At Queenscliff Primary School, students from Prep to Year 6 engage in Integrated Studies units aligned with the Health, Humanities and Technologies Victorian Curriculum. Integrated Studies units aim to enrich our students' understanding of themselves, others and the world around them. Our programs aim to support our school mission to equip students with the necessary skills, knowledge and character traits to be critical and creative thinkers, resilient and empathic individuals and globally-minded citizens who want to make a positive difference to others, the environment and the world around them.
Integrated Studies units are planned by our teachers using Jay McTighe’s ‘Understanding by Design’ curriculum planning framework. This framework ensures the Integrated Studies units are designed, planned, delivered and assessed so that students can learn for understanding, not recall. Teachers identify essential questions, key understandings, knowledge and skills for their units in alignment with the Victorian Curriculum. Our teachers then design a meaningful, rich assessment task using the GRASPS framework and other formative assessment tasks throughout the learning sequence, whereby students have the opportunity to showcase their knowledge, understanding and skills from the unit. ‘Understanding by Design’ curriculum model ensures our Integrated Studies units are planned with the ‘end in mind’. The lessons within the unit are designed to provide our students with opportunities to develop their knowledge, skills and understandings so that they can transfer their learning into their rich, meaningful assessment task. Our Integrated Units are developed using a two-year scope and sequence and are aligned with the Victorian Curriculum.
Integrated Studies units are based on the Health, Humanities, Technologies Victorian Curriculum. Students participate in incursions and excursions to enhance their understanding of the Integrated Studies unit’s knowledge and skills.
Humanities
In the Victorian Curriculum, the Humanities includes Civics and Citizenship, Economics and Business, Geography and History.
The Humanities provide a framework for students to examine the complex processes that have shaped the modern world and to investigate responses to different challenges including people’s interconnections with the environment.
In Civics and Citizenship and Economics and Business, students explore the systems that shape society, with a specific focus on legal and economic systems. Students learn about Australia’s role in global systems, and are encouraged to appreciate democratic principles and to contribute as active, informed and responsible citizens.
In History and Geography, students explore the processes that have shaped and which continue to shape different societies and cultures, to appreciate the common humanity shared across time and distance, and to evaluate the ways in which humans have faced and continue to face different challenges.
Health
The Health curriculum focuses on students enhancing their own and others’ health, safety and wellbeing. In Health, students develop the knowledge, understanding and skills to strengthen their sense of self, and build and manage satisfying relationships. The curriculum helps them to be resilient, and to make decisions and take actions to promote their health, safety and physical activity participation. As students mature, they develop and use critical inquiry skills to research and analyse the knowledge of the field and to understand the influences on their own and others’ health, safety and wellbeing. They also learn to use resources for the benefit of themselves and for the communities with which they identify and to which they belong.
Technologies
The Victorian Technologies Curriculum includes Design and Technology and Digital Technologies.
The Technologies provide a framework for students to learn how to use technologies to create innovative solutions that meet current and future needs. Students are encouraged to make decisions about the development and use of technologies, considering the impacts of technological change and how technologies may contribute to a sustainable future. The curriculum provides practical opportunities for students to be users, designers and producers of new technologies.
In Design and Technologies, students use design thinking and technologies to generate and produce designed solutions. In Digital Technologies, students use computational thinking and information systems to analyse, design and develop digital solutions.