Science resources

Task: Answer a multiple choice question and explain the reason for choice. Assessment focus: simple circuits and switches.

Students use keywords to label a simple circuit, and then explain how someone would know if the circuit is on or off.

Task: Give examples of described energy transformations, and name energy transformations involved with named objects.

Task: Select the corect term for stored energy, identify the type of stored energy of three examples, and describe energy transformations. Assessment focus: potential energy.

Students investigate magnetic repulsion using two magnets and pieces of iron. They are assessed on their understanding of like poles repelling.

Task: Answer a multiple choice question about the material attracted to magnets, select which magnet of four is strongest, and give a reason for choice. Assessment focus: magnetism.

Students design a low energy house.

Students are provided with a map of NZ showing the average annual rainfall in different areas. Students interpret this information to answer three short answer questions, and then construct a bar graph that shows the rainfall for nine North Island locations.

Task: Use written text about farming's contribution to climate change to complete a flow chart, and answer questions about the two texts. Assessment focus: interpreting, using, and comparing different types of text.

Students interpret two cartoon-style drawings of the enhanced greenhouse effect and write a short description of the artist’s message, as they see this.

Students complete a plant record for a tree by making observations.

For this practical, students use different sized balls to demonstrate and explain solar and lunar eclipses.

Students draw a graph from some information they are given about the heating of meths in a water bath. Students then explain in terms of particles what is happening for the sloping section and the flat section of the graph.

Students draw diagrams to show the particle arrangement in a solid, liquid, and a gas. Students then describe the differences in arrangement and movement of the particles for each of these states.

Using provided data students decide which of three liquids would freeze if placed in a freezer. Students explain what happens to particles when they freeze and how the level changes due to freezing.

Students use circuit diagrams to answer three questions about switches and which lamps will light up.

Students name the force that delivers water to households from a water tower and then explain advantages and disadvantages of a wind-powered pump compared to a petrol-powered pump.

This resource assess students' understanding of circuits when they explain what is wrong in five different circuit diagrams.

Students are provided with six pictures of animals. They identify those that can fly, and explain what these animals have in common.

Task: Use a diagram and fact file to answer questions about sharks' fins. Assessment focus: adaptations of sharks to facilitate movement in water.

This NEMP task assesses knowledge about plants and animals.

Students are asked to explain why the Southern Cross appears not to be in the same place in the night sky that it was a few months previously.

Students first do the science activity Throwing Balloons 2 (PW2548) where they predict, observe, and explain what will happen when a balloon containing another balloon filled with water is thrown. Then the students do this writing task where they describe the balloon and what happened when it was thrown, and explain why they think it moved the way it did. Six annotated exemplars of student scripts (writing) are included under the "Working with Students" tab.

Task: Students play a tag game that simulates the relationships between elements within a waterway and discuss how different scenarios impact on the populations living there. Assessment focus: changes within a habitat affect everything living there.

Students categorise statements according to whether they are evidence or inferences. They make inferences about moa, supporting them with evidence. Assessment focus: thinking in scientific ways.