How to read this page
Nova Scotia publishes its curriculum as long official documents written for teachers. This page is the same content, translated for the fridge door: each subject below shows this year's units and the skills inside them. If a skill sounds unfamiliar, that's the point — now you know what to ask about at dinner.
Mathematics this year
Math builds in layers, and this year's layer matters — each unit below leans on the ones before it. In Nova Scotia, that's Mathematics 12 — 4 units, 30 skills.
Financial Mathematics
- Compound versus simple interest
- Appreciating and depreciating assets
- Analyzing an investment portfolio
Logical Reasoning
- Strategies for puzzles and games
- Sets, subsets, and Venn diagrams
Probability
- Converting between odds and probability
- Independent events
- Counting with graphic organizers
Relations and Functions
- Polynomial functions from graphs
- Exponential and logarithmic functions from graphs
- Angles and sinusoidal functions from graphs
See the full Mathematics 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Mathematics this year
Math builds in layers, and this year's layer matters — each unit below leans on the ones before it. In Nova Scotia, that's Pre-Calculus 12 — 2 units, 26 skills.
Trigonometry
- Exact and approximate values of the six ratios
- Graphing and characteristics of sine, cosine, and tangent
- Solving trigonometric equations
Relations and Functions
- Combining functions by operations
- Translations of functions
- Finding the inverse of a relation
See the full Pre-Calculus 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Mathematics this year
Math builds in layers, and this year's layer matters — each unit below leans on the ones before it. In Nova Scotia, that's Calculus 12 — 4 units, 42 skills.
Calculus 12 — Rates of Change and the Derivative
- Average vs. instantaneous rate of change
- The derivative as a limit
- Implicit differentiation
Calculus 12 — Differentiation Rules and Applications
- Calculating limits and their properties
- Power, sum, and difference rules
- Calculating and interpreting rate of change
Calculus 12 — Curve Analysis, Tangents and Antiderivatives
- Intervals of continuity
- Developing the tangent from the secant
- The connection between the graphs of f and f'
Calculus 12 — Integration and Area
- Riemann sums for area under a curve
- Expressing area as a definite integral
- Areas of regions in a plane
See the full Calculus 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Mathematics this year
Math builds in layers, and this year's layer matters — each unit below leans on the ones before it. In Nova Scotia, that's Mathematics at Work 12 — 5 units, 22 skills.
Geometry
- The sine law
- Properties of triangles and quadrilaterals
- Single transformations
Number
- Strategies for logical puzzles and games
- Options for acquiring a vehicle
See the full Mathematics at Work 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
English Language Arts this year
Reading, writing, and speaking skills deepen this year — less "can they read it," more "what do they make of it." In Nova Scotia, that's English 12 — 3 units, 34 skills.
Speaking and Listening
- Asking discriminating questions to evaluate ideas
- Interacting in leadership and support roles in complex situations
- Making critical language choices of tone and style
Reading and Viewing
- Experiencing world literary genres and modes
- Researching systematically to meet learning needs
- Making informed personal responses that explore diverse perspectives
Writing and Other Ways of Representing
- Writing to explore insights into challenging texts
- Understanding how construction creates and controls meaning
- Applying the strategies that work for you as a creator
See the full English 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
English Language Arts this year
Reading, writing, and speaking skills deepen this year — less "can they read it," more "what do they make of it." In Nova Scotia, that's Canadian Literature 12 — 3 units, 13 skills.
Identity, Diversity, and Voice
- Identifying recurring themes, values, and attitudes
See the full Canadian Literature 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Science this year
Science gets more structured this year — real investigations, real explanations, real vocabulary. In Nova Scotia, that's Biology 12 — 4 units, 35 skills.
Maintaining Dynamic Equilibrium II
- Plant and animal systems maintaining homeostasis
- Disease and homeostasis
Reproduction and Development
- Experimenting on plant materials
- Mammalian reproductive systems
Evolution, Change, and Diversity
- Peer review and evolutionary concepts
See the full Biology 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Science this year
Science gets more structured this year — real investigations, real explanations, real vocabulary. In Nova Scotia, that's Chemistry 12 — 4 units, 87 skills.
