Science topics and science concepts
The Science Learning Hub has over 11,500 resources on the site. They’ve been curated in topics and concepts.
Distillation and science concepts
Toko School students experience all aspects of the NZC nature of science as they experiment with distillation. The process is also a contextual example the of science concept states of matter.
Topics and concepts explained
Science topics are themes or areas of interest – like bees or volcanoes – that are regularly taught as units of study. Science concepts are the big ideas in science. For example, the topic of volcanoes is underpinned by science concepts that include tectonic plates, waves, energy, and force and movement.
Understanding science concepts is key to understanding how the natural world works. We can think of topics as the context for learning these concepts. For example, if the objective is to teach about forces, we can use volcanoes, rockets, bicycles and the human body as the contexts. The concept – how a push or pull causes an object to change its shape, direction and/or motion – can be experienced via a tectonic sandwich, a balloon car or pinching a clothes peg.
Related topics and concepts
Clicking on the related Topic and/or Concept buttons at the right of article and activity resources displays the underpinning concepts and relevant topics. For example The seed-flower life cycle.
Student understanding of concepts tends to build in sequence and become more fully developed over time. Repeated experiences with concepts, via a number of topics or contexts, enables students to consolidate this knowledge and understanding. By having an awareness of the underlying concepts, educators can scaffold student understanding while engaging learners in topics of interest.
Māramatanga and mātauranga Māori
We curate resources under the māramatanga Māori (Māori insights and understandings) concept and the mātauranga Māori topic.
This article highlights our māramatanga Māori content and the enlightenment or deeper understanding that comes from knowledge.
Finding related topics and concepts
We make related topics and concepts easy to find. We’ve placed topics and concepts buttons on the right-hand side of our articles and activities. (Media items automatically use the same topics and concepts from the content they appear in.) Clicking on one of these buttons will display the concepts that underpin the science featured in the resource, as well as topics that can be used for further investigations. Users can also select a concept or a topic from this view, which will then go directly to the curated collections of resources.
Please note that not all resources feature topics, concepts and māramatanga Māori buttons – just those that fit the criteria.
Building Science Concepts series
The New Zealand Ministry of Education’s Building Science Concepts (BSC) series presents sets of interlinking concepts that build stage by stage towards ‘big ideas’ in science. The Hub has produced partial replications of BSC books along with background information to check and support teacher understanding and activities to build student understanding.
The interactive maps in each article include overarching science concepts for the topic and the sequential steps students are likely to take as their science knowledge progresses. Regardless of the topic, it may be worthwhile for educators to view one or more of the maps to see how student understanding develops over time.
Exploring sound
This interactive explores the sequential and interlinking concepts that underpin knowledge about sound, sound waves and music.
Useful link
On the Meaning of Concepts in Science Education is an editorial by Kostas Kampourakis. It explores issues regarding science concepts along with recommendations to ensure conceptual understanding.
