Australian Curriculum V9 Changes Explained for Teachers

What Changed in the Australian Curriculum V9?

Version 9.0 of the Australian Curriculum was endorsed by education ministers on 1 April 2022, marking the most significant revision since the curriculum was first introduced. Developed by ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority), V9 set out to declutter, refine, and strengthen the national curriculum based on years of consultation and the latest educational research.

The headline change is a 21% reduction in content descriptions across all learning areas — meaning less content to cover, but with greater depth and rigour expected. Beyond the reduction, V9 brought structural changes to nearly every subject, a stronger emphasis on evidence-based literacy instruction, revised general capabilities, and clearer achievement standards.

As of 2026, all Australian states and territories are either fully teaching V9 or in the final stages of implementation. Western Australia is the last major state to roll out V9 across most learning areas, with English and HPE mandated from 2025 and remaining subjects following through 2026–2027. If you are still working from V8.4 resources, now is the time to understand what has changed and begin updating your programs.

This guide breaks down the key changes subject by subject, provides the state-by-state implementation timeline, and offers practical advice for transitioning your teaching resources. For a broader overview of the curriculum structure and where to find aligned resources, see our Australian Curriculum Resources page.

Every state and territory has taken a slightly different approach to adopting and adapting V9 for their jurisdiction. The table below summarises the current status as of early 2026.

What This Means for Teachers

If you are in a state that has fully implemented V9 (ACT, SA, Tasmania), you should already be teaching and assessing against V9 content descriptions and achievement standards. If you are in a phased state (QLD, NT, WA), check which learning areas are mandated for your year level in 2026. Teachers in NSW and Victoria should follow their state curriculum authority (NESA and VCAA respectively) for the adapted version of V9.

Regardless of your state, understanding the national V9 changes helps you evaluate resources, collaborate with teachers in other states, and ensure your professional knowledge is current.

The English curriculum saw some of the most significant changes in V9, driven by the growing body of evidence around the science of reading and structured literacy approaches.

Key Changes from V8.4 to V9

Stronger emphasis on systematic phonics V9 places explicit, systematic phonics instruction at the centre of early reading. Content descriptions from Foundation through Year 2 now clearly require students to learn letter-sound correspondences in a planned sequence and apply this knowledge when reading and writing.

Removal of multi-cueing references References to "predictable texts" and the "three-cueing system" (using contextual, semantic, and grammatical cues alongside phonics) have been removed. The term "visual memory" for reading high-frequency words has also been dropped. This represents a clear move away from balanced literacy approaches toward structured literacy.

Introduction of decodable texts Foundation students are now explicitly required to "read decodable and authentic texts." Decodable texts — books that contain only the letter-sound patterns students have been taught — are now part of the curriculum expectations.

Restructured content descriptions Content descriptions dealing with word-level knowledge and reading have moved from the Language strand to the Literacy strand. This restructuring better reflects the progression from decoding to comprehension.

Clearer writing expectations Writing content descriptions have been refined to be more specific about the text types students should produce at each year level. There is greater clarity around the progression from sentence-level writing in Foundation to multi-paragraph texts in upper primary.

What This Means in Practice

• Review your phonics program to ensure it is systematic and synthetic, not incidental
• Replace predictable or levelled texts in early years with decodable readers matched to your phonics scope and sequence
• Update your spelling activities to align with the emphasis on phoneme-grapheme correspondences
• Audit your reading instruction for any remaining reliance on three-cueing strategies
• Check that your writing units reflect the updated text type expectations for each year level

For resources aligned to the V9 English curriculum, including phonics, reading, and writing materials, explore the carousel below.

The mathematics curriculum underwent substantial structural and content changes in V9, with the overall goal of reducing breadth and increasing depth.

Key Changes from V8.4 to V9

Strand restructure V8.4 organised maths content under three strands: Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. V9 splits these into six strands: Number, Algebra, Measurement, Space, Statistics, and Probability. Notably, "Geometry" has been renamed to "Space" to better reflect the content and how students interact with spatial concepts.

Proficiency strands embedded In V8.4, the four proficiency strands (Understanding, Fluency, Reasoning, and Problem-Solving) sat alongside content strands as separate expectations. In V9, proficiencies are embedded directly into content descriptions and achievement standards as action verbs. This means every content description now explicitly requires students to demonstrate understanding, fluency, reasoning, or problem-solving — rather than treating these as add-ons.

Content descriptions reduced The 21% reduction in content descriptions is particularly evident in mathematics. Content has been tightened to focus on essential mathematical knowledge and skills, with some topics moved to different year levels to better match developmental readiness.

Content resequenced Some topics have been moved between year levels. For example, certain algebraic concepts have been introduced earlier, while some content previously in upper primary has been moved to secondary. The aim is to ensure students are introduced to mathematical ideas at the right time and given adequate opportunity to develop mastery before moving on.

Stronger emphasis on mathematical reasoning V9 places greater emphasis on students explaining their mathematical thinking, justifying solutions, and making connections between concepts. This goes beyond procedural fluency to genuine mathematical understanding.

