Specialist learning areas

Five Islands School has a diverse range of learning environments to support the educational programs and unique needs of our students.

The NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) is responsible for the curriculum, Kindergarten to Year 12, for all NSW schools.

For the primary years, NESA develops syllabuses for all subjects in six key learning areas:

• creative arts
• English
• human society and its environment (HSIE)
• mathematics
• personal development, health and physical education (PDHPE)
• science and technology.

For the high school years, NESA develops syllabuses for all subjects in eight key learning areas:

• creative arts
• English
• human society and its environment (HSIE)
• languages
• mathematics
• personal development, health and physical education (PDHPE)
• science
• technological and applied studies (TAS).

Like all NSW schools, we have developed teaching and learning programs to suit our local context and the needs of our students.

To learn more about curriculum in NSW, visit:

• NSW Department of Education – key learning areas
• NESA’s Parent Guide – Schooling in NSW which provides information about learning stages, key learning areas and syllabuses
• NSW Department of Education policy – Curriculum planning and programming, assessing and reporting to parents K–12.

Stages of learning

There are 6 stages of learning from Kindergarten to Year 12. Primary school covers Early Stage 1, or Kindergarten, to the end of Stage 3. High school covers Stage 4 to 6.

• Stage 1 includes Kindergarten to Year 2 (Kindergarten is referred to as Early Stage 1).
• Stage 2 includes Years 3 and 4.
• Stage 3 includes Years 5 and 6.
• Stage 4 includes Years 7 and 8.
• Stage 5 includes Years 9 and 10.
• Stage 6 includes Years 11 and 12.