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Year 6 Science report comments (Australian Curriculum v9)

Short answer: A strong Year 6 Science comment names what the student can do against the v9 achievement standard, adds one specific detail from their work, and ends with a next step. Use the 10 free comments below as starting points: replace [Name], pick the tier that matches your evidence, and edit each one to fit the student.

In Year 6, the v9 Science achievement standard asks students to explain how changes in physical conditions affect living things, model the sun and planets and relate Earth's movement to things such as day length, explain what circuit components do in transferring and transforming electrical energy, and classify reversible and irreversible changes. In inquiry they plan repeatable investigations, control variables, process data to show trends and identify error. By Semester 2, the standard describes what students should be able to do by the end of the year, so it's the right yardstick for these comments.

10 free Year 6 Science report comments

Taken from our full comment bank. Replace [Name] with the student's name. They use no gendered pronouns. The tier column follows a common mapping (Above ≈ A/B, At ≈ C, Working towards ≈ D/E), but your school's moderation decides the grade.

Strand	Tier	Comment
Semester 2 opener	Above	[Name] has demonstrated outstanding understanding and skills in Science this semester.
Biological sciences	Above	[Name] explains in detail how changes in physical conditions, such as temperature, water or light, affect the growth and survival of living things, using investigation data as evidence.
Earth and space sciences	At	[Name] models the relationship between the sun and the planets of the solar system.
Physical sciences	Working towards	With support, [Name] builds a simple circuit and is beginning to name its parts.
Chemical sciences	At	[Name] describes examples of reversible changes, such as melting or dissolving, and irreversible changes, such as burning or cooking.
Science as a human endeavour	At	[Name] explains why science is often collaborative and describes some individuals' contributions to scientific knowledge.
Science inquiry	Above	[Name] plans safe, repeatable investigations independently, controlling variables carefully and making well-reasoned predictions.
Science inquiry	At	[Name] uses equipment to record data with appropriate precision and constructs representations to describe patterns and trends.
Science inquiry	Working towards	With support, [Name] plans simple investigations and is beginning to identify what to change and measure.
Next step	Above	A next step is for [Name] to explain findings in more depth, linking evidence to scientific ideas.

Free tool: build a Year 6 comment from these samples. Pick strands and tiers, add a first name and pronoun, and copy a paragraph with a live word and character count.

Worked example: putting a comment together

An opener, two strand comments and a next step, for a fictional student at the standard:

Noah has made sound progress in Science this semester. Noah explains how changes in physical conditions affect the growth and survival of living things. Noah plans safe, repeatable investigations, identifying the variables to be changed, measured and controlled. A next step for Noah is to use more precise scientific vocabulary when explaining results.

53 words, 353 characters including spaces. Before using it for a real student, swap one general phrase for a specific detail, such as the investigation they ran or a question they asked.

How to write a Year 6 Science report comment

Start from your evidence, not the comment bank. Decide the student's level for each strand you taught from work samples and assessments, then find wording that matches.
Only comment on what you taught this semester. Most classes cover one or two Science understanding sub-strands per term, plus inquiry. Leave out the rest.
Use a simple structure. Opener, one or two strand comments, then one next step. Keep the tone of the opener consistent with the grade.
Add one specific detail. A named investigation, model or question makes a bank comment sound like it was written about this child.
Write for parents. Keep curriculum codes out of the report and explain any technical term the student used.
Check the length early. Many reporting systems cap characters per subject. Paste one finished comment in before you write the rest.
Read every comment aloud once. It catches repeated sentence openings, the wrong name and comments copied across a whole class.

What to look for in Year 6 work samples

Plant-growth or similar investigations where conditions such as light, water or temperature were changed and the effect explained.
Solar system or day-length models, and whether the student linked Earth's tilt or rotation to what we observe.
Circuits the student built, and whether they explained the role of each component, not just made the bulb light.
Reversible and irreversible change sorts with a reason for each (for example melting compared with burning).
Repeated trials, averaged or graphed results, and how the student explained error in their own or others' work.

