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Hi Louise, the use of the ‘Aliens in Underpants’ series is a great way to engage the class from the beginning, especially if they love those stories. You could then get them to do Art by designing their own underpants for an alien and exploring various materials that would be suitable too and then they could use Fabric and Fibre to make their own. The balloon rocket and rocket mice would work great with your class and you could even invite your buddy class or one of the older classes in to help whilst carrying out the experiment? I love your ideas for integration with P.E and SESE too as well as tying it in with Aistear and play!
Hi Margaret, what a brilliant idea to get the children to predict what they think will happen when various cartons are squeezed. A brilliant investigation to carry out in infants too to help with their fine motor skills!
Activity Set: Rockets
I would use the Rockets activity set in my Senior Infants class. I find that using a story as a stimulus is extremely helpful so I would introduce them to the topic using Oliver Jeffers stories ‘How to Catch a Star’, ‘The Way Back Home’ and ‘Here We Are’.
We would then discuss ways in which we could travel back home from space, encouraging the children to ask and answer open ended questions and in groups, design their ideal ‘Rocket’ on the whiteboards and then present them to the class. They will then work in groups to create a rocket using Junk Art, explaining how their rocket works, how it may be suitable for space.
As a whole class we will investigate and explore how rockets launch, watching videos and a time lapse from NASA and then I will show them photos of when I went to the Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, encouraging them to ask questions as I enter in role as Neil Armstrong.
We would then complete the ‘Rocket Mice’ activity. Show the children the equipment needed to make the rocket mice first and encourage them to come up with suggestions as to how to create them, how can we ensure they ‘take off’. Follow the instructions and carry out experiments making the mouse fly in different places, outside in yard, in the hall etc. Compare different types of recycled bottles too, which ones make the mouse go higher? Record the distance by using chalk or post it’s and carry out a Rocket Race with the most powerful two Rocket Mice.
Use the iPad’s to record their experiment and make them into an iMovie with the 6th class buddy class. The children can then research a space-based experiment at home and do ‘Teach the Teacher’ where they come in and carry out their experiment for the class.
Hi Sandra, I completely relate to what you said, I too am guilty of defaulting to YouTube for classroom content and introducing ideas to the children about new topics. Like you this module really opened my eyes to how many interactive, child-friendly resources are out there that go beyond just video clips. I think my class will love Milo and Mervin too as they are so relatable for the children.
Have you access to iPads to try AR with them? There’s a brilliant app called Quiver that I’ve used before and they have Space Themed worksheets that the children can colour in and then use the iPad to make their colouring ‘come to life’. I think they’d love it!The ESA Kids website is also looks brilliant as it is so colourful and well laid out. It will make it easy to introduce real-life space science in a way that’s exciting but not overwhelming. They’ll be great resources for our classes come September and I’m excited to share them with my fellow infant teachers too!
Activity Set: Weather
I plan to use the ‘Hot and Cold’ investigation in my Infant classroom as a simple, hands-on way to introduce early science skills through inquiry. I would begin by creating a KWL chart about ‘Weather’ with the children, encouraging talk and discussion about various types of weather and discuss the meaning of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’. I will then carry out the investigation with them. This activity explores how ice cubes melt differently in the sun and in the shade, allowing children to observe change, temperature, and the role of sunlight in our environment. It provides an age-appropriate introduction to fair testing, encouraging children to predict, observe, and share what they find out.
Using the DPSM/ESERO Framework we will: Engage: Introduce the characters Milo and Marvin, who are curious about Earth and the sun. We’ll read their story and ask children: ‘What do you think will happen if we leave ice in the sun?’ Investigate: Children will test ice cubes in the sun and in shade, recording or drawing what happens. Take the Next Step: We’ll discuss how heat affects objects and people. What clothes do we wear in warm/cold weather? How can we stay safe in the sun?
To support understanding, we will use the engaging video ‘What is the Sun?’ from SciShow Kids, which clearly explains the sun’s heat and light using simple visuals and vocabulary suitable for young learners. This video will help consolidate the children’s understanding of why the ice melted and how the sun affects our world.
This activity ties into SESE, SPHE and literacy, as children explain, describe, and discuss what they observe. Through drawings, photos, or even short oral recordings, they will be encouraged to reflect on what they saw.
