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ESERO- Space and Aliens
I would begin with a brief discussion about space exploration and the search for extraterrestrial life. I would show pictures or a short video clip about different planets and moons in our solar system, emphasising their unique environments.
Then I would explain the basic conditions necessary for life as we know it: water, suitable temperature range, atmosphere, and nutrients.
Discuss how scientists look for these conditions on other planets and moons. Introduce the concept of extremophiles – organisms that live in extreme environments on Earth – as examples of how life might adapt elsewhere.
I would then divide the class into small groups and provide each group with a planetary fact sheet from the ESERO activity set.Each group will use the information on their fact sheet to design an alien that could survive on their assigned planet or moon.
I would finally have each group present their alien design to the class, explaining how it is adapted to survive on its specific planet or moon.
Encourage other students to ask questions and provide positive feedback.Hi Helen,
I totally agree with you this sounds like such a cool idea. I just know my class would be fascinated with it too! I will definitely use this idea and mark the shadows with chalk outside in our school. It would be great to have an ongoing science activity to follow and discuss.
ESERO’s “The Planets” activity is an excellent resource for engaging students in learning about our solar system. Here’s how I would use it in my classroom:
1.Introduction: Begin with a captivating video or a story about space exploration to spark interest. Discuss the solar system and the different planets, emphasising their unique characteristics.
2.Activity Setup: Divide students into small groups and provide each group with the ESERO “The Planets” activity materials. This typically includes planet fact cards, a scaled model or images of the planets, and interactive worksheets.
3.Inquiry-Based Learning: Encourage each group to explore the materials and formulate questions about the planets. Guide them to use the fact cards to find answers. For example, questions could include, “Which planet is the hottest?” or “What is unique about Saturn’s rings?”
4.Hands-On Exploration: Have students create a scaled model of the solar system using the provided materials. This visual and hands-on approach helps them understand the relative sizes and distances between planets.
5.Presentation and Discussion: Each group presents their findings to the class, explaining what makes their assigned planet unique. This encourages public speaking and reinforces their understanding through teaching.
6.Reflection: Conclude with a reflection session where students discuss what they found most surprising or interesting about the planets. They could also write a short paragraph or draw a picture of their favourite planet, explaining why they chose it.Hi Michelle,
I love this idea for infants too. The waterproof lesson is a great way for children to problem-solve and bring science to life. It would be such an effective lesson and I will definitely try it in September.
Hi everyone,
My name is Alex and I will be teaching in our middle autism class next year. My favourite space fact is that stars twinkle because their light has to travel through Earth’s atmosphere, which is like a big, moving ocean of air. This air is full of different temperatures and densities, which bend the light in various directions. This bending makes the stars look like they’re twinkling, just like how a penny at the bottom of a swimming pool looks like it’s dancing when you look at it through the moving water.I would use inquiry based learning through exploration and investigating.I Use a flashlight to represent a star and a clear glass of water mixed with oil to represent Earth’s atmosphere. I would then shine the flashlight through the glass and gently stir the water and observe how the light twinkles.
I would then ask students to draw a picture or write a sentence about what they learned. They could draw Twinkle the star dancing or write about how the air makes stars twinkle.
Hi Teresa,
I had never heard of the dancing raisins experiment and is definitely something that I want to try in September. It’s so exciting to hear that your children loved it and wanted to try different liquids. I will keep this in mind when I do the experiment and have them ready to try!
I absolutely love the idea of incorporating ‘explosions’ into science week. My children absolutely love doing anything messy and so I know it would engage them straight away. I would start by showing them the dancing raisins experiment at the top of the room to engage them and pique their interest.
After this, I would explain that they will now work in teams to create the perfect glittery explosion mixture. First, they will add in baking soda and their choice of food colouring and glitter. After this, they will add dish soap to create bubbles. Finally, they will add vinegar to their creation to make a colourful bubble explosion!
Afterwards, I would allow the children to walk around and look at the other groups’ explosions. They can comment on what they liked/ didn’t like/ thought was cool etc… and discuss what they could do different next time to make it more effective.Hi Lisa,
I totally agree about the Stellarium resource and also can’t believe it’s free. It looks like such an invaluable resource and I already know my children would find it completely fascinating. I can’t wait to try it out when we return to school.
I really loved all the resources in this module and in particular the resources around the weather. Living in Ireland, we experience all different weather types and sometimes all four seasons in one day. Teaching children about the different seasons and about weather appropriate clothing is so important when they are young.
I would introduce the seasons and each of their months referring to the poster I have on my wall. As we will be in the season of autumn when we return, I will give each child a sheet of paper with an outline of a child’s body on it and ask them to cut out and stick-on clothes that would be appropriate for September. We will discuss all options and why they may/ may not be a good idea.
After that I would explore the idea of waterproof VS non waterproof clothing using a science experiment with different materials e.g. tissue paper, tin foil, cling film, felt paper and plastic all to see if the children can predict what materials would be waterproof.Hi Aisling,
I found it really interesting that your children were also making characters out of wooden forks. I have these in my classroom also and I found the children were all using googly eyes and pipe cleaners to make little imaginary things. Children are so creative and it is so important to let them explore this creativity.
I would use the resources from ESERO in the activity set: Space and Aliens. I would introduce the lesson by explaining to the children that we live on Earth and that Earth is a planet. From previous lessons they would now know that there are many planets in space.
I would ask the children to imagine that there are people living on these other planets even know we don’t think there is. I would provide each child with an A4 sheet and colouring pencils and ask them to imagine what they would show these people if they came to Earth.
Finally, I would get all the children to sit in a circle with their finished pieces. I would get the children to act out or mime what they have drawn. The other children in the circle must try and guess what is on their sheet. It is important here that each child has a turn.Hi Aoife,
I really like your idea of inquisitive questioning at the end of the lesson. I think this is when some of the best discussions happen in a classroom and can sometimes be over looked once the main content of the lesson have been covered.
Activity the planets:
I would start this lesson off by doing a KWL chart about the planets and the moon. This will help to gauge where the children are at and to inform my planning going forward.
Next, I would play the story bots ‘we are the planets’ song. I have used Storybots resources before and I think that they are amazing for the younger children. After that I would briefly go through the order of the planets teaching them the mnemonic My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming…
After this I would take turns bringing the children up and randomly giving them each a planet and timing how quick they could get into the correct order.
Finally, as an extension activity, I would ask the children to create their own planet by designing it, naming it and giving one cool feature that makes it different from the rest.Hi Karen,
I love the idea of a feely bag when teaching materials. I find it works so well with the younger children and they can get so excited when exploring the different touches. It is also so beneficial for language development.
My name is Alex and I will be teaching the junior ASD class this year, as I was last year. This will include children from senior infants up to third class.
One fact I love about space is how each planet has its own set of moons. Some with hundreds and some without any at all.
I would use a KWL chart for my inquiry- based learning. I use these all the time when starting a new theme in SESE and I think they work so well for both the children and teacher.
They help to guide the learning based on what the children want to know and act as a resourceful tool for assessment at the end of the lesson.