Thermochemistry
- Thermochemistry vocabulary
- Designing a thermochemistry experiment
- Settings of scientific activity
Solutions, Kinetics, and Equilibrium
- Organizing solubility data
- Factors affecting reaction rate
- Equilibrium in solutions
Acids and Bases
- Acid-base classification and nomenclature
- Strong vs weak acids and bases
- Concentration by stoichiometry
Electrochemistry
- Questions about redox
- Designing chemical cells
- Predicting spontaneity
See the full Chemistry 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Science this year
Science gets more structured this year — real investigations, real explanations, real vocabulary. In Nova Scotia, that's Physics 12 — 4 units, 54 skills.
Force, Motion, Work, and Energy
- 2D vector analysis
- Uniform circular motion
- Kepler's laws
Fields
- Fields as regions of influence
- Magnetic field of a current
- Designing a fields experiment
Radioactivity
- Sources of radioactivity
- Sampling procedures (radioactivity)
See the full Physics 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Social Studies this year
Social studies widens the lens this year — history, geography, and how communities and governments work. In Nova Scotia, that's Law 12 — 4 units, 32 skills.
Unit I: Foundations of Justice and Law
- Applying research methods to legal issues
- Law-making processes in Canada
Unit II: Criminal Law
- What constitutes a criminal offence
- Criminal trial principles and processes
Unit IV: Other Areas of Law
- Aboriginal Rights and Treaty Rights
- How international law is made and applied
- Human rights legislation
See the full Law 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
French this year
French builds through listening, speaking, and simple reading — confidence first, grammar second. In Nova Scotia, that's Core French 12 — 2 units, 19 skills.
Communication
- Negotiating for understanding
- Developing descriptions and comparisons
- Choosing pertinent information
Linguistic Elements
- Using expressions that support interaction
- Refuting, rejecting, and contradicting to express an opinion
See the full Core French 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Three ways parents use this list
Common questions
What does my child learn in Grade 12 in Nova Scotia?
Nova Scotia's official curriculum sets out Mathematics, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, French for Grade 12 — 422 specific skills in total. The big themes: Mathematics covers financial mathematics and logical reasoning; Mathematics covers trigonometry and relations and functions; Mathematics covers calculus 12 — rates of change and the derivative and calculus 12 — differentiation rules and applications. The full list is on this page.
Is this the official Nova Scotia curriculum?
It's built from Nova Scotia's official program of studies, reorganized into plain language — and each subject links to a course page that quotes the ministry's own wording and links to the government source, so you can check our work. One honest caveat: we're not the ministry, curricula do change, and we can't guarantee this reflects the very latest revision, so confirm anything important against the live provincial curriculum data.
My child is finding one of these skills hard. What can I do?
That's normal — every skill on this page is one most kids wobble on at first. MapleMind teaches any of them one-on-one: a short lesson in plain words, a worked example, then solving together. It's free to start, on any device, in 14 languages.
Keep exploring
Knowing the list is half the job
The other half is the teaching — and that's what MapleMind does. Pick any skill on this page and see it taught properly, free, in under a minute.
MapleMind isn't affiliated with any ministry of education. We build these guides from each province's official program of studies and refresh them from time to time — but curricula change, and we can't guarantee this page reflects the very latest revision. Always confirm against the live provincial curriculum data. Last updated 2026-08-15.
Social Studies this year
Social studies widens the lens this year — history, geography, and how communities and governments work. In Nova Scotia, that's Global Geography 12 — 6 units, 28 skills.
Unit 1: The Global Geographer
- Using data and technology for geographic issues
- How the world reached its current state
+ 4 more skills in this unit →Unit 2: The Planet Earth
- Earth as a unique planet for human life
- The global distribution of ecosystems
+ 2 more skills in this unit →Unit 3: Population
- Understanding quality of life
- Interpreting population with vital statistics
+ 3 more skills in this unit →Unit 4: Resources and Commodities
- The global production and distribution of food
- Patterns of industrialization and resource extraction
+ 3 more skills in this unit →Unit 5: Urbanization
- Patterns of urbanization
- Growth and decline of cities
+ 2 more skills in this unit →Unit 6: Culture and Politics
- The distribution of cultural groups
- The contemporary global political pattern
+ 2 more skills in this unit →See the full Global Geography 12 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →