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I like the idea of a project like the weather watching that is simple way to encourage children to observe the effects in their local area.
Climate change is increasingly affecting communities in Ireland through changes in weather patterns, heavier rainfall, flooding, and impacts on biodiversity. In my local area, I would encourage pupils to explore how climate change affects their own environment by observing local habitats, discussing changes they notice, and considering how their actions can help protect the planet.
In the classroom, I would use Development Education approaches to encourage critical thinking and active participation. Pupils could complete a waste or energy audit, explore ways to reduce their environmental impact, and create projects to raise awareness. Three actions I can take to help slow climate change are reducing waste, conserving energy, and making more sustainable choices in transport and consumption.
The Development Education modules also support School Self-Evaluation by encouraging schools to reflect on sustainability, inclusion, and global citizenship. These themes can help schools identify areas for growth and create positive change through whole-school actions and pupil involvement.
The idea of a buddy system is really good, it may offer a sense of familiarity to children from similar countries.
One example is Ashbourne Refugee Community Sponsorship, a volunteer-led group that supports refugee families as they settle into the community by helping with access to services, education, language learning, and community connections. Meath County Council also provides integration supports for refugees and international protection applicants, helping connect families with local services and opportunities.
As a school, we can play an important role in creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for refugee children and their families. We could organise cultural celebration days, encourage children to share their own traditions, and use stories from different countries to develop empathy and understanding. Pupils could create welcome cards, artwork, or care packages for new students joining the school.
Through Development Education, children can learn about migration, human rights, and the importance of belonging. By promoting kindness, respect, and inclusion, schools can help ensure refugee children feel valued as members of our community.
One Sustainable Development Goal that is particularly relevant to children is SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, especially the issue of reducing waste. Children are affected by this topic both locally and globally. In Ireland, pupils see the impact of food waste and litter in their own communities.
To encourage pupils to take action, I would promote small, meaningful changes within the school and local community. For example, I did this with my class this year. We designed characters around the different types of bins and ‘what they eat’ , gave them a name, and designed artwork to put on the actual bin. This worked really well for classroom recycling. We discussed why recycling is important during this activity.
By empowering pupils to become active participants in sustainability, they develop a sense of responsibility and understand that even small actions can make a positive difference.
This is certainly true about taking the time to reflect on gender stereotypes that we may feed into ourselves.
Gender stereotypes can impact children’s confidence and choices from a very young age. In the primary classroom. I once saw this during an art lesson when a boy wanted to use pink as the background colour for his painting. However, he hesitated because he was worried that other boys in the class might mock him. This showed how early children can become aware of gender expectations and feel pressure to conform.
Development Education methodologies can help challenge these stereotypes by encouraging pupils to question unfair assumptions, value diversity, and develop empathy. Through discussions, inclusive stories, and open-ended creative activities, children can learn that colours, interests, and talents are not limited by gender. As teachers, we can create a classroom environment where every child feels respected, confident, and free to express themselves.
This is such an simple yet very important point of the article to draw on, change starts from within ourselves – being self aware enough to recognise if we are trying our best to be a good citizen ourselves, only then can we have a positive impact on others.
This document highlights the importance of helping children become informed, empathetic, and responsible members of society. The document encourages respect for diversity, sustainability, equality, and active participation in local and global communities.
I would embed these principles across the curriculum through SPHE, Geography, English, and SESE by exploring different cultures, discussing fairness and inclusion, and engaging pupils in environmental initiatives. I would also create an inclusive classroom where every child feels valued and respected through cooperative learning and positive classroom relationships.
To encourage colleagues to use this resource, I would share practical lesson ideas and examples of how global citizenship can be integrated into everyday teaching without adding extra workload. Collaborative planning and sharing resources during staff meetings would help build confidence and ensure that global citizenship becomes a meaningful and consistent part of whole-school practice.
I like the idea of drawing what they think they might see on the moon. This would be a way of assessing what they know.
I would do the activity where the children have to observe and draw the moon for first class students. Each morning before entering the classroom, we would observe the moon. At the same time each day, pupils would look carefully at the Moon, if visible, and record what they notice. They would draw the shape drawing and add simple labels such as full, half or crescent. I would encourage children to ask questions, make predictions, and compare their observations over several weeks. Back in the classroom, pupils would discuss patterns they notice, such as how the moon changes shape or is not always visible. This activity develops important scientific skills, including observing, recording, predicting, and communicating findings. It also integrates with Visual Arts through sketching, English through descriptive vocabulary, and Mathematics by identifying patterns and sequencing changes. By learning through real-life observations, children develop curiosity about space while understanding that science involves careful observation and evidence over time.
I would do the Alka-Seltzer rocket activity with fiirst class students. I would begin by reading the story Rosie Revere, Engineer to introduce the idea of designing, testing and improving inventions. I would then ask the children to predict what they think will happen when an Alka-Seltzer tablet is mixed with water inside a film canister.
They would work in small groups to investigate how the reaction creates a gas that builds up pressure and launches the rocket into the air. Before testing, the children would record their predictions, and afterwards they would compare the results with their observations. We would discuss how the chemical reaction between the tablet and water produces carbon dioxide gas, which forces the lid off the canister.
To extend the inquiry, the children could investigate how changing the amount of water or the size of the tablet affects the height of the rocket. Finally, they would reflect on their findings and explain what they discovered using scientific language.