How can you tell they’ve got it: Energy stores and transfers?

If they’ve got it, you’ll see things like: Names and describes at least five energy stores with a real-world example of each; Identifies the energy stores at the start and end of a given process (e.g. a falling ball, a burning match); Describes the transfer pathway connecting two energy stores in a given scenario; Traces energy through a system identifying all stores and transfers involved. Or just try it together: If your child watched a ball being thrown upward and then falling back down, could they describe what type of energy the ball has at the top of its arc and at the bottom — and explain what happened to the energy between those two points?

Science Energy Ages 11–12

Energy stores and transfers

Your child can track energy through a system. A ball thrown up holds height energy at the top. As it falls, that turns into movement energy at the bottom.

In curriculum terms

Identify the main energy stores (kinetic, gravitational potential, elastic potential, thermal, chemical, nuclear, electromagnetic) and the pathways by which energy is transferred between stores (mechanically, electrically, by heating, by radiation)

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.

Names and describes at least five energy stores with a real-world example of each
Identifies the energy stores at the start and end of a given process (e.g. a falling ball, a burning match)
Describes the transfer pathway connecting two energy stores in a given scenario
Traces energy through a system identifying all stores and transfers involved

🖨 Print this page to keep the checklist — it prints beautifully.

Try this together

If your child watched a ball being thrown upward and then falling back down, could they describe what type of energy the ball has at the top of its arc and at the bottom — and explain what happened to the energy between those two points?

Where this sits on the map

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

Builds on

Naming types of energyages 7–9Identifying energy stores and transfer pathways is a formalisation of the energy type vocabulary introduced earlier

How energy travels aroundages 9–10KS3 energy stores model extends KS2 US observation that energy is transferred by sound, light, heat and electric currents

Speed and energyages 9–10KS3 kinetic energy store extends KS2 US understanding that faster-moving objects have more energy

Greenhouse Gas Scienceages 11–12KS3 energy stores and radiation transfer provides the physics vocabulary for explaining how greenhouse gases re-emit infrared

Energy stores and transfersthis skill · ages 11–12

Unlocks

Energy can't be created or destroyedages 11–12Conservation of energy is a property of energy stores and transfers — the stores and pathways model must be established first

Conduction, convection, and radiationages 12–13Conduction, convection and radiation are three of the pathways for energy transfer by heating — the stores/transfers framework provides the structure

Renewable vs non-renewable energyages 12–14Energy resources convert between energy stores — understanding the energy stores model gives the conceptual framework for comparing resources

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 · 1 ACARA · 2 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9S6U03low confidenceYear 6 · Science understanding

investigate the transfer and transformation of energy in electrical circuits, including the role of circuit components, insulators and conductors

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2TDE6C01low confidenceDesign and Technologies · Levels 5 and 6 · Technologies Contexts strand

VC2S6U09low confidenceScience · Levels 5 and 6 · 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

Current, voltage, and what they measureages 11–12 Energy can't be created or destroyedages 11–12 Static electricity and sparksages 11–12 Conduction, convection, and radiationages 12–13

All Energy skills →