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I’ve noticed light pollution getting worse in my local area lately. At night the sky isn’t really dark anymore. Streetlights, house lights and even bright signs from shops all make the sky glow. You can barely see the stars some nights, which is sad because I remember seeing loads more when I was younger.
Instead of bringing the class out in the evening, which wouldn’t really be possible, I would give it as a small homework task. I’d ask the children to look at the night sky from their garden or window and count how many stars they can see. I’d also give them a photo of a proper dark sky to compare it to. The next day we’d talk about it in class and make a list of things they noticed.
Then we’d chat about why light pollution matters, like how it effects animals and our sleep. They could make posters or write simple tips for what people can do at home. Even small changes can make a big difference.
Olive I think allowing the children to complete a home study on light pollution is a great idea. This would allow them to see the true effects of using light on their gardens at certain times.
I chose to plan to observe the Moon with my class. I think the Moon is a lovely thing to focus on with children because its easy for them to see and it changes a lot so there’s always something new to look at. I would explain to the class that the best time to see the Moon in the morning is when it’s in it’s last quarter or crescent phase because thats when it’s still visible in the early daylight.
I would print a moon calendar for the classroom wall so we can tick off the dates together.
On those mornings we could bring out our copies and sketch what we see maybe even use binoculars if the weather is nice. Then back inside we could talk about what we saw and compare it to the pictures online. I think this would be a nice calm activity and it would help the children learn by really looking at the world around them.
I will definitely be using this website going forward. It’s a fantastic resource to support lessons!
I realised that STEM shouldn’t just be about putting four subjects together. It’s more about helping children think like problem solvers, asking questions and learning by doing.
In my own classroom, I try to make lessons feel real and hands-on, not just reading from a book or learning facts.For this task, I picked Option 3. Planning how students could observe and record the sun’s position at different times of the day. I’d start by talking about the sun and how it moves across the sky. Then we’d head outside three times during the day, maybe 9am, lunchtime around 11am and again about 2pm. The children would draw where the sun is and also look at shadows pointing out how long they are and which direction they’re pointing.
Each child would keep a little Sun Book where they can draw and write down what they see. At the end of the week, we’d talk about any patterns they noticed. I’d also have a big class chart so we can compare all the days together. I think this is a great way for them to see how science and maths connect to their own world in a simple way.
Love the idea of the sky diary Sarah! Also focusing on the visual aspect of the kids actually seeing and documenting the place of the sun in the sky each day I think is so important. Really helps them to make connections.
I would begin by creating a circle discussion on what the children already know about aliens. I would use prompting questions such as ‘what do you think?’ and ‘how would they look?’. I would then base this lesson around the storybook ‘Aliens Love Underpants’ by Claire Freedman. This would be most suited to infant children and would capture their attention from the beginning due to the language used and colourful pictures throughout. I would ask relevant questions throughout the reading of the story to ensure that all children understand. I would then ask the children to complete an activity based on making their own alien. I would ask them to do this by following an outline of an alien on an A4 page using their colours and pencils. Finally, I would end the lesson by performing an ‘alien dance’ to a song. Children will be asked to create moves that they believe an alien might make. Ensuring that the children have fun and are learning throughout is key.
I love the idea of basing the lesson on a Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. It’s a very common song that all children would know, so it sets up such a great lesson!
I would definitely plan to base this lesson off of a story about space. I would start by reading the story aloud to the children and asking them thought provoking questions along the way. After this, I would perhaps show them real-life images on the IWB of space and create a discussion on this. To follow on from this I would then use puppets of aliens/astronauts to create an element of play for the children in relation to rockets & aliens. I then would create a dress up area for the children to create their own drama in their groups of their perception of aliens and rockets in space.
Furthermore, I would use empty toilet roll holders and arts and crafts to get the children to create their own personalised rocket ships.Absolutely love this ideas of a passport to space. Simple yet so effective and the children may be able to relate to a passport from previous trips abroad they may have already taken!
I have chosen hands-on classroom themed activities for this assignment. I haven chosen this as in September I will be stepping into the Junior Infant classroom, so I believe that hands-on activities is most suited to this age group.
Aistear is one of the main areas where I would choose to focus on the theme of weather. I would create one area for the children to focus on being a weather reporter. This would entail a background of a weather map and a microphone. I would use another area for art where children have to draw pictures based on. the clothing that they see suited to each weather forecast – e.g. raincoat for rain. I would also create an area of dress up where the children create their own play using clothing associated to summer/winter (sun hat, sunglasses, wool hat, scarf, gloves). I would create another station where the children have an activity based on weather – perhaps a colouring activity or join the dots of different weather scenarios.
Completely agree with this! So many opportunities for integration of play and oral language, etc. Aistear would be a great way to teach space in the classroom.
Activity: The Planets
– I love the idea of using station teaching for the younger ideas to teach the planets in our solar system. I think one station that would be fantastic would be assigning headbands to each of the children with the picture of the planet on the front of it. After explicitly teaching the characteristics of each planet, children should be able to converse with each other about where they are situated in the solar system and the colour that they are. I also love the idea of creating a station where children can dress up in costumes similar to that of an astronaut or working in the space station. This incorporates the element of play which is such a vital part of the junior curriculum.
Hi Claire. I really love this idea of stations. It would be a fantastic idea to keep the younger classes engaged, while at the same time ensuring that play is the centre of the lessons.
