Hi, my name is Niamh and I work in a DEIS Junior school. I am carrying on my class to Senior Infants.
An inquiry-based lesson that I carried out with the children is what is the best way to melt ice.
The topic we were learning about topic was winter. We were learning about polar bears and the Artic region. We read the story ‘Big Bear Little Bear’ by David Bedford. We discussed how snow is made and different ways we can melt it. We discussed what items we could use to melt it (hairdryer, radiator, water, child friendly knife – plastic)and then predicted how long it would take. We carried out this experiment during our Aistear. The children carried out the experiment in small groups. We put small animals in small see through containers with water and I put them in the freezer overnight. Each group used a different way to melt the ice while I timed it. They were very excited when they saw the ice melting and the closer they got to the toys the more excited they got. Once all the ice was melted and the toys were free we all discussed what was the best and quickest way to melt the ice.