Vocabulary that signals the Year 6 standard (use it only if the student actually used it): physical conditions, growth, survival, orbit, rotation, axis, day length, circuit, conductor, insulator, energy transfer, reversible change, irreversible change, repeatable, controlled variable.

What's new in Year 6 inquiry: Year 6 inquiry expects repeatable investigations with controlled variables, and evaluating error in other people's work as well as their own. Comments that mention repeating trials or checking someone else's method show the Year 6 standard specifically.

Year 6 Science in v9 at a glance

Each line paraphrases part of the Year 6 Science achievement standard and content descriptions on the Australian Curriculum website. The full pack has six comments for each of these, and nine for inquiry.

Biological sciences: physical conditions and living things (AC9S6U01): Explain how changes in physical conditions affect the growth and survival of living things.
Earth and space sciences: Earth, the sun and the solar system (AC9S6U02): Model the sun and planets, and explain how Earth's position and movement relate to things we observe, such as day length.
Physical sciences: electrical circuits (AC9S6U03): Identify what circuit components do in transferring and transforming electrical energy.
Chemical sciences: reversible and irreversible changes (AC9S6U04): Classify and compare changes to substances that can and cannot be reversed.
Collaboration and contributions to science (AC9S6H01, AC9S6H02): Explain why science is often collaborative, describe individuals' contributions, and describe how people use scientific knowledge.
Questioning, investigating, analysing and communicating (AC9S6I01-AC9S6I06): Plan safe, repeatable investigations, controlling variables and noting risks and intercultural considerations; record precise data; process data to show trends; identify error in own and others' work; select evidence; communicate effectively.

Common mistakes

Grade and comment don't match, such as "outstanding" next to a C, or "working towards" next to a B.
Commenting on a strand that wasn't taught or assessed this semester.
Describing activities ("we studied forces") instead of what the student can do.
Next steps that are too vague to act on, such as "keep trying hard".
Using Version 8.4 achievement standard wording if your school now reports against v9. Check which version your school uses.

Other year levels: Year 3 · Year 4 · Year 5 · Year 6

FAQ

Are these Year 6 Science comments aligned to Australian Curriculum v9?

They were written against the Australian Curriculum Version 9.0 Year 6 Science achievement standard and content descriptions, and each one was checked by hand against that standard. They are not official ACARA material, and your school's reporting policy and A to E descriptors come first.

Can I use these free comments in my reports?

Yes, for your own reporting. Edit each one so it reflects the student's actual work, and add one specific detail. A comment bank is a starting point, not a judgement of any child.

Were these comments written with AI?

Yes, with AI help. Mint drafted them with AI assistance, then checked and edited them by hand against the v9 achievement standard. Read every comment before you use it.

How long should a Year 6 Science report comment be?

Follow your school's guidance and any character limit in your reporting software. A common pattern is an opener, one or two strand comments and a next step, which comes to about 45 to 90 words. Paste your draft into the system early to check it fits.

Want the whole bank for Years 3 to 6?

The Year 3-6 Science Report Comments pack (A$9, made by us) has 183 original comments: 39 for each of Years 3, 4, 5 and 6, covering every v9 Science strand at Above, At and Working towards, plus 27 general openers, engagement comments and next steps. Gender-neutral, with a focus line and content description codes for each strand. Word, Google Docs-friendly Word, CSV for reporting software, and PDF. One-off price, instant download, 14-day refund with no questions asked.

See the full pack on Whop

Written with AI help and checked by hand against each v9 achievement standard. You don't need it to use the free comments on these pages.

Curriculum source: Australian Curriculum Version 9.0, Year 6 Science. © Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) 2010 to present, unless otherwise indicated. Material from the Australian Curriculum website (accessed 22 October 2026) was modified: focus lines and comments paraphrase the achievement standard. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. ACARA does not endorse any product that uses the Australian Curriculum or make any representations as to the quality of such products.

Disclosure: Mint sells the Science report comments pack mentioned above. Sample comments and guidance on this page were written with AI assistance and checked by hand against the v9 achievement standard; read and edit before use. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ACARA or any education department. Last updated 2026-10-22.