ICAS - Science - 2024

In a world full of wicked problems like pandemics, climate change and food security, science is more important and more exciting than ever before.

In recognition of the subject’s educational importance, ICAS Science assessments are designed to provide an objective ranking of students’ performance based on the curricula for the relevant year. Science skills such as experimentation, empirical observation, logical reasoning, scientific analysis and critical thinking not only help you do well in STEM subjects — they are critical components of humankind’s most successful system for pursuing knowledge: the scientific method.

Science has applications in countless fields of study and work, whether it’s looking at some of the smallest objects in the world in genetics and nanotechnology, or some of the biggest in geology and astrophysics. From the oldest disciplines such as medicine, to the newest like quantum mechanics, the universal language of chemistry to the murky depths of neuropsychology, opportunities abound for budding scientists. But even if you have no interest in working in a scientific field, the skills you learn in ICAS Science will benefit your brain, your grades, and your ability to understand and navigate the world.

• Class 2 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Observe and identify an aspect of a particular season, compare the levels of liquids in different containers, identify a change that takes place in a living thing over time, observe changes caused by heating or cooling
  • Interpreting:
    • Identify the message conveyed by a simple sign, interpret a simple graph related to resources, identify a stage in the life-cycle diagram of an animal, rank values in a table of temperature data
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Predict the shadow of an object based on the position of the light source, select a material from a list based on data in a table, draw a conclusion based on a simple graph of growth of a child, predict the movement of objects in simple situations
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate the hardness of different types of rock, investigate the results of mixing different solids with water, investigate the growth of seedlings of different types of plan, investigate the formation of shadows
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Identify the moon shape missing from a series of photos, match the properties of a material with its intended purpose, use a simple key to identify some animals, determine the direction of movement of wheels or gears
• Class 3 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Determine similarities and differences between rocks, observe the absorption of liquids by paper towels, measure the length of living things, read a thermometer
  • Interpreting:
    • Interpret tables with data relating to planetary data, interpret tables containing information about household products, identify habitats for certain living things, interpret results of a test for floating and sinking
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Make a prediction about seasonal changes, draw conclusions about the differences between natural and synthetic materials, draw conclusions about the functions of body parts, predict the effect of a magnet on certain objects
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate seasons and the Sun’s movement across the sky, understand the need to test and investigate new designs, examine differences between living and non-living things, investigate the uses of sound
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Determine how weather affects different regions on Earth, examine the processes involved in recycling materials, determine characteristics of living things from available data, select the most efficient machinery to achieve an outcome
• Class 4 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Observe geographical features including mountains and rivers, observe differences between natural and synthetic materials, make particular observations about human senses, observe changes that occur when ingredients are heated
  • Interpreting:
    • Identify equipment needed for humans to go into space, understand graphs relating to recycling materials, use keys to distinguish between animals, interpret simple changes in energy
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Understand how sedimentary rocks form, draw conclusions about physical properties of materials, predict the effect of change on food webs, predict the effect of different forces applied to objects
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate the effect of wind on objects, investigate making and using paper, investigate how plants attract bees, investigate how sounds are made and used
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Deduce aspects of Earth’s motion from diagrams, evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of designs, deduce how humans have affected living and non-living cycles, deduce the direction and speed of cogs from diagrams
• Class 5 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Observe different cloud patterns, identify crystal structures of simple salts, measure living things using printed scales, examine simple electrical circuits
  • Interpreting:
    • Interpret information given on a geological timescale, identify issues related to pollution from graphical data, use dichotomous keys to classify living things, interpret diagrams relating to the flow of electricity
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Predict the position of stars at different times of the night, examine differences between solids, liquids and gases, identify trends in simple food webs, draw a conclusion about energy sources
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate weather patterns, analyse simple experiments performed with household materials, understand the function of controls in biological experiments, investigate the properties of wind; water and air
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Deduce the position of shadows during the day, examine heat expansion in metals, examine differences in teeth in animals, use simple electric circuit diagrams
