Big Ideas are derived from the Learning Area essence statement and capture the essence of a subject, ensuring coherence rather than fragmentation of learning. At the subject level, they inform the Significant Learning – learning that is critical for students to know, understand, and do in relation to a subject by the end of each Curriculum Level. This covers knowledge, skills, competencies, and attitudes and also includes level-appropriate contexts students should encounter in senior secondary education.

Significant Learning is collated into a Learning Matrix. Teachers can use the Learning Matrix as a tool to construct learning programmes that cover all the 'not to be missed' learning in a subject. There is no prescribed order to the Learning Matrix within each level. A programme of learning might begin with a context that is relevant to the local area of the school or an idea that students are particularly interested in. This topic or context has to relate to at least one Big Idea and may also link to other Big Ideas. The Learning Matrix is designed so that educators have the freedom to create courses that are both flexible and coherent.

The phenomena and concepts of the physical world can be investigated and explained through physical inquiry and problem solving

The nature of physics involves trying to find explanations for physical phenomena. Physics investigations can be used to model physical phenomena. They can be iterative and further refined based on observations, testing, and application. These systematic and scientific processes can occur over generations through interactions with the natural world.

Investigating and explaining the physical world can inform decisions that add value to society. An example of this is the ways we may model climate change, COVID-19, weather systems, and house heating.

In exploring this Big Idea, kaiako and ākonga should consider how science ideas related to energy and motion can be considered through different worldviews. Physics phenomena are often conceptualised representatively. To engage with this Big Idea, ākonga may explore how mātauranga Māori represents physical phenomena. They may also explore the use and interpretation of representative 'tools', for instance, graphs, diagrams, and equations.

Ākonga will develop scientific practices, recognising the significance of evidence by keeping records and considering the rigour of the data, recognising outliers, useful ranges, and number of data points.

The force on objects can be described and predicted by using established physical relationships

Forces are part of our everyday experiences. When ākonga learn about established physical relationships, they are able to describe and explain tangible applications that can be investigated in a school or home context.

Understanding these physical relationships can allow people to make powerful predictions - predictions that have wider implications. These wider implications can range from very small scales, for example pollen grains on the surface of water, to very large scales, enabling us to put humans on to the moon.  

Contexts for engaging with this Big Idea could include:

• solving simple mechanics problems, including demonstrating representations of forces on objects
• exploring fundamental ideas about magnetism
• constructing simple electrical circuits
• using simple formulae.

Energy is transformed or transferred when things change or happen, but the total amount of energy always remains the same

The principle of conservation of energy can be used to make predictions about physical systems. By learning about the different forms of energy, ākonga are able to engage with multiple aspects of the physical world. This could be building design, machine construction, and transportations systems.

Energy transfer is involved in everything useful that happens.  It can be with or without the transfer of matter. Energy transfer helps us to understand many things from how the national grid moves energy about Aotearoa, to the processes of climate change.

In engaging with this Big Idea, ākonga can explore the mātauranga Māori concerning heat generation and fuel sources.

Contexts for engaging with this Big Idea could include:

• identifying energy transformations in everyday situations
• examining energy transfer through concepts such as conduction, convection, and radiation
• exploring how energy is supplied, distributed and stored in Aotearoa
• using simple electrical circuits to investigate the implication of power.

Interacting processes within and between the Earth Systems dynamically shape and affect the surface, climate, and life on Earth

This big idea provides a fundamental understanding of our planet, and is an anchor point for understanding the necessity of a healthy and sustainable environment, in which humans and other organisms can coexist.

The Earth system is dynamic and interwoven. Changes in one part of the Earth System can affect the Earth System as a whole, in different ways.  Human induced changes can have ongoing effects on the Earth System, therefore it is important for learners to understand their impact on the Earth System and the processes involved.

Mātauranga Māori expresses the existence and nature of the relationships between Earth systems in the natural world through concepts such as mauri, tapu, noa, and kaitiakitanga. Landscape scale changes could lend to a discussion of how divine entities or taniwha have been interacting on the Earth.

Mātauranga Māori is found in the environment, pūrākau, tikanga and kawa, and supplies rich localised contexts that can be drawn upon to explore interactions within the Earth System. 

Many ‘wicked problems’ - those that are difficult or impossible to solve due to their complexity - relate to changes within the Earth System. To make ethical, informed decisions and choices, learners should understand how parts of the system interact, and the possible implications of changes in the system.

Ākonga engaging with this Big Idea at Level 6 of the curriculum might study a systems interaction such as that between the biosphere, hydrosphere and geosphere, for instance, a landslip caused by the clearing of vegetation (biosphere) followed by heavy rainfall (hydrosphere) causing the land to slip (geosphere).

The Earth, and space systems within the universe interact with each other, and are constantly changing with time

This Big Idea provides a fundamental understanding of our place in the Solar System and beyond, so we can appreciate the uniqueness of our planet, and the presence of complex life. 

The dynamic interactions in our Solar System result in everyday phenomena. The spin of the Earth determines day and night, while the orbit of the Earth around the Sun, and the Earth’s tilt produce seasons. The gravitational interaction of the Sun, Moon and Earth produce the tides. The angle of the Sun relative to the Earth’s surface causes variations in surface temperature with latitude, and contribute to the distribution of heat by the atmosphere and hydrosphere, affecting climate and the global circulation of matter and energy.  

By understanding stellar and planetary life-cycles we can also understand the future of our own planet, and solar system, as well as investigate the conditions that might allow for life on other planets.

Relationships between Earth and Space Systems can be understood through concepts such as whakapapa and the Earth and Moon formation, mana, tikanga and kawa. Maramataka can inform an understanding of the relationship of the Earth, Moon and Sun system, and the effect this has on life on Earth.

Ākonga can explore Māori, Pacific and other indigenous knowledge bases to grow their understanding of astronomical observations, and the implications of these for life on Earth, for instance, the planting and harvesting of crops, navigation, and determining annual cycles.

Deep time and distance are used to develop our understanding of planet Earth and beyond

This Big Idea provides a fundamental understanding of time and distance as it relates to the Earth and space system. By developing a sense of scale, ākonga can understand that changes made today, may not have implications immediately, but in the future.

When exploring the Earth and space systems, an understanding of deep time and space helps ākonga understand the uniqueness of our planet.

Mātauranga Māori expresses ideas related to deep time and distance through concepts such as whakapapa and the connection to Ranginui and Papatūānuku, mauri, tapu, mana, oral history including the tracking of time through astronomical observations.

Events that have occurred in the past, can help us understand what may happen in the future, for example climatic change in the past, can help us predict future climatic change.

Human technology is making it possible to measure deep distances, expanding our knowledge and understanding of our universe, for example discovery of exoplanets.

Ākonga engaging with this Big Idea at Level 6 of the curriculum might study the scales involved in matter cycling, for example short and long term storage in the carbon cycle, distances between the Sun, Earth, and Moon, time involved in geological events, and the size of the tectonic plate boundaries.