Monitoring Impact: SSE This activity will also support our school’s ongoing STEM-focused SSE:
Improved Quality of Teaching: Staff confidence with scientific language and inquiry methods will grow.
Improved Pupil Engagement & Progress: Children will show increasing confidence in predicting, observing, and questioning—core science skills.
Raised Profile of STEM: Activities like this will feature in STEM Week, classroom displays, and will contribute to our Curious Minds Award application.
Sharing Practice: Teachers can reflect and share resources like Milo & Marvin stories and video links with colleagues through a shared drive or during planning meetings.
Moving forward, we will explore further seasonal and weather-based activities, such as ‘Animals in the Cold’ and ‘What Clothes to Wear’.Activity Set: Weather
I plan to use the ‘Hot and Cold’ investigation in my Infant classroom as a simple, hands-on way to introduce early science skills through inquiry. I would begin by creating a KWL chart about ‘Weather’ with the children, encouraging talk and discussion about various types of weather and discuss the meaning of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’. I will then carry out the investigation with them. This activity explores how ice cubes melt differently in the sun and in the shade, allowing children to observe change, temperature, and the role of sunlight in our environment. It provides an age-appropriate introduction to fair testing, encouraging children to predict, observe, and share what they find out.
Using the DPSM/ESERO Framework we will:
Engage: Introduce the characters Milo and Marvin, who are curious about Earth and the sun. We’ll read their story and ask children: ‘What do you think will happen if we leave ice in the sun?’
Investigate: Children will test ice cubes in the sun and in shade, recording or drawing what happens.
Take the Next Step: We’ll discuss how heat affects objects and people. What clothes do we wear in warm/cold weather? How can we stay safe in the sun?
To support understanding, we will use the engaging video ‘What is the Sun?’ from SciShow Kids which clearly explains the sun’s heat and light using simple visuals and vocabulary suitable for young learners. This video will help consolidate the children’s understanding of why the ice melted and how the sun affects our world.
This activity ties into SESE, SPHE and literacy, as children explain, describe, and discuss what they observe. Through drawings, photos, or even short oral recordings, they will be encouraged to reflect on what they saw.
Monitoring Impact: SSE This activity will also support our school’s ongoing STEM-focused School Self Evaluation (SSE):
Improved Quality of Teaching: Staff confidence with scientific language and inquiry methods will grow.
Improved Pupil Engagement & Progress: Children will show increasing confidence in predicting, observing, and questioning—core science skills.
Raised Profile of STEM: Activities like this will feature in STEM Week, classroom displays, and will contribute to our Curious Minds Award application.
Sharing Practice: Teachers can reflect and share resources like Milo & Marvin stories and video links with colleagues through a shared drive or during planning meetings.
Moving forward, we will explore further seasonal and weather-based activities, such as ‘Animals in the Cold’ and ‘What Clothes to Wear’.My updated Space Mind Map
Hi Irene, I really liked how you plan to bring in storytelling and imagination through your space activity. The use of the song Twinkle Twinkle and a story to introduce the topic is a great way to spark interest. I especially liked how you are encouraging the children to invent and describe their own planets, such a lovely way to promote creativity and oral language. I might borrow that idea and include it as a follow-up writing or drawing activity after our starry night art. Thanks for sharing your approach!
Activity Set: Space and Aliens
I would use the “Space and Aliens” activity set with my Senior Infants, focusing on the Special Life and Create an Alien activities.
Engage: To spark curiosity, I would begin with a whole-class discussion: “What makes Earth special?” I would encourage the children to share their ideas, animals, nature, family, and toys. To capture their imaginations, I would play the energetic and child-friendly space song ‘ Zoom Zoom Zoom We’re Going to The Moon‘ I believe this song will energise the class and set the mood for our space-themed inquiry.
Investigate: Each child would draw something they find special about Earth. They will act it out for the class without showing their drawing, and the students would guess what the drawing might be. This drama-based guessing game will encourage communication, creativity, and observation skills.
