[Fiona Carroll]

This is very worthwhile John and something pupils could learn a lot from and could be linked with their home and how much energy they could save at home by being energy aware.

[Fiona Carroll]

My Research Question: How much water is used to make the clothes we wear, and how can choosing sustainable fashion reduce our impact on the environment?

I believe this Climate Detectives investigation on the area of ‘Fast Fashion’ would be useful and appealing to pupils in 5th & 6th class because it connects climate change to something pupils experience every day. The children would likely be shocked to learn that producing a single cotton T-shirt can require approx. 2,700 litres of water and a pair of jeans can use around 7,500 litres. Pupils would be encouraged to investigate these facts and to to think critically about where their clothes come from and the environmental impact of buying new clothing.

I would encourage participation by beginning with a class discussion about pupils’ favourite clothing brands and how often they/people they know buy new clothes. We will watch the following video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNiAWE2v8eo

Pupils could then investigate on the iPads the journey of a T-shirt from cotton production to the finished product and identify where water, energy and transport are used in the process. Pupils could;

– calculate the “water footprint” of their wardrobes,

-compare fast fashion with second-hand clothing and

-explore simple ways to reduce waste with clothes, such as repairing, swapping or donating clothes.

Pupils could work in  small groups, design awareness posters/presentations and over time we could possibly organize a school second hand clothes swap/sale to promote sustainable fashion. Linking this project to pupils’ everyday lives would make their learning meaningful and demonstrate that small changes in ‘consumer behaviour’ can help conserve water, reduce waste and lower greenhouse gas emissions. The investigation would promote scientific inquiry, collaboration and responsible citizenship while encouraging pupils to make more environmentally friendly choices and has many links with Media Education in SPHE.

In addition to this, pupils could also investigate if our school having a school uniform reduces the environmental impact of clothing compared with wearing different outfits every day. Having researched water use in the production of clothes my class/other senior classes in the school could then;

– compare the lifespan of uniforms and everyday clothes

– compare the number of outfits a pupil without a uniform might wear in a school year with the number of uniform items needed

-research how much water is used to produce a polo shirt, jumper, trousers or skirt.

– calculate whether wearing a uniform means fewer casual clothes are bought.

– investigate how long uniforms last and whether they are handed down to siblings or donated to the school

-survey parents about whether uniforms save money, reduce clothing purchases and are reused.

-make evidence-based conclusions based on their findings and present their findings to the school community

I feel this would be a very worthwhile climate detective investigation can could bring many classes in my school on board with promoting awareness around one contributor to climate change.

[Fiona Carroll]

Hi Alyson, I really like the Nose High up in the Sky as it is a great STEM resource and helps with linking different concepts and skills in STEM across different curricular areas.

[Fiona Carroll]

I found this a bit challenging to use and navigate correctly by it appears that quite a few have recently passed over Ireland.

1. Star link Satellite: It provides high-speed broadband internet, esp. to remote and rural areas with limited internet access.
2. Sentinel 2A: It is part of the European Copernicus Earth observation programme and takes high resolution images of  the earth’s surface. It is used to monitor forests, agriculture, water quality, wildfires and the effects of climate change.

3. NOAA20: This weather satellite collects data on clouds, storms, oceans and land temperatures which helps meteorologists produce more accurate weather forecasts and monitor climate change.
4. Sentinel 1A: It is a radar satellite and takes images of the earth’s surface day and night. It is used to monitor floods, sea ice, land movement and environmental change.
5. International Space Station (ISS): The ISS regularly passes over Ireland. It is as a form of a lab where astronauts carry out scientific experiments in areas of biology, physics and earth observation.

[Fiona Carroll]

I agree Leah that there are so many ideas in this module that would really appeal to children. I also wonder with so many great ideas, where will I start in September in approaching climate change in my class and school.

