Learning Map for teachers
The primary years as a prerequisite map: every skill shows what it builds on, what it unlocks, plain-English meaning, and what “got it” looks like. Useful for sequencing, for finding the real gap, and for explaining a topic to parents without the jargon.
The short version
- 1,590 skills, preschool to Year 6, connected by typed prerequisite links — hard “must come first” vs soft “helps”.
- Search by topic name or curriculum code (try
AC9M4N04), or browse by year or subject. - Every skill page: plain-language meaning, signs of mastery, a “try this together” prompt, and what comes before and after.
- Free, no account, no ads. Nothing to install, nothing to roster.
Start here
Search a topic or curriculum code →Browse by year →Browse by subject →See how a skill page works →
In the toolkit — for you and the front office
Words to send home →Paste-ready blurb for the school website →Newsletter items by time of year →A4 noticeboard poster →Privacy facts for the IT review →
Sequencing: what has to come first
The map’s core is the prerequisite graph. Open any skill and you’ll see what it builds on and what it unlocks — with hard prerequisites distinguished from helpful-but-optional ones. When a student is stuck, the missing piece is usually one or two steps back along those links, not in the current topic. The whole map is browsable if you want the terrain view.
Start from a curriculum code
If you’re planning from the documents, come in through the codes: Australian Curriculum v9 (all 614 F–6 content descriptions), NSW syllabus outcomes, or the Victorian Curriculum 2.0. Each code page lists the skills matched to it.
Western Australia teachers: WA does not publish public content-description codes the way ACARA, NSW and Victoria do, so there is no WA code list to search here. The honest explanation is on the Western Australia page.
One honest caveat: the skill-to-code alignments are machine-suggested candidates with confidence bands — no teacher has reviewed them yet. Treat them as a fast index into the map, not an official mapping, and trust your own judgment over ours. Full detail on how they’re built.
Explaining a topic to parents
Every skill page is written for the kitchen table: what the skill means in plain English, how to tell a child has it, and one thing to try together at home. When a parent asks “what does this mean on the report, and what can we do?”, the skill page is a link you can send that answers both — without a login and in language that doesn’t need translating from teacher.
Skill pages also print cleanly — File → Print drops the website chrome, so a page works as a one-sheet handout on the interview table.
Putting Learning Map on your school’s website or a Help for Parents page? There’s a paste-ready blurb on the schools page.
Words to send home
Copy-paste starters for a Compass, Seesaw or Dojo message. Fill the two brackets: search the skill, copy the page’s address, done. Edit freely — they’re starters, not scripts.
Working on a skill. In class we’re working on [skill]. If you’d like to help at home, this page explains what it means in plain English and gives one thing to try together: [link]
When it’s tricky. [Name] is finding [skill] tricky at the moment — very common, and usually a sign an earlier step needs another look rather than more of the same. This page shows what [skill] builds on and how to tell when each piece is solid: [link]
When they’re flying. [Name] has [skill] well in hand. If they’re hungry for more, this page shows what it unlocks next: [link]
After an interview. Thanks for coming in today. The skill we talked about is explained here in plain English — what it means, how to tell it’s solid, and one thing to try at home: [link]
Whole class. This fortnight we’re working on [skill]. For families who’d like to follow along at home, here’s what it means and one thing to try: [link]
Welcoming a new family. A free site many of our families use: learningmap.au — what children learn each year, in plain English. It works well with your browser’s translate feature if English isn’t your family’s first language.
What this is — and isn’t
It’s a map, not a platform. There are no class accounts, no rostering, no assessment, and no student tracking — the site keeps no data about anyone. What it gives you is the structure: which skills exist, how they depend on each other, and words for each one that work for families. The underlying data is open and downloadable, skill structure adapted from the open-source Marble taxonomy.
Ages and year levels on the map are typical, not deadlines — the same holds in the classroom as at the kitchen table.