Year 8 ACE Humanities and Social Sciences follows the same core Australian Curriculum as the regular program, while providing students with greater opportunities to extend their thinking, deepen their inquiry skills and engage with ideas in more sophisticated ways. Students are challenged to investigate issues with greater independence, analyse evidence more critically, compare perspectives more thoughtfully and make richer connections between people, places, systems and events across time. Through added depth, complexity and intellectual challenge, the ACE program is designed to strengthen students’ confidence, curiosity and capability as informed, analytical and highly engaged learners of the world around them.
| Unit 1: Landforms & Landscapes How do human activities shape the delicate balance of natural environments? In this unit, you’ll explore the impacts of human activity on K’gari(Fraser Island), uncovering how this unique and precious landscape is being affected and what can be done to protect it. Impact of Urbanisation How does urbanisation transform a region, and what challenges and opportunities does it create? In this unit, you’ll delve into the Hervey Bay region to uncover how growing cities shape communities, environments, and the future. | Unit 1 Assessment
Topic 1: Investigation into the impacts of human activity on K’gari Topic 2: Investigation of Urbanisation in Hervey Bay Region |
| Unit 2: Business Venture What if you could turn just $20 into a thriving business idea? In this topic, you’ll step into the shoes of an entrepreneur, using creativity, teamwork, and problem-solving to design, launch, and create your very own business venture! | Unit 2 Assessment
$20 Boss Journal
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Unit 3: How citizens shape society in Australia
What happens when a major infrastructure project sparks debate in a community? In this topic, you’ll investigate the political and social implications of a hypothetical four-lane highway in the Fraser Coast region, exploring how decisions are made and their impact on people and the environment.
| Unit 3 Assessment Investigation into political & social implications of a hypothetical construction of a four-lane highway in the Fraser Coast region.
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| Unit 4: Spanish & the Americas How did the arrival of the Spanish change the course of history in the Americas? In this topic, you’ll uncover the fascinating stories of exploration, conquest, and cultural exchange, and explore how these encounters shaped the world we know today. Medieval Europe What was life really like in the castles, villages, and battlefields of Medieval Europe? In this topic, you’ll journey into a world of knights, kings, and peasants to uncover how this fascinating period shaped society, culture, and power in ways that still influence us today.
| Unit 4 Assessment
Topic 1: Short Answer Response Assignment Topic 2: Investigation – Folio of Work
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Civics and Citizenship Year 8 Civics and Citizenship helps students understand democracy in action, exploring how laws are made, how government represents the community, and how citizens can take part in shaping society. Students investigate the role of media in informing and influencing public opinion, consider how values such as fairness, freedom and responsibility underpin civic life, and learn that active citizenship is about more than knowing the rules — it is about using your voice, thinking critically and engaging with the world around you. It is a subject that brings the workings of society to life, showing students that democracy is not distant or abstract, but something they are already part of.
| History Year 8 History invites students into a world of knights, empires, voyages, conflict and change, as they explore the period between the ancient and modern worlds. Students investigate medieval Europe, expanding empires and the Asia-Pacific world, discovering how power, belief, trade and exploration shaped societies and transformed the lives of people across different times and places. It is a subject full of drama, movement and big turning points, helping students uncover how the past connects to the world we know today while building their skills in questioning, analysing evidence and understanding different perspectives.
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