Next, I would introduce the concept of aliens by asking: “What do you think an alien might look like?” The children will use their imaginations to draw their own alien beings and will explain their ideas to the class. This activity will build expressive language and visual representation skills.Take the Next Step: We would then create Martian landscapes using cardboard, paint, foil, sand, and other classroom materials. The children will compare their models with real NASA images of Mars and discuss what they observe, “Which one has the tallest mountain?” or “Which looks most like Mars?” This hands-on work will support visual literacy, scientific thinking, and teamwork.
Hi Louise, I think your plan about exploring ‘The Planets’ is excellent. Using ‘Tasha Solars’ as a stimulus to spark imagination and curiosity is a great way to engage the children from the beginning. I love the use of the KWL chart too to connect prior knowledge and using it as a working chart to build on it throughout the lessons, it’s a great way to make the learning meaningful. The Planet Games with Hula Hoops and musical chairs variation is a great way to get the children moving whilst reinforcing the planet names in order! The hands-on art activities by creating the planets with playdoh will certainly solidify their understanding too and I think that it’s an excellent idea to involve your buddies too from the older classes as having extra hands with infants whilst doing hands on tasks is always very welcomed!
Activity Set: The Sun and Shadows
I would create a rich, playful learning environment that encourages collaboration and hands-on discovery by using the Sun and Shadows Activity Set. To begin, I would introduce the topic by asking the children ‘how do we have day and night?’. I would give them time for peer discussion and then I would use photos to discuss daytime and night time, inviting children to share ideas and vocabulary. This sparks curiosity and language development.
I would then introduce group work activities: children would work in pairs or small groups to trace shadows outside at different times and compare their observations, promoting social skills and cooperative learning.
Indoors, I would use solar beads, small beads that change colour in sunlight, as a tactile way for children to explore the sun’s energy, linking science to sensory experience.
The day and night activity from the module would support children’s understanding of the earth’s rotation through storytelling and movement, making abstract concepts tangible.
I would then use the story Moon Bear to as a stimulus to inspire the shadow play. Children can change the position of a lamp to see how the bear’s shadow changes, combining narrative with scientific exploration and imaginative play. The children can then have the opportunity to create their own Bear puppets and explore and move the light around the puppet and discuss how the shadows size, shape and position change. This hands on activity helps them make the connection between light source, object and shadow.
I would then extend their learning by using different shapes and objects to compare the shadows created. This could be integrated with Drama and English where they can work in groups to make ‘Shadow Puppet Shows’ and they can then preform them to the class.
My Enquiry Based Learning Approach would begin with the open ended question ‘What Would Happen if We Went to Space?’ this can be integrated with all subject areas as a fortnightly theme to enable the children to explore and engage with the topic. I would link in the lovely lesson idea from this module of Gravity, enabling the children to engage in group work using various prompts such as:
– What do we need to live and travel in Space?
– What is Gravity?
– What does it feel like to be in Space?
I would then have various stations such as a Gravity Station, Build a Rocket Station, Creative Expression Station ‘What I saw in Space’ and a Role Play Station where the children are going to the moon. This enquiry based learning approach will give the children the opportunity to question and think critically, observe and predict and express their ideas through art and drama all of which are key aspects of the Curious Minds Framework. As a result, it is extremely inclusive and it will enable me to differentiate for each child in the class.
That sounds like a brilliant lesson to do with Senior Infants Sarah! I most definitely will be using that one next year. There’s a great amount of integration amongst subjects in the curriculum too. Project work works really well with Senior Infants and is a great way to develop their Oral Language and Problem Solving skills. Thanks for sharing the link to the book Frances!
You could also give them the challenge of experimenting ways to make their rockets ‘fly’ and they could use the iPads to record their results and then display them to the class on the IWB. In Art they could have the opportunity to create their ‘First Man on the Moon Footprints’ and use the open ended question ‘what materials could we use?’ ‘what would work best?’ and discuss different textures and then ask them to explain why different materials/ingredients work better than others.
Icebreaker!
Hi everyone,
My name is Becca. I have taught Infants for the last six years and have Senior Infants next year. I find that the children are always so interested in the topic of Space, but I myself don’t know enough about it so I am excited to learn more in this course! I would love to incorporate it with Play and enable them with the opportunity to explore more themselves too. I love the fact about Space that Emma mentioned above, the fact there are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on the beach! Another fact I love is that on Venus, a day is longer than a year on Earth! If you lived on Venus you’d have your birthday before you see the sunrise!
