Skill companion: Safe Ways to Investigate (Year 1) -- reusable inquiry scaffolds

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Skill companion · Year 1 Science Inquiryseegongsik /au

Safe Ways to Investigate: a skill companion

A small set of reusable sheets that grow one inquiry skill: thinking about what could go wrong, planning the safe steps of a test, and telling a safe action from a risky one. Print the scaffolds once and slot them into the science lessons you are already teaching.

AC9S1I02

suggest and follow safe procedures to investigate questions and test predictions

What a skill companion is

Inquiry skills are not a topic of their own. Working safely grows inside the science units a class teaches all year, such as What Living Things Need, Day, Night and Seasons and Pushes and Pulls. So this pack is not a full term of lessons. It is three reusable scaffolds, a map of where they fit, and a short stand-alone lesson for teaching the skill on its own first.

Start here: five minutes

Read the pairing map on the next page: it shows which scaffold fits which science lesson.
Print the safe-steps planner and the my-safe-test plan, one each per child, whenever a lesson runs a hands-on test.
Cut out the safe-or-risky cards once. They are reused all year, in any topic.
Open the free interactive unit on your board when you want a worked example of the skill.
Run the one-page mini-lesson first if you want to teach the skill before folding it into a topic.

No science background needed

This pack is written for the busy generalist teacher. Each scaffold explains itself in plain words, and the answer sheet gives model responses and look-fors for every Year 1 topic, so you can walk in and use it.

On the board

This pack is the printable half of a free interactive unit. On screen, children use “Pick the safer way to do the test” to choose the safer set-up, then “Sort the safe actions from the risky ones” to tell a safe step from a risky one. Each scaffold in this pack turns one of those moves into something children do on paper.

seegongsik.com/au/y1/inquiry/AC9S1I02

Aligned to the Australian Curriculum V9 (AC9S1I02). This pack is original material from seegongsik, independently produced and not endorsed by ACARA. Curriculum content descriptors are (c) ACARA, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Free to print and use in class.

Where the skill fitsPairing map

Slot the skill into your science lessons

The same skill of planning a safe test fits into every science unit. This map shows a safety focus for a hands-on test in each Year 1 topic, the safe steps to plan, and which scaffold to reach for. You do not run these as extra lessons; you fold them into the science you teach.

When you teach	Safety focus	The safe steps to plan	Scaffold to slot in
What Living Things Need (AC9S1U01)	Handling plants and soil	Wash hands after; never taste anything	Safe-steps planner
Day, Night and Seasons (AC9S1U02)	Sun and shadow safety	Wear a hat; never look straight at the sun	Safe-steps planner
Pushes and Pulls (AC9S1U03)	Rolling and pushing safely	Roll gently; never throw at people	Safe or risky? cards, then the plan
Any science topic	A test the child sets up	The child names the safe steps for their own test	Safe or risky? cards first

The moves, and the picture that backs each one

When you want a worked example on the board, open the interactive unit and use the picture that matches the move children are working on.

Choose the safer way to set up a test: “Pick the safer way to do the test”.
Change just one thing and keep the rest safe and fair: “Follow the steps and change just one thing”.
Tell a safe action from a risky one: “Sort the safe actions from the risky ones”.

How the scaffolds build the skill

The safe-steps planner turns a test into a short list of safe steps, in order. The my-safe-test plan adds the question and the one thing to change while the rest stays safe. The safe-or-risky cards sharpen the hardest part: telling a safe action from a risky one. Used together across the year, they make planning a safe test a habit.

Scaffold 1 · Safe-steps plannerOne per child

Our safe steps

NameClassDate

Before you start a test, think about what could go wrong, then plan the safe steps and put them in order. Ask an adult for help with anything sharp, heavy or hot.

What could go wrong?

How we will stay safe

Our safe steps, in order

Before we start, we
During the test, we only touch
At the end, we tidy up and

Who helps with anything sharp, heavy or hot?

Teacher note: children plan their own safe steps. Any step that uses something sharp, heavy or hot is a step an adult helps with. Model one plan on the board before children write their own.

Scaffold 2 · My safe testOne per child

My safe test

NameClassDate

A fair test changes just one thing and keeps the rest the same. A safe test does that without anyone getting hurt. Plan yours here.

My question

My safe steps

First, I
Next, I
Last, I

The one thing I change

What I keep the same, and safe

Teacher note: help children name just one thing to change. Everything else stays the same so the test is fair, and stays safe so no one is hurt.

Scaffold 3 · Safe or risky? cards (cut out)Reuse all year

Safe or risky?

Cut out the cards. Sort them into two piles: safe ways to run a test, and risky ways. A safe tester keeps the safe pile and fixes the risky ones.

Wash our hands after touching soil or plants.

Taste a berry from the garden to see if it is sweet.

Wear a hat and stay in the shade to watch shadows.

Look straight at the sun to see how bright it is.

Roll the ball gently along the floor.

Throw a hard ball across the room at a friend.

Tell the teacher before we start.

