Learning Map
ScienceWaves, Light & Soundusually ages 9–11

Wave Behaviour Vocabulary

Use technical vocabulary for wave behaviour — refraction, absorption, reflection, scattering, amplitude, frequency, wavelength, echo, spectrum, angle of incidence, angle of reflection — and apply these when explaining how light and sound travel and interact with different materials

How to tell they’ve got it

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Can your child explain why a straw looks bent in a glass of water using a proper science word — or tell you what's actually happening when you hear an echo?

Where this sits on the map

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Builds on
Nothing on the map comes before this — it’s a starting point.
Wave Behaviour Vocabularythis skill · ages 9–11
Unlocks
How We See Objectsages 9–11Modelling light reflecting from objects into the eye requires reflection vocabulary
Waves & How They Moveages 9–10Developing a wave model using amplitude and wavelength requires this technical vocabulary
Light Travels in Straight Linesages 10–11Explaining shadows and sight using straight-line light travel requires reflection/absorption vocabulary
Reflection & Refractionages 11–12Applying the law of reflection and refraction requires both 'angle of incidence/reflection' and 'refraction' vocabulary
Wave Properties & Typesages 11–12Describing waves in terms of amplitude, wavelength, and frequency requires these exact terms

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Candidate matches to official curriculum codes — machine-suggested, unreviewed (v0.1).

This skill sits outside the F–6 Australian Curriculum — no candidate code matched (v0.1). No NSW K–6 outcome code matched (v0.1). No Victorian Curriculum 2.0 code matched (v0.1).

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