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I felt the same! It’s so sad to see. I grew up watching the stars, meteors and other sky events with my dad (it’s what prompted me to choose this course!)
I feel sad that this will become less and less accessible for children as the years go by.
With ever increasing research and scientific studies, hopefully we will come up with sustainable ways of lighting public areas that will benefit humans and nature.
Detail how light pollution is impacting your local area and how you would engage your learners to explore this:
In my local area, we are relatively recently very badly affected by light pollution. We have had massive urban sprawl in recent years due to being a commuter town. Areas of the town previously considered practically out in the countryside are now hubs of life. Huge estates (which are very much needed for the huge population growth) mean that darker areas are now flooded with the LED light, hugely disturbing to natural light. Most of the public lighting would be non-shielded as opposed to partially or wholly shielded, such as mentioned in this module. As an avid stargazer and general lover of the skies, I have found myself in recent years having to drive outside of the town to catch a glimpse of good dark sky. I can only imagine the effect it is having on local wildlife, disrupting circadian rhythms, etc.
I think this could be a really interesting topic to broach with children. If you have previously learned about the night sky, constellations, etc. then a passion and curiosity will have been instilled. Then it is time to ask the children about what inhibits our night sky.
Children can jot down or make posters of light pollution in our locality – I love the idea of basing it around the school. Challenge the children to consider ways that we ourselves contribute to light pollution.
Then, challenge them to think of alternatives or solutions. What are some simple things we as a school community or town can do to reduce light pollution? Introduce the children to shielded lighting, limited lighting hours, warmer LEDs where lighting is necessary, etc. Cost can often be a prohibiting factor so are there other ways we can adapt?
We have a wonderful Tidy Towns committee that are incredibly active in the town regarding wildlife and I feel they would be a group we could approach to collaborate with regarding lighting in the town and its effect on local nature. Perhaps we could begin a small project, eg ‘Earth Hour’ and build from there. That way we could get locals on board to help promote better lighting systems around the town.
Yes, I loved it! I think it’s funny as an infant teacher, you’re inclined to use the sun to represent the day and the moon represents the night (it’s so often seen in the picture books we use as well!) so to give children this opportunity to get proper perspective and actual facts about the moon would be so beneficial. I’ve often been asked “what’s that on the sky?” And it’s the moon. It can hard for them to grasp at a young age!
Select one of the activities in the framework for Inquiry:
I adored the idea of the constellation planetarium box. It is so lovely and adaptable for all ages and encompasses many skills such as creativity, imagination, fine motor skills, scientific questioning, etc. It also has great cross curricular links: science, geography, art and literacy.
- Show the children images of the night sky as seen from Ireland. Ask them if they can spot any patterns – can they make out shapes? Animals? What do they see? Using the whiteboard, get them to join stars to make basic images for fun. What would they name their patterns?
- Introduce the constellations to the children – what is a constellation? Nat Geo have a lovely routine video for this. Show examples: Orion’s Belt, Cassiopeia, Plaeides etc. Without telling the children what they represent, ask them what they think they might look like?
- Break the class into small groups with a shoebox or cardboard box each. Paint it black or cover it in black paper to represent the night sky. Chat with the children about the constellations previously discussed. Once the boxes are dry and ready, have the children use matchsticks to push holes through the box lid, creating their own new constellation. Ask the children to brainstorm names for their constellations. What inspired them?
- Using torches (or teacher’s phone torch!), close the blinds and demonstrate each group’s constellation for each other. (Curriculum link: Music, Holst ‘The Planets Suite’ for atmosphere) Each group presents their constellation(s) and what they are and named.
Hi Amanda! I also teach in a DEIS school – band 2 but similar circumstances. I love your point about being limited in devices etc. we often get caught up in having the most glitzy up to date resources in classrooms. However, we can so easily plan nice, enjoyable projects that inspire curiosity and learning without needing to rely on material things. I think in turn it will enhance children’s innate stargazing skills – something that anyone can get involved in regardless of cost, ability, background etc. here’s to our future astronomers!
Plan how your students could “observe and record the positions of the sun when rising and setting and at different times of the day”:
Teaching in a Junior school (Early Intervention to 2nd Class) I love the adaptability of this task. I have mostly taught infants for my career and have often explored shadows as a fun task to learn about day and night as well as light and shade but it was more of a ‘concluding activity’. I would plan it going forward like so:-
- Introduction: Open discussion around the difference between night and day; link with previous knowledge of animals that are diurnal/nocturnal. What happens at night compared to day? Why is night time important for animals including humans? Why do we depend on light from the sun? What happens when the sunlight hits an object? Why do you think this is?
Go to the school yard and make shadows with our bodies. Make shadow puppets, encourage playful learning. In pairs/small groups, trace our shadows with chalk. Mark the time that the shadows were drawn (teacher can do this depending on age) Revisit at a later time during the day. Retrace your shadow beside your original tracing using the same stance – how have the shadows changed? Why do you think this is? Take pictures to create a slideshow on Book Creator.
Circle time: come together as a class group and report findings. Add to book creator project. Present to parents using online software (a private link/Aladdin/SeeSaw etc.)
Encourage the children to follow on the task at home e.g. on the driveway or in a safe play area where they live. Could they remark on the difference in their shadows compared to those in school? What did they notice? Can they record shadows at dusk or night? What happens?
I have aimed this task at Infant level with lots of scope to extend depending on the children’s curiosity and interest levels as well as their ability to grasp new concepts. Possible extending vocabulary: nocturnal, diurnal, circadian rhythm, etc.
