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There are many songs, poems and pictures that help us to think about the night sky. At night, when we look up, we can see the moon and the stars shining brightly. The song Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star is one that children everywhere love to sing, and it makes us think about how small we are compared to the big sky above. The band Coldplay sing a song called A Sky Full of Stars. This song makes us imagine the sky sparkling with millions of lights. Long ago, artists painted pictures of the stars too. Vincent van Gogh made a famous painting called Starry Night, showing a sky full of bright stars swirling in the dark. Music like Clair de Lune, which means moonlight, helps us to feel how calm and magical the night can be. All of these help us to feel close to the stars and the moon!
Hi Orlaigh
I love your Wildlife detective project idea. Sounds like a great way to get the children more engaged and involved in their learning.
To explore biodiversity in our local area, I’d start with a nature walk around the school or a nearby park. We’d look out for birds, insects, flowers, and trees – anything that shows signs of life. The children could use simple checklists with pictures to help them spot and name what they find – a nature treasure hunt. Back in class, we’d chat about what we saw and make a display with drawings and photos. To talk about light pollution, I’d use storybooks or short videos about animals that are awake at night, like bats or owls. We’d think about how too much light might make it hard for them to hunt, sleep, or find their way. Using torches in a darkened room, the children could explore how light changes what we see. I’d keep everything playful and hands-on, helping the children build a sense of care and curiosity for nature around them.
Hi Michaela
Your idea of going out and counting the stars is a lovely simple one. It’s a nice way to include the whole family also.
Living and teaching in an urban area, especially in housing estates, means our children are surrounded by lights all the time—streetlights, car lights, shops, and even lights from windows at night. This light pollution means many children don’t get to see stars clearly, and it can affect sleep and local wildlife too. To help infants explore this, I’d start with stories about stars and night-time animals, then take them on a walk around the locality to spot different lights. We’d play with torches in a dark tent, sort light and dark pictures, and talk about animals that need the dark. Children could make posters to remind people to turn off lights when they’re not needed. I’d also encourage families to do a “lights off” evening at home and talk about what they noticed. It’s all about helping young learners understand how light affects our world in simple, hands-on ways.
Hi Donna,
Great idea to use a book to introduce the concept. The children in infants would love that!
As a Junior Infant teacher, I think that the moon would be a very fun topic to teach. I always do a lesson on the sun and shadows, but had not considered the moon! At that age they are so inquisitive and curious so I can only imagine the conversations that would arise.
When planning a moon observation with the class, I think the last quarter Moon is the most suitable. It’s still visible in the sky during the morning and often around lunchtime – which works perfectly for us, as we are already out on yard. I will use a moon calendar to pick a suitable date. It’s a lovely way to introduce simple science and sky watching.Afterwards, the children could draw pictures of what they saw and talk about it with their friends during circle time, helping them build language and observation skills.We could do an art project based on it, or creations using play doh / clay.
Hi Patricia I like your idea of having it as a week long project also. I think the kids love when a subject/project is developed and worked on over a period of time
Most of my experience is with younger classes so I am tailoring my answer to what I know! To help my students observe and record the position of the sun, I would take them outside at different times of the day. We would look at where the sun is in the sky (making sure not to look directly at it) and talk about where it rises and sets. Using yard chalk, the students would draw marks on the ground showing the sun’s position at each time. Over several days, they could observe and add new marks to see how the sun moves. We would also place a stick or object in the ground and use chalk to trace its shadow at different times, helping students see how the sun’s position changes throughout the day. This hands-on activity will make learning about the sun’s path fun and easy to understand.
