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We have a small school garden. This is a great idea for getting them into the garden, being active in a positive way with a good focus. An in class lesson on pollination and the pollinators we could see in the garden would also be a great idea.
My research question is – how is rising sea levels and coastal erosion in the Tralee Bay area threatening the Tralee bay area and what can our community do to adapt and protect it – A climate organistion has predicted that the Tralee area could be under water by 2050.
location connection – students can focus on local landmarks tralee town park, cockleshell beach barrow or fenit coastline
– real threat Climate central maps show parts of Tralee town centre and coastal regions that are at risk of flooding (Historically the town centre and nearby ballymullen areas have flooded) Actions have been taken to change this and this can be investigated historically
– it moves beyond the negativity and focuses on solutions and resilience in community
Investigate – the class can look at maps and see where vulnerable areas are located using EO TOOLS like satellites
interview – local experts, tidy towns, town council, with hands on expericence
brainstorm – practical ways to protect the coast -planting native species, designing a flood defense system
– This would be an engaging question. I would use the curious mind in class experiments to investigate rising sea levels, we could look at maps and satellite pictures to see how land mass has changed, we could also talk to interview and record any information about the future risks of flooding and how it is being managed for the future and then reflect on how we can prepare for this possible event.
I think that the activities in ‘Nose up High in the sky’ are are a great introduction to discussing and learning about the weather and climate on a daily basis. It is also a soft introduction into looking at and learning about satellites and all that the they do in researching and collecting data about the land seas and ice masses on earth. This could open up a longer and deeper investigations into how satellites play such an important role in all our lives.
The 3 activities include
– Talking about the weather using proverbs as a way to engage students. This is a cross curricular topic that can be linked to Science, maths and geography, Irish, art and PE
– Sensing about the weather would involve getting outside and using their senses and this would have a direct impact on well being and overall health. Using a journal to help keep track of the weather over a period of time would also be very informative for them.
– Building a weather station would also involve field work with a creative aspect involving the making of instruments to record eg rain fall or wind speed.
I never knew the skies were so busy and its so interesting to learn what all these satellites are doing in space to help us with all the various issues we have in the world with agriculture, the oceans and land.
the Home video is both beautiful and terrifying to watch. To learn that our existence has been the main instigator in the destruction of planet earth is disheartening and sad. It has such wonderful imagery and a powerful message that helps us to realise that we can do something to change things. And if this is a message we can install in our young students it would be worth showing them some or all of it in parts, over a longer period of time with a huge focus on climate and climate change and how we can do little things often to make a difference.
I think by starting in the classroom with the everyday mundane things like what they have for their sos / lunch and how wasteful they can be. To really have them think about where food comes from (there are some good vidoes for from food to fork) and how making small every day choices can help with this. Encouraging them to recycle and reuse where possible – making good use out their materials – sometimes copies are half used / torn / scribbled on – turning off lights – closing doors to keep heat in – not wasting water – instilling in them the everyday consistency of looking after their environment – is a thing that they can carry with them everywhere.
The video with Greta Thunberg are always a good starting point for these discussions as she is young enough to be relatable to the older classes and has a childs perspective on the future.
Introducing the Climate action plan and the Paris agreement video – and how the government has committed to a plan of action for the future would also be useful in the classroom.
yes I think the Home video is educational and enlightening. I would prefer to show parts to older classes to be used as a tool for engagement and wonder and exploration on how they can as individuals make a difference in their future planet
The Paxi video is very informative. I would introduce some of the language initially eg climate change, atmosphere, the green house effect, green house gases or use a KWL chart to see what they already know about the climate and climate change. The Curious minds website is very useful and the framework for creating an engaging and interesting lesson is really useful ( I really enjoyed the finger print lesson and will be trying it out on my class this year) The 4 step framework – engage, investigate, and reflect is very useful also for future planning.
The TEAL tool is a little intimidating and i feel i would have to introduce it to the class as a whole before letting them use it in groups or individually. Giving them a reason to use it eg investigate the weather in another part of the world you have visited in the past / or a place where you have family living might be a good place to start.
The Activity Climate Reporters is a great way to make the lesson interesting and fun and engaging.
Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics.Reading this article I couldnt help but make a connection with the use of a pen as a perfect example of STEM in action. I have lost count over the past year of the number of pens that have been deconstructed by students in my class, in hind sight they were trying to figure out how they worked and what the different parts entailed. It will make a great future introduction to STEM actitivies this coming year and might help to explain to them what STEM involves.
Using the weather and Climate activities has highlighted how easy it is to introduce discussion and practical activities when explaining the difference between the 2 terms. I would have struggled to explain this before. Making the instruments would be very suitable for an olde class and having them introduce this to younger classes would also be beneficial.
I finished off this year with a STEM project where the students looked at rollercoasters and how they work. They then investigated in groups how they could make and create their own using a variety of recycled materials. It was great fun, engaging and rewarding. I was nervous about it as it involved a lot of free thinking, free planning and noise but it was wonderful to see their finished work.