in the heat or a melting ice cream to make concepts stick.

Explain how living things are adapted to their environment

Describe how erosion and weathering change the land

Explain how light is reflected, refracted and absorbed

Describe changes of state and the properties of mixtures

Plan a fair test and explain results using evidence

Student investigating light and shadows for Year 5 science online with a tutor in Australia

No.	Topic	What We Cover
01	What Is an Adaptation?	Explore how living things have features and behaviours that help them survive in their environment. Students compare adaptations in Australian animals and plants.
02	Structural Adaptations	Study body features such as a koala's claws, a kangaroo's powerful legs and the rolled leaves of spinifex grass, and explain how they help survival.
03	Behavioural Adaptations	Look at behaviours such as migration, hibernation and nocturnal habits, using examples like the short-tailed shearwater and the bilby.
04	Adaptations to Australian Environments	Compare how plants and animals survive in desert, rainforest, wetland and reef habitats around Australia.
05	Australian Native Animals	Investigate how marsupials and monotremes such as the echidna and platypus have adapted to their habitats.
06	Australian Native Plants	Explore how eucalypts, banksias and wattles cope with fire, drought and poor soil, and why bushfire seasons matter.
07	Changing Habitats	Discuss how changes in an environment, such as drought or introduced species, can affect the survival of living things.
08	Fair Tests and Questions	Plan a simple investigation, identify the variable that is changed and measured, and keep the other variables the same.
09	Recording and Presenting Results	Record observations in tables and graphs, spot patterns and explain what the results show.
10	Term 1 Mini Investigation	Design and run a small investigation about adaptation and share the findings with a short explanation.

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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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No.	Topic	What We Cover
11	What Causes Erosion?	Explore how wind, water and ice change the shape of Earth's surface over time, using photos of Australian landscapes such as Uluru and the Twelve Apostles.
12	Weathering and Erosion	Tell weathering from erosion and model both with sand, soil and water in simple experiments.
13	Sudden Events: Floods and Bushfires	Examine how sudden events such as floods, cyclones and bushfires change the land and what communities do afterwards.
14	Slow Processes: Rivers and Coasts	Investigate how rivers and waves shape land over long periods, using the Murray River and Australian beaches as examples.
15	Soil and Land Management	Discuss how farmers and land managers protect soil from erosion on Australian farms and in national parks.
16	Modelling Erosion	Build a model to test how slopes, plant cover and rainfall change the amount of soil that is washed away.
17	Earth Changes Over Time	Place events that change Earth's surface on a timeline and explain which are fast and which are slow.
18	Planning a Fair Test	Plan an investigation into erosion, choose what to measure and decide how to keep the test fair.
19	Analysing Results	Analyse results from an erosion model, identify patterns and suggest explanations.
20	Term 2 Review	Revise adaptations and Earth changes with a short quiz, a model explanation and a feedback conversation.

No.	Topic	What We Cover
21	Light Sources	Explore natural and artificial light sources, such as the Sun, a torch and a firefly, and how we see them.
22	Light Travels in Straight Lines	Use torches and cardboard to show that light travels in straight lines and how shadows form.
23	Transparent, Translucent and Opaque	Test materials such as clear plastic, baking paper and wood to see how light passes through them.
24	Reflection	Investigate how light bounces off mirrors and shiny surfaces and where reflections appear in everyday life.
25	Refraction	See how light bends when it passes through water or glass, and why a straw looks bent in a drink.
26	Absorption and Colour	Explore why objects are dark or light, and how colour is made when white light is split in a prism.
27	Light in Everyday Life	Link light to uses such as mirrors on a car, solar panels and sunglasses, and discuss how Australians use solar energy.
28	Designing a Light Investigation	Plan a fair test about shadows, reflection or transparency and decide what to measure.
29	Recording and Explaining	Record findings with diagrams and tables and write a short explanation using the evidence.
30	Term 3 Review	Revise light with a hands-on challenge, a quiz and feedback to help close gaps before the final term.

No.	Topic	What We Cover
31	Solids, Liquids and Gases	Review the three states of matter and use everyday examples such as ice, water and steam to describe how particles behave in each.
32	Changes of State	Investigate melting, freezing, evaporating and condensing and how heating and cooling cause them.
33	Properties of Materials	Compare properties such as hardness, flexibility and magnetism and link them to how materials are used.
34	Mixtures and Separating	Explore mixtures such as sand and water and separate them by sieving, filtering and evaporation.
35	Dissolving	Test what dissolves in water, such as sugar and salt, and what affects how fast it dissolves, like temperature.
36	Reversible and Irreversible Changes	Sort changes such as melting chocolate and baking a cake into reversible and irreversible, and explain the evidence.
37	Materials in Australian Life	Look at materials used in Australian homes and industry, such as steel, glass and recycled plastics, and why they were chosen.
38	Science in the News	Read a short article about an Australian discovery and discuss how scientists use evidence to share their ideas.
39	Year 5 Investigation Project	Design, run and present a full investigation on a topic from the year, using fair tests, tables and a conclusion.
40	Year 5 Review and Year 6 Readiness	Revise the year's big ideas, sit a short science quiz and preview Year 6 topics such as electrical circuits and ecosystems.

Year 5 Science Tutoring in Australia

By Term 4 of Year 5 Science, Your Child Will...

Year 5 Science Curriculum, Term by Term

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Program

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Program

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Program

Try a Free Lesson to See the Full Program