The Structure of this Learning Area
The Pūtaiao curriculum comprises four strands and three general aspects of science.
The three generic characteristics or aspects of science are: ‘Science Investigations/Ngā Momo Tūhuratanga Pūtaiao’, ‘Science Literacy/Te Reo Matatini o te Pūtaiao’, and ‘Uses of Science/Te Whakamahinga o te Pūtaiao’. See the following page for explanations of these aspects.
Study of these scientific aspects is integrated into the topics in the three strands, ‘The Natural World/Te Ao Tūroa’, ‘The Physical World/Ō Ahupūngao’, and ‘The Material World/Ō Kawekawe’. There is a fourth strand, namely ‘Ngā Tautake Pūtaiao me ngā Kōrero-o-Mua/Philosophy and History of Science’. Explanations of these strands follow. See the diagram below.