• Class 6 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Observe the effects of weathering and erosion, observe differences between fresh and processed foods, observe differences between human body parts, examine light globes of different voltages
  • Interpreting:
    • Read weather maps, examine tables relating to foodstuffs, use habitat maps to identify local plants and animals, interpret graphs of sounds of different loudness
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Draw conclusions about natural phenomena, draw conclusions about the chemical composition of coins, use food webs to work out the relationships between living things, predict current flow in an electrical circuit
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate variations in air and water temperatures, distinguish between physical and chemical changes, investigate resources needed for survival of living things, investigate hotspots in a microwave oven
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Deduce the youngest rock layer from fossil dating, deduce rates of expansion when metal bars are heated, determine how habitats are polluted by human activities, examine the ranges of radio frequencies
• Class 7 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Measure the size of celestial bodies using ratio scales, identify building structures using diagrams and drawings, measure animals using relative sizes, measure electrical current and voltage
  • Interpreting:
    • Interpret graphs about sedimentary rock data, interpret tables relating to organic and inorganic substances, use keys to differentiate between living things, examine differences in energy emissions
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Identify landforms from contour maps, examine the chemical processes involved in food production, make inferences from animal dental formulas, draw conclusions from data relating to sound
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate rocket propulsion, identify laboratory equipment to use in experiments, examine relationships between variables in biological experiments, make predictions about reflected and refracted rays of light
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Predict movements of tectonic plates, identify sources of chemical pollution in aquatic and terrestrial environments, determine the trophic position of living things in food chains, calculate speed and acceleration from given formulas
• Class 8 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Observe differences between sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks, observe the particle model of matter, identify different parts of the cell, observe transformation of energy
  • Interpreting:
    • Interpret diagrams relating to the hydrosphere, lithosphere and atmosphere, examine graphs relating to changes of state (solid, liquid and gas), classify living and non-living things based on structure and form, identify energy emission differences
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Compare models of the solar system and Universe, draw conclusions about the properties of metals and non-metals, draw conclusions about the function of human body systems, conclude how objects may be moved indirectly
  • Investigating:
    • Investigate advantages and disadvantages of renewable and non-renewable energy, examine variables associated with the production of common gases, investigate the role of organisms in ecosystems, draw conclusions about the speed of sound in different mediums
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Understand the structure of Earth, determine the molecular structure of compounds and elements using models, understand interactions of marine organisms, deduce the velocity of moving objects
• Class 9 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Measure the size of atmospheric phenomena such as cyclones, determine the purpose of dials on measuring equipment, identify and classify living things based on written descriptions, measure power using special instruments
  • Interpreting:
    • Determine the characteristics of the Sun from graphical and tabulated data, interpret data about the properties of metals, use data to identify pests in Australia, determine the paths of projectiles from a series of photographs or diagrams
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Determine the effects of UV light on living and non-living things, interpret representations of simple molecules, understand and use biological terminology, draw conclusions about forces in specific situations
  • Investigating:
    • Generate hypotheses and predictions in relation to the weather, establish the sequence in writing up scientific experiments, apply methods of random sampling of living things in ecosystems, investigate conversions between potential and kinetic energy
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Analyse data related to luminosity of planets and stars, determine the type of products formed during chemical reactions, examine exponential growth in living systems, deduce relative movement in rotating systems
• Class 10 syllabus for ICAS Assessments - Science:
  • Observing & Measuring:
    • Measure geological structures using relative size of objects, observe differences in solvents, observe organ parts of living things, record temperature using scales other than Celsius
  • Interpreting:
    • Interpret relative differences in spectral emission lines, understand the properties of acids and bases, examine transverse sections of living and non-living things, identify the effects of electric currents on humans
  • Predicting & Concluding:
    • Classify stars based on brightness and magnitude, identify the effects of alcohol on human functioning, extrapolate graphical information about growth rates of living things, predict the movement of a series of gears
  • Investigating:
    • Recognise problems associated with extraterrestrial investigations, understand the use of substances including catalysts in experiments, test the function of specific organs and tissues in living things, assess the safety issues associated with experiments involving electrici
  • Reasoning & Problem Solving:
    • Explain atmospheric phenomena both on Earth and on other planets, establish rules relating to isotopes, classify species using non-traditional methods, compare the different forces acting on a body in the air and in water

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