What This Means in Practice

• Update your planning documents to reflect the six strand structure (Number, Algebra, Measurement, Space, Statistics, Probability)
• Review which content descriptions have moved between year levels — you may need to add or remove topics from your current scope and sequence
• Ensure your assessment tasks explicitly address proficiency verbs (understanding, fluency, reasoning, problem-solving) as they appear in the content descriptions
• Look for resources that promote mathematical reasoning and problem-solving, not just procedural practice
• Check our primary maths worksheets for V9-aligned activities

Science

The science curriculum retained its three-strand structure but with meaningful refinements.

"Science Inquiry Skills" renamed to "Science Inquiry" This rename reflects a shift from treating inquiry as a set of discrete skills to a more holistic approach where students engage in authentic scientific inquiry practices — including questioning, planning, conducting, processing, evaluating, and communicating.

Updated content descriptions Content descriptions in the "Science as a Human Endeavour" strand have been rewritten to emphasise the relationship between science and society and the importance of science communication. The content is clearer about what students need to understand about how science works and why it matters.

Greater emphasis on First Nations perspectives V9 incorporates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and perspectives more explicitly across science content, particularly in biological and earth sciences.

HASS (Humanities and Social Sciences)

Significant content reduction HASS saw some of the largest content reductions in V9. The remaining content descriptions are clearer and more focused, with supporting elaborations that more definitively explain how each descriptor might be approached.

Stronger First Nations focus A greater focus has been placed on understanding First Nations Australian histories and cultures, the impact of British settlement on First Nations Australians, and their contributions to modern Australia. This is reflected in history content descriptions across Foundation to Year 6.

Civics and Citizenship updates Civics and citizenship content has been refined, with a focus on Australian democratic values, institutions, and active citizenship. Some global citizenship content has been reduced in favour of a stronger national focus.

Clearer integration of sub-strands In primary HASS (F–6), history, geography, civics and citizenship, and economics and business remain integrated under the HASS umbrella. The content descriptions more clearly identify which sub-strand each descriptor belongs to, making planning and assessment more straightforward.

Note for NSW teachers: NSW continues to use HSIE (Human Society and Its Environment) rather than HASS. Check NESA syllabuses for the NSW-adapted version of V9 content.

General Capabilities: Renamed, Not Reduced

Both V8.4 and V9 have seven general capabilities. The key change is not a reduction in number but a significant renaming and reframing of one capability.

ICT Capability has been replaced by Digital Literacy. This is more than a name change — Digital Literacy has a broader focus that encompasses critical evaluation of digital information, online safety, privacy and security awareness, and responsible digital citizenship, rather than just the ability to use digital tools.

The seven general capabilities continue to be embedded across all learning areas rather than taught as standalone subjects. V9 provides clearer guidance on how capabilities connect to specific content descriptions in each learning area.

Transitioning from V8.4 to V9 does not require throwing out everything and starting from scratch. Most of your existing knowledge and many of your resources remain relevant. The key is knowing where the changes are and updating systematically.

1. Scope and Sequence Documents

Your school's scope and sequence is the first document to update. Check for:

• Content descriptions that have been removed, added, or moved between year levels
• Changes to strand names (particularly "Space" instead of "Geometry" in maths)
• Updated achievement standards for each year level

2. Unit Plans and Programs

Review each unit against the V9 content descriptions for your year level. Pay attention to:

• Content that has been removed — you can free up teaching time
• Content that has moved to a different year level — coordinate with colleagues in other years
• New content or changed emphases — particularly in English (phonics) and maths (proficiency integration)

3. Assessment Tasks

Update assessment rubrics and tasks to align with V9 achievement standards. The achievement standards have been rewritten to better align with content descriptions, so existing rubrics may need adjustment even where the content has not changed dramatically.

4. Teaching Resources

Audit your resource collection for:

• Resources referencing V8 content codes (e.g., ACELA, ACMNA) — V9 uses a new coding system (e.g., AC9E, AC9M)
• English resources that rely on three-cueing strategies or levelled text approaches
• Maths resources organised under the old three-strand structure
• Any resources with outdated general capability references (ICT Capability instead of Digital Literacy)

5. Reporting and Communication

If your school uses curriculum-referenced reporting, ensure your report templates reference V9 achievement standards. Update any parent communication that references the curriculum structure.

Practical Tips for a Smooth Transition

• Start with the learning areas mandated first in your state — for WA teachers, English and HPE were mandated from 2025, with Maths, Science, HASS, and Technologies following in 2026
• Use ACARA's comparison documents — the V9 Australian Curriculum website provides side-by-side comparisons of V8.4 and V9 content descriptions
• Leverage QCAA resources — even if you are not in Queensland, the QCAA comparison documents are among the most detailed V8.4-to-V9 comparison resources available
• Collaborate with your team — divide the audit work across year level teams and share findings
• Update progressively — you do not need to rewrite everything at once; prioritise the units you are teaching next term
• Browse TeachBuySell for V9-aligned resources created by Australian teachers who have already made the transition