[Fiona Carroll]

Having watched the documentary video ‘Home’, my thoughts on it are overall Wow. It is an impactful and thought-provoking film that showcases not only the beauty of our planet earth but also the devastating impact that human activity especially in recent decades has had on the planet. The video uses mostly aerial footage and focuses on interconnectedness of all ecosystems and organisms on earth. While I knew this, I don’t think I had really though about how interconnected all ecosystems really are. This documentary highlights the themes of deforestation, pollution, overconsumption and abuse of of natural resources and greenhouse gas emissions and how these human activities are driving climate change. Much of this video has made me think of biodiversity and how my school has been approaching the teaching of biodiversity in light of my school’s ‘Green Flag’ for biodiversity. This documentary presents worrying facts and makes me think of how the central messages can be presented to pupils so they understand the interconnectedness of our world and their own actions can climate change in a positive way if communities and governments worked more closely together. As this film was made circa 2010, I am also reflecting on how the global conflicts ion recent years has further impacted on the earth and in terms of climate change.

The Climate Aid 2020 promotional video was also excellent in highlighting how people from around the world can unite to promote climate action through music, education and public awareness. This video would be a good stimulus in my classroom to begin a debate on ‘ ‘c ‘Climate change is a shared global challenge which requires collective responsibility and cooperation’.

In my own classroom from September, I will be exploring in a bigger way pupils’ existing understanding of weather, climate and caring for the environment . We will watch some of the videos mentioned so far in this course and discuss what pupils notice, how the images make them feel and why certain places on earth are changing. It will be important to focus on both the positive and negative impact of human activity around the world. I will encourage pupils to think about everyday actions they can take, such as reducing waste, recycling, conserving energy and protecting biodiversity and also get them to explore what countries around the world can do. There is so much to unpack in these excellent videos, I am beginning to wonder where to begin the discussion with pupils and how much to tackle in any one lesson or month (5th class)?

[Fiona Carroll]

I agree Leah that have the local element is central for making this meaningful to real life in the daily lives of the pupil. I like the idea pupils or schools coming up with practical actions they could within their own local community.

[Fiona Carroll]

Activity 3 would be a very useful way to introduce greenhouse gases and climate change to my class and pupils in my school. I feel that the Paxi video was also useful because it explains something which is quite complicated in a simple, pupil-friendly way and as it’s quite visual would benefit visual learners. I will use this as it would be helpful for my class in teaching them about how greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere and contribute to rising global temperatures.
I also found the tool for predicting future temperatures fairly useful, as it would help all pupils to explore how changes in greenhouse gas emissions will impact temperatures into the future. This could encourage pupils to make predictions, discuss evidence and develop their skills when working as a scientist. I would use this activity with my class as part of a lesson on climate change and allowing pupils to work in pairs to explore different scenarios and discuss their findings with the whole class
I feel the activity could be improved by including a short a set of prompt questions at the end of page 10, to help pupils reflect on what actions they could take and/or actions of people living in our local communities could take to reduce emissions would be very beneficial. A reflective set of prompt questions like this would encourage pupils to reflect about their role in protecting their local environment and community where they live and grow up in.

[Fiona Carroll]

I like your thoughts on the sorting activity and did something similar a few years ago with 5th/6th class. I agree some of the concepts  within some of the statements might be challenging for some pupils and the language may need to to simplified.

[Fiona Carroll]

Having reviewed Liston’s paper, I have a better understanding of how STEM education is all about building pupil’s learning making the links for pupils through integration across the school curriculum. I like the information on developing problem-solving, creativity and allowing pupils to work with others to figure concepts out. I am now more aware of allowing pupils to investigate real world problems by themselves and sourcing information rather than giving them too much information/pointing them directly to the likely answer. Talk and discussion on what pupils are thinking is just as important.
I found the ESA resources fairly practical, especially allowing pupils to investigate, predict, measure and communicate their own findings. I will use the ideas/videos from the slides in module 1 to hopefully set up a weather station at the back of our school playground. By doing this, pupils from my own class and different class levels can record the daily temperature at set times of the day, rainfall amounts, wind speed and direction. The senior classes could explore in in a deeper way the difference between weather and climate. I would lead staff and pupils in sharing findings through displays in the school corridors and at some of our school assemblies, along with some posts on our school’s social media. This will hopefully encourage the whole school to discuss and communicate climate matters and awareness.

Activity 1: Is it Weather or Climate?, would be useful for developing pupils’ understanding of the difference between short term weather and longer term climate patterns.
Activity 2:Weather Detectives, would be good to encourage pupils to observe, record and interpret information. I could use this activity within my school for a school wide weather station project in the school grounds. This activity would be a good stimulus to investigate how local weather patterns may relate to climate change.

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