How can you tell they’ve got it: Choosing the Right Material?

If they’ve got it, you’ll see things like: Explain why a specific material is chosen for a purpose based on its properties (e.g. glass for windows because it's transparent); Compare two materials and decide which is more suitable for a given use with reasoning; Suggest an alternative material for an object and explain why it would or wouldn't work. Or just try it together: Can your child explain why windows are made of glass and not wood, or why wellies are made of rubber and not paper?

Science Matter & Materials Ages 6–8

Choosing the Right Material

Your child can explain why a material suits a job. Windows are glass so we can see through them. Wellies are rubber so they keep water out.

In curriculum terms

Identify and compare the suitability of everyday materials for particular uses, explaining why specific materials are chosen for specific purposes

Ages are typical, not deadlines — follow your child’s pace. How to help at home →

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Explain why a specific material is chosen for a purpose based on its properties (e.g. glass for windows because it's transparent)
Compare two materials and decide which is more suitable for a given use with reasoning
Suggest an alternative material for an object and explain why it would or wouldn't work

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Try this together

Can your child explain why windows are made of glass and not wood, or why wellies are made of rubber and not paper?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

Grouping Materialsages 5–6Must group materials by properties before evaluating suitability for purposes

Material Properties Vocabularyages 9–11Comparing suitability of materials for uses requires property vocabulary to articulate why one material is better than another

Choosing the Right Materialthis skill · ages 6–8

Unlocks

Advanced Material Propertiesages 9–11Must understand material suitability before testing advanced properties like conductivity and solubility

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Where this fits in the official school curriculum — our best automated guess, not yet checked by a person.

Show candidate curriculum codes · 3 ACARA · 2 NSW · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9S4U04medium confidenceYear 4 · Science understanding

examine the properties of natural and made materials including fibres, metals, glass and plastics and consider how these properties influence their use

AC9S4I02low confidenceYear 4 · Science inquiry

use provided scaffolds to plan and conduct investigations to answer questions or test predictions, including identifying the elements of fair tests, and considering the safe use of materials and equipment

AC9S3I02low confidenceYear 3 · Science inquiry

NSW syllabus codes & stages only

ST1-DDT-01medium confidenceScience and Technology K-6 · Stage 1

STE-DDT-01low confidenceScience and Technology K-6 · Early Stage 1

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2TDE2C04medium confidenceDesign and Technologies · Foundation to Level 2 · Technologies Contexts strand

VC2S4U05medium confidenceScience · Levels 3 and 4 · Science Understanding strand

VC2S2U05medium confidenceScience · Foundation to Level 2 · Science Understanding strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

Changing Shapes of Solidsages 6–7 Changes & Separation Vocabularyages 7–9 Classifying Materialsages 7–8 Describing Material Propertiesages 5–6

All Matter & Materials skills →