Keep fingers clear of a spring that snaps back.

Stand on a wobbly chair to reach up high.

Write your own safe step:

Teacher note: the two piles are “safe” and “risky”. The answer sheet lists which is which, and why. The blank cards let children add their own safe steps.

Mini-lesson · Teacher planAbout 30 minutes

Plan it safe

Use this stand-alone lesson to teach the skill on its own, before you fold it into a science topic. It runs the scaffolds in this pack in one short block, so children meet the whole skill in one go and then reuse the sheets all year.

We are learning to

think about what could go wrong before we start,
plan the safe steps of a test,
tell a safe action from a risky one.

Success criteria

I can spot a risk in a test and say how to stay safe.
I can plan safe steps and change just one thing.

You need

the safe-or-risky cards (scaffold 3), one set per table, cut out ahead or by fast finishers,
the safe-steps planner and the my-safe-test plan (scaffolds 1 and 2), one each per child,
a simple test to plan together, such as which ramp rolls the ball the furthest,
the free interactive unit on your board, if you have one (optional).

Lesson flow (about 30 minutes)

5 min	What could go wrong? Describe a rushed, messy test: a child on a wobbly chair, a ball thrown across the room, someone tasting a garden berry. Let children call out the risks. Ask: “What could go wrong here, and who might get hurt?”
10 min	Safe or risky? Tables sort the cards into two piles: safe ways to run a test, and risky ways. Bring the class together on one tricky card. Ask: “Could this action hurt someone, and how could we make it safe?”
10 min	Plan it safe Each child fills the my-safe-test plan for a real test, writing safe steps and the one thing they will change. Move around and help children turn any risky step into a safe one.
5 min	Share A few children read out their safe steps. Celebrate a clear safe plan more than a fast one. Ask: “Which of your steps keeps everyone safest, and why?”

Running it shorter? Stop after Safe or risky, and pick up Plan it safe inside your next science lesson, where children plan a real investigation.

On the board

For a worked example, open the unit and use “Follow the steps and change just one thing”. Changing only one thing on purpose, and keeping the rest safe, is what makes a test both fair and safe.

seegongsik.com/au/y1/inquiry/AC9S1I02

Watch for these ideas

Thinking safety is only the teacher’s job. Every tester keeps themselves and their friends safe.
Thinking we can taste or touch anything. We never taste things, and we only touch what is safe to touch.
Thinking a risky action is fine if you are quick. Fast is not worth a burn, a fall or a hurt friend.

Make it easier, make it bigger

Easier: sort just four cards, two safe and two risky.
Bigger: write a brand-new safe step on a blank card and swap it with another table to sort.

Answers and look-fors

The next sheet has the card answers, model safe steps across the Year 1 topics, and a quick three-level guide.

Answers · For the teacherModel responses

Answers and look-fors

Safe or risky? card answers

Action	Safe?	Why
Wash our hands after touching soil or plants.	Safe	Washing hands keeps soil and germs off our food and face.
Taste a berry from the garden to see if it is sweet.	Risky	We never taste plants; some berries are poisonous even if they look nice.
Wear a hat and stay in the shade to watch shadows.	Safe	A hat and shade keep us safe from too much sun.
Look straight at the sun to see how bright it is.	Risky	Looking at the sun can hurt our eyes; we watch the shadow instead.
Roll the ball gently along the floor.	Safe	A gentle roll along the floor cannot hurt anyone.
Throw a hard ball across the room at a friend.	Risky	A hard ball can hurt someone; we never throw things at people.
Tell the teacher before we start.	Safe	Telling an adult first means someone is watching out for us.
Keep fingers clear of a spring that snaps back.	Safe	A spring can pinch, so we keep our fingers out of the way.
Stand on a wobbly chair to reach up high.	Risky	A wobbly chair can tip; we ask an adult to reach high things.

The blank cards children write are marked the same way: does the action keep everyone safe, or could it lead to a burn, a fall, a slip or a hurt friend?

Safe-steps plan: what a good plan looks like

Plans will vary, and that is fine. The point is safe steps in order, with an adult helping for anything sharp, heavy or hot. Here is a safe step that fits each Year 1 topic.

Topic	A safe step that fits
What living things need	Wash hands after touching soil or plants; never taste anything.
Day and seasons	Wear a hat and watch the shadow; never look straight at the sun.
Pushes and pulls	Roll the ball gently along the floor; never throw it at people.

A quick three-level guide

Move	Working towards	At standard	Beyond
Spot a risk	notices a risk when it is pointed out	spots a risk in a test and says how to stay safe	explains why the action is risky and how to fix it
Follow safe steps	follows one safe step with help	plans safe steps in order and follows them	says why each step keeps the test safe
Change one thing safely	wants to change several things at once	changes one thing and keeps the rest the same and safe	explains why one safe change makes the answer clear

A child at standard spots a risk, plans safe steps in order, and changes one thing safely. The skill grows all year, so keep the scaffolds coming back in every science topic.