Worked example
Data: ball rolls, block slides, tube rolls. Sorted pattern: round objects rolled more easily; flat-faced objects were more likely to slide.
Learning goals
Data and information become clearer when they are sorted, ordered and represented in tables, displays or physical models.
Learning routine: Collect → Sort → Order → Represent → Describe pattern
Success looks like
- Sort data
- Order information
- Use tables
- Use physical models
- Describe patterns
Concept model and worked application
A table can reveal a pattern
objectrollsslidesspins
Sorting observations helps students see which objects behave in similar ways.
Choose a representation that shows the pattern
tableline of cardsgrouped objectspicture model
Use the display to say what pattern you noticed.
Explain your thinking: Say what each part of the model represents, then explain why the answer or conclusion follows.
Organise observations so a pattern is visible
Sort or order information and represent a simple pattern.
Worked example
A car travels 4 blocks on a rug and 9 blocks on a board, using the same blocks to measure. Organise the results.
| Surface | Distance in equal blocks |
|---|---|
| Rug | 4 |
| Board | 9 |
- Make a table with headings ‘surface’ and ‘distance in blocks’.
- Put 4 beside rug and 9 beside board. Match every result to the correct surface.
- Draw one symbol for each block travelled, or compare the table entries. In these trials, the car travelled farther on the board.
Watch for this mistake: Do not change a result to make a tidier pattern. Labels must show which observation each number describes.
Try it, then explain
Order plant heights of 3, 7 and 5 equal blocks from shortest to tallest.
Hint
Compare the counts using the same unit.
Answer and explanation
3 blocks, 5 blocks, 7 blocks.
Why does a results table need headings?
Hint
Imagine reading the numbers without labels.
Answer and explanation
Headings explain what each number or category represents.
Australian Curriculum elaborations
These curriculum examples extend the central model into varied contexts. They are learning contexts, not extra definitions to memorise.
E1
using pictographs featuring drawings or digital photographs and tables of measurements to document patterns of growth of plants
Try and explain: A table records a plant as three blocks tall on Monday and five on Friday. What change does it show?
Answer and teaching point
An increase of two blocks, provided the same-sized blocks and measurement method were used.
E2
using digital photography to show how pushes and pulls affect the shape of an object and sorting images into before and after columns of a table
Try and explain: Two photographs show a round lump of playdough and the same lump flattened after pressing. Place them in before and after columns.
Answer and teaching point
Round lump: before. Flattened lump: after. The order communicates the shape change caused by pressing.
E3
using drawings or digital photographs to document changes in weather over a series of days or weeks
Try and explain: A five-day record is sunny, rainy, rainy, sunny, cloudy. Which two conditions occur equally often?
Answer and teaching point
Sunny and rainy each occur twice. Cloudy occurs once; count the recorded days in each category.
E4
ordering images of seasonal changes across the year
Try and explain: Dated pictures show buds, flowers, then fruit on one tree. Put them in the observed order. Must every plant follow exactly these dates?
Answer and teaching point
Buds, flowers, fruit for this record. Other plants or conditions can produce different timing, so do not generalise the dates to every plant.
E5
using graphic organisers to sort data into groups, such as plants and animals, or objects around the home that need a push or pull force to work
Try and explain: Sort opening a drawer by its handle and pressing a doorbell into pull and push groups.
Answer and teaching point
Opening the drawer towards you by its handle is a pull. Pressing the doorbell is a push. State the action because some objects can be moved in more than one way.
Common misconceptions and traps
- Sorting without a rule — State the sorting rule before placing items.
- Display but no pattern statement — After representing, say what the display shows.
- Mixing categories — Use one sorting feature at a time.
Guided learning activities
Sort the evidence
Sort object cards by how they moved: roll, slide, spin or bounce.
Model: roll | slide | spin
Order by measurement
Order informal measurements from shortest to longest.
Model: 3 blocks, 5 blocks, 8 blocks
Represent pattern
Use a provided table to show which season activities belong to.
Model: season / activity
Revision Notes
Key idea: Data and information become clearer when they are sorted, ordered and represented in tables, displays or physical models.
Remember
- Sort data
- Order information
- Use tables
- Use physical models
- Describe patterns
Quick questions
- What does it mean to sort data?
- Name one way to represent information.
- Why should a sorting rule be clear?
- What pattern could a table show?
Return to the concept model if an answer is uncertain. Use the model to explain, not just to guess.
Official curriculum reference
AC9S1I04: sort and order data and information and represent patterns, including with provided tables and visual or physical models
Practice, test and teacher resources
Use the Practice Sheet for written or hands-on work, Practice for supported feedback, and Test when the student is ready to demonstrate independent mastery.
🎥 Optional Video Lesson
The SkillrHub lesson remains the primary learning resource. This optional video reinforces the explanation; you can complete the lesson and practice without watching.
Before you watch:
- Pause after each worked example.
- Try the examples yourself.
- Return to the SkillrHub lesson before continuing.
Recommended: Data
Scratch Garden — Organise recorded observations into categories and a simple display.
As you watch: How does sorting the information make a pattern easier to see?
Load video player Loads YouTube in this lesson. See the video notice below.
Try it: Sort six leaf drawings by a feature you can see, such as smooth or jagged edges. Show the groups in a two-column picture table.
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Curriculum equivalents: Victoria, NSW and international
Curriculum equivalents for Sorting data and representing patterns
Mapped skill: sort and order data and information and represent patterns, including with provided tables and visual or physical models
These references identify matching or closely related learning. Curriculum sequence, terminology and depth vary, so teachers should use the mapped skill and lesson difficulty to confirm suitability.
| Region | Curriculum framework | Closest level or code |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Australian Curriculum v9.0 | AC9S1I04 · Year 1 |
| Victoria | Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0 — Science | VC2S2I04 · Foundation–Level 2 |
| New South Wales | NSW Science and Technology K–6 Syllabus (2024) | ST1-DAT-01 + ST1-PQU-01 · Stage 1 |
| United States (USA) | Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) | Grade 1 |
| Canada (Ontario) | Ontario Curriculum — Science | Grade 1 |
| United Kingdom (England) | National Curriculum in England — Science | Year 2, Key Stage 1 |
| India | NCERT / CBSE — Science | Class 1 |
Australian Curriculum v9.0 is the canonical source for this SkillrHub lesson. Victoria and NSW entries name the closest published state codes or outcomes; international entries are planning references rather than claims of identical curricula.
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Topic reference: AC9S1I04 — Sorting Data and Representing Patterns
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