Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Margaret, do you have a particular “a fun and engaging story about space.” that you would recommend that has a tour of the planets?
Previous participants have suggested:
- On a Dark, Dark night by Jean M. Cochran
- The Sea of Tranquility by Mark Haddon
- The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers
- Back to Earth with a Bump
https://youtu.be/KaCUZUuNTEA - Zoo in the Sky by Jacqueline Mitton
https://youtu.be/Leg_vT0yMq8 - A hundred billion trillion stars by Seth Fishman
https://youtu.be/OtMoDq5Git0 - Katie and the Starry Night by James Mayhew
https://youtu.be/QAPjNMsSc4M - Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed
https://youtu.be/b_mfdqyBqT8 - On a beam of light – story of Albert Einstein
https://youtu.be/Io6aSfV0Oks - Older than the Stars by Karen C Fox
https://youtu.be/Lp1_dCIXqSw
https://www.spaceweek.ie/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/SpaceWeekJunior-1.pdf
That’s a really cute story Sue,
https://youtu.be/aL356cZVfPg?si=eI-CvZ31fKraiv1H
that nicely links shadows and dark to day and night.
Slight growl from me at the size of the Moon!
Mary,
I like how you have noted a key concept:
Make predictions based on observation.
Children cannot make predictions without have some experience of the concept/topic that is the focus of the activity. The Inquiry Framework offers that through the Engage section, and children in junior classes should have playful opportunities to manipulate materials, hear stories and chat to each other about their own understanding.
Lots going on in the science of Jack and the Beanstalk – you’ve falling things and air resistance, mass and gravity. Using simple props and encouraging the children to explore via play is perfect – they can then spot patterns and develop their own explanations, test them, and then check if their predictions were correct.
Caroline,
the snowman activity is great isn’t it. Particularly if the children think that the snowman has a source of heat inside itself (like a human does), so think that in order to keep it cool, the heat from the snowman needs to be let out — so a thin shirt would be better than a thick overcoat.
The Inquiry Framework is designed for children to check their understanding via experimentation – so for the child who thinks that a thin shirt will keep the snowman cooler… they can then test their ideas.
Hi David,
did you look at seed germination or plant growth? This could make an interesting “next step” for the children if they consider 1st the germination (sunlight not needed) vs growth (sun needed).
Children should be encouraged to make predictions – but to do that they do need some background/experience – so with young children you might want to have a class plant that someone is responsible for watering/describing/monitoring etc over the course of a month or more -then use their understanding of this plant to plan an inquiry that allows the children to explore more deeply into plant growth.
(This is from a person who has killed more plants that anyone else she knows!)
Ciara,
I like how you have considered the particular needs of your children when creating a prompt – I agree with you that an accusation (no matter how lightly presented) may be perceived negatively and with fear, so changing it is a good idea.
Emma – can you tell me more about the “cognitive conclusion spinning wheel”? I’m not familiar with that idea.
A quick search came up with this from PDST, adapted from Maeve Liston of Mary I
https://pdst.ie/sites/default/files/STEMLearningExperiencesReflectiveChecklist.pdf
Hi Criona,
You might look at some of the Moon Camp resources from ESA – they are cartoon style, but have a good amount of information. You might check if they would suit your own crew.
Sandra,
you might want to narrow the focus down to a more specific topic to use the Inquiry approach. The idea of “engage/ investigate/take the next step” works best with a narrower prompt/topic.
I think “What is in Space” is too broad , and would be tricky children to answer without a research approach. This might be more suitable for older children who are independent readers.
Each of your
2. Exploration Stations:
• Light & Dark: Use flashlight to show how night/day happens.
• Rocket Building: Build a rocket from blocks or a cardboard box.
• Star Art: Create starry skies with black paper and stickers.
could be an entire inquiry activity – and the children could make actual functioning rockets using one of the activities from Curious Minds (see also module 5 when we look at rockets in more detail).
This could definitely be an Aistear theme for a extended period.
The Whatever Next! story https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c5cb0u0rPM
could make a lovely prompt – particularly if the children compare it to actual space travel (and realise that we don’t go past ‘millions of stars’ on the way to the Moon!).
Marcia, nice work on clearly connecting this science activity to the wider curriculum. You can also link the position of the Sun in the sky to the school’s orientation – ask the children which way their classroom faces by noting what time of day does the Sun shine in the window?
If you have to close the blinds in the morning – you face east. If at lunchtime, you face south, if in the afternoon, you face west. If the Sun never shines in the window – north.
Sean – a way a teacher once described this to me is to challenge the children to “fit” into their shadows even 15 minutes later.
This can be fun if the children make a funny pose to begin with!
Needs a good sunny day for it to work, nothing more disappointing than a partially cloudy day which means the shadows are in and out!
LOVE love love this story!
The rhymes are great:
“What is UV?”
Mum said it’s a harmful form of light
that’s called UV and is out of sight,
like lots of things that are in the air
that we can’t see but are still there.
The sun is hottest around midday
so find a shady place to play,
be extra careful between 11 and 3,
when the Sun produces strong UV.
Find some shade under a tree,
or go indoors for a while maybe.
A tip that’s really good to know
is to look down at your Shadow.
If your Shadow is shorter than you,
slip slap slap is what to do!Thanks for sharing the link to the read-along. If you did want to get the uv beads, Shaws Scientific have carried them. – they are now part of Vitta Education and the beads seem to be UK only.
Baker Ross has “Glow in the Dark Beads” which look to be the same thing.
Louise – that is the first time I have actually seen an episode of Peppa Pig!!
https://youtu.be/Zp9x8AJAU1M?si=c6sdzovyv714Y0uE
the astronomer in me is wincing, but it could be a nice discussion of facts that the show gets ‘right-ish’ – like the shape of stars (are they really 5 pointed?), could you see a shooting star through a telescope (field of view vs how fast a shooting star goes), would you point a telescope out of a window (nope – there would be too much air movement between the warm inside and the cold outside)….
Nice to do this topic in the winter months when it is dark before 6pm and young children can actually be awake!
“Tell me more” is just brilliant.
Inquiry in science is all about using the scientific method to enable deep learning of science by ‘doing’ science – and by using this phrase you are deliberately stepping back from being the “expert” with the answers, to be being a guide to help the children formulate science explanations and test them.
Great stuff.
