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How light pollution is impacting my local area:
Light pollution is a growing issue in our urban area, where artificial lighting from streetlights, buildings, and vehicles brightens the night sky. This excessive lighting not only wastes energy but also significantly impacts our ability to observe the stars, constellations, and even the moon. Many pupils in my school have never witnessed the Milky Way due to this constant light interference. Understanding light pollution is important for fostering environmental awareness and reconnecting with the natural world.
How I will engage my pupils to explore this topic:
To engage learners with this topic, I would begin with a mind-mapping activity, allowing pupils to brainstorm what they already know about light pollution. This strategy encourages collaboration and helps identify key themes such as sources of light pollution and its effects on wildlife. We would follow this with a whole-class discussion, focusing specifically on how light pollution affects our ability to see stars and the moon. Learners will be encouraged to share their own experiences of stargazing or changes they have noticed in the night sky. This topic inspires pupils to think critically about how they can take steps to reduce light pollution at a local level.
Hi Rachel, I completely agree with you on how Junior Infants can become obsessed with the moon! Thanks for sharing your lesson idea.
3. Plan to Observe the Moon
I look forward to observing the moon with my Second Class pupils in the next academic year.
I think that the best time to complete this activity will be October. We will discuss the shape of the moon and the different ways it can appear in the sky – both at night and during the day.
We will watch the video of Paxi to give us a better understanding of the lunar calendar. Following this, we will complete the task in ESERO 62. This experiment will allow us to observe how the moon can be viewed at different times of the day. As the class teacher, I will use timeanddate.com to discover the best time to observe the moon at school. Once a time has been selected, the class will head outside with a clipboard and pencil. We will find the moon and observe its location in the sky. The children will complete a ‘Moon Observation Log’ and sketch an image of the moon that they can see.
Hi Aoife, I love your idea of using shadows to get your pupils engaged in the lesson. Thanks for sharing!
3. Construct a Sundial
I look forward to creating a sundial with my pupils.
I would begin with an engaging lesson about how, in the past, people used the sun to tell the time. I will explain how sundials were used in ancient Egypt and Mexico, long before clocks were invented. We will learn how the Egyptians used shadow sticks, and the Mexicans studied the sun’s movement to create calendars.
Next, on a sunny day, I will take the class outside to the school yard. The pupils will bring chalk, a straight stick and a compass. The pupils will work together and use the compass to find north. We will then mark the four directions on the ground – North, South, East and West. I will teach the children the importance of these directions.
We will place the stick in an upright position. Every hour, we will observe and mark the shadow that the stick makes with the chalk. We will label each hour beside the shadow line. Over time, the pupils will see the shadow move in a clockwise direction, just like the hands on an analogue clock.
Hi Michaela, I love this idea! Creating a space craft together promotes team work and communication skills. This is definitely a project I hope to undertake next year!
I look forward to teaching the topic of Rockets to my Second Class pupils in the next academic year. I will introduce the topic by allowing the children to watch a rocket launch from the NASA Space Station.
Next we will explore how rockets works and then proceed to build our very own balloon rockets! We will watch the ‘Marvin and Milo’ cartoon, where the characters ask various questions which will spark curiosity amongst my pupils.•
The children will then play with their rockets, understanding different concepts though hands-on investigation. I will pose different questions such as ‘Do you think the rocket will go further if you blow harder?’. The students will make predictions and then carry out investigations.
We will discuss the science behind the launch, focusing on thrust and propulsion. This lesson blends engagement, hands-on activities, active learning and scientific inquiry, making learning about rockets an exciting experience for all.
Hi Michaela, this sounds like a super fun activity! I cannot wait to try it in my class in September. Thank you for sharing!
I would love to teach the activity set ‘Where Do You Live?’ to my Second Class pupils.
We will begin by identifying the different types of houses that exist. The pupils will describe their own house and explain what type of house it is. The pupils will be introduced to new vocabulary such as bungalow, two-storey, detached, semi-detached.
The children will also identify what materials have been used to make their house. The children will also be invited to make a 3D model of their house using recyclable materials. One all the houses are complete; they will be arranged to make a small town or village. I will encourage the children to identify things that are missing from this town and why they are so important to us. We will explore our local area and discuss what else is nearby e.g. school, library, supermarket, swimming pool. From a global perspective, we will explore houses around the world and discuss what makes them different from the houses that we live in.
Hi Lauren, thank you for your contribution. I love how you decided to use a picture book to introduce the topic of aliens to your pupils. I will also be using your idea of allowing the pupils to designs and create their very own alien – a very unique experience!
I would love to teach the activity set ‘Stars’ to my Second Class pupils. I will start with the ‘Lots and Lots of Stars’ activity. The children will estimate the number of stars in the sky. This will allow me to integrate the topic of estimation in Maths. This activity will foster the pupils’ critical thinking skills.
Next, we will integrate Arts and Crafts. The children will be encouraged to create a starry night background by splattering paint. From here we will explore the constellations. We will learn about The Big Dipper and The Plough and how we can find them in the night sky.
Using Space Week resources, we will learn about spatial language, and we will draw star patterns from different perspectives. This will highlight how or view of stars changes.
Finally, we will further explore constellation shapes. The pupils will be encouraged to draw their own constellations, incorporating the shapes that they have already learned about.
Hi Aileen, I love how you decided to use a picture book as a stimulus to introduce this topic to Junior Infant pupils. I also appreciate your use of hands-on learning where they children bring their learning to life through movement and play which is extremely important at this age.
I would love to teach the activity set of the Moon to my Second Class pupils. I would introduce the topic with an engaging question such as, What do you know about the moon?’. This will spark curiosity amongst the pupils. We will observe the moon’s appearance, discussing its shape and how it changes throughout the month.
The topic of the moon can also be integrated into the subject of art. We will use flour and paint to create the moon’s surface, emphasising its craters and texture. Each child will become an astronaut on their very own moon. We will then explore the topic of ‘The Man on the Moon’ and identify different astronauts that have landed on the moon.
Additionally, I will introduce the phases of the moon using visual aids such as Oreo cookies. We will also read picture books about the moon, discussing astronauts and space exploration.
I am really looking forward to teaching this topic with my pupils in the next academic year.
An inquiry-based activity that I would use in my classroom is a parachute experiment.
This activity will foster curiosity and critical thinking. I will begin the lesson by posing different questions to the children e.g. ‘How do parachutes work?’, ‘What makes a good parachute?’
I will organise the children into groups and encourage them to brainstorm various materials that their parachute could be made from. I will supply each group with a selection of materials so that they could design and make their very own parachute. The children will then conduct the experiment by dropping their parachute from a height and record its time in the air.
Once the experiment is complete, we will analyse the results and compare which designs worked best and why. This reflection stage promotes discussion, allowing the children to explain their findings and revise their understanding. This method encourages active learning and deeper comprehension of the experiment being carried out.
