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I really like your idea of the concept mapping Michael, especially when the video is so long its a good way to take the main parts from the section the children have just watched
“Home” by Yann Arthus-Bertrand is a powerful and visually stunning documentary that explores the planet’s diversity and the impact of human activity on the environment. The film is made entirely from aerial shots and is designed to give viewers a new perspective on the beauty of Earth and the challenges it faces. By incorporating “Home” into the classroom, teachers can inspire young students to appreciate the beauty of the planet and understand the importance of taking care of the environment.
Introduction to Climate Change:
- Begin by asking the students what they know about weather and seasons.
- Explain that climate is the usual weather of a place over a long time.
- Introduce the concept of climate change by explaining that the Earth’s climate is changing more quickly now because of certain activities.
Introduce the documentary, explaining that it shows many beautiful places around the world from a unique perspective and talks about how we can help protect these places.
Discussion:
- After watching the segments, discuss with the students what they saw.
Ask questions such as: - What did you find most beautiful or interesting?
- What are some things people do that can harm the environment?
- How can we help take care of our planet?
Simple Environmental Actions:
- Create a list of simple actions students can take to help the environment, such as recycling, conserving water, and planting trees.
- Make a classroom pledge to adopt one or more of these actions.
Sounds like a lovely idea Sean, I really like the cross curricular aspects of the lesson, this will really keep the children excited and interested.
Activity- Making Rockets
Students will learn about rockets and how they work by building and launching their own simple rockets.
Materials Needed:
- Balloons
- Drinking straws
- String or fishing line
- Tape
Introduction to Rockets:
- Begin by asking the students, “What do you know about rockets?” and “What do rockets do?”
- Show picture cards or posters of rockets and space exploration.
- Explain that rockets are powerful machines that help us travel into space and explore other planets.
- Discuss how rockets work: they use fuel to create thrust, which pushes them up into the sky.
- Explain the basic parts of a rocket: the body, fins, and nose cone
Making a balloon rocket:
- Thread a piece of string through a straw. The string should be long enough to stretch across the room or yard.
- Tie one end of the string to a chair or doorknob and hold the other end tightly.
- Inflate a balloon but don’t tie it. Instead, tape the balloon to the straw.
- Pull the straw to one end of the string and let go of the balloon. Watch as it zips along the string like a rocket!
- Allow the children to decorate their rockets using different art materials.
Discuss how the air escaping from the balloon creates thrust, propelling the rocket forward.
Launch Time:
- Take the students to an open space for launching their balloon rockets
- Allow each child to launch their rockets and observe the results.
- Encourage them to experiment with different designs and see how changes affect the rocket’s flight.
Discussion:
Gather the students and discuss what they observed during the rocket launches.
Ask questions like, “What made the rocket go?” and “How did different designs change the way the rocket flew?”This is such a lovely idea and could be a lesson done at anytime of the year. There are so many opportunities for each child to use their own imagination, its a lesson with huge potential I think
The activity I would choose would be different types of houses and where people live.
Introduction: Ask about various types of houses, do we all live in the same type of house or do people live in different kinds of homes, and recognize that homes can vary based on location and cultural differences.
Materials Needed:
Picture cards or posters of different types of houses (e.g., apartment, house, igloo, hut, castle, etc.)
A world map or globe
Construction paper, scissors, glue, and markers
Internet access for showing videos or animations (optional)
Notebook and pencil for each studentIntroduction to Homes:
- Start by asking the students, “What is a home?” and “What type of home do you live in?”
- Explain that people around the world live in different kinds of homes.
Show Different Types of Houses: - Use picture cards or posters to show various types of houses. Briefly describe each one.
Interactive Activity – Where Do You Live?:
- Show a world map or globe.
- Point to different regions and discuss the types of houses commonly found in those areas.
- Cold Regions: Igloos.
- Urban Areas: Apartments and houses.
- Rural Areas: Huts and houses.
- Historical Areas: Castles.
- Water Areas: Houseboats.
Encourage students to think about why different types of houses are built in different places.
Discussion:
- Have a group discussion about why people live in different types of houses.
- Consider factors like climate, culture, and location.
Ask questions like, “Would you like to live in a treehouse? Why or why not?” to encourage critical thinking and sharing of ideas
There are many ways in which this lesson could be expanded for example the children could create there own dream home using different art materials.
This sounds like a really lovely lesson CarolAnne, I’m sure the children will love all the interactive aspects and it sounds like it will be easily accessible for all abilities.
The Activity I have chosen in this module is The Planets
Introduce students to the planets in our solar system, helping them learn the names, order, and some basic facts about each planet.
Materials Needed:- Picture cards or posters of the planets
- A large sheet of paper or a whiteboard
- Markers or colored pencils
- Internet access for showing videos or animations
- Notebook and pencil for each student
- Warm-Up Activity:
- Begin with a simple question: “What do you know about the planets?
- Let the children share what they already know. Write down their responses on the board.
- Introduction to the Solar System:
- Explain that our solar system is a big family of planets, and they all orbit around the Sun.
- Show a picture or a model of the solar system to give a visual reference.
- Introduce the term “orbit” and explain it simply: “Orbit means the path each planet takes to go around the Sun.”
- Introducing the Planets:
- Show pictures or posters of each planet one by one, starting from the closest to the Sun.
- Use a catchy mnemonic to help them remember the order of the planets, such as: “My Very Excited Mother Just Served Us Noodles” (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune).
- For each planet, share a couple of interesting facts. Keep it simple and engaging.
- Activity – Create a Solar System Model:
- using colored paper and markers to draw and cut out each planet.
- Once the planets are ready, arrange them in order on a large sheet of paper or on a string to create a hanging mobile.
- Reflection:
- Review the order of the planets and their key features.
- Ask the children to share their favorite planet and why they like it.
- Encourage them to draw or write a short description of their favorite planet in their notebooks.
This is a really niced idea Laura, I think the children will really enjoy making there own Martian’s.
Introduction: Ask your class what they see when they look up in the sky at night. Talk about how they see stars.
Wondering: What are stars made of, how do they light up the night sky. Explain to your students that stars are made up of gas and that’s how they light up the night sky.
Starter Question: Show students the cover of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Have students make predictions about what the story will be about. Record the answers.
The Lesson: Explain to the students that today they are going to make their very own starry night scene. Give each child a piece of paper, paintbrushes and paint. They children can choose to paint their page either black or blue. After the paint has dried, pass the paintings back out to your children. Pass out star stencils and crayons. Allow the children to place stars of various colours on their skies.
Interpreting results: Look at all the pictures, ask the children about the differences and remind them that the sky looks different for every person, why? Are the in a different country, time zone?
This lesson could be extended with phases of the moon.Teacher reflection with the class
Such a lovely idea using the Bee Bots, I think there is so much the children can learn with hands on materials. I’m sure this will keep many children engaged.
Creating an inquiry-based activity on gravity for 7-year-olds can be both fun and educational. The key is to keep the concepts simple and engaging while encouraging curiosity and exploration.
Activity: Exploring gravity with falling objects.
Materials needed:
A variety of small toys
stopwatch or timer
ruler or measuring tape
a note book for recording
a large open space to test your objects
Introduction:
- Begin with a simple explanation of gravity: “Gravity is a force that pulls everything down towards the ground.”
- Ask the children if they have noticed how things fall to the ground when they drop them. Encourage them to share their observations.
Predictions:
- Show the children the different objects you have. Ask them to predict which objects they think will fall faster or slower and why.
- Write down these predictions in the notebook.
- Experiment – Dropping Objects:
- Stand on a chair or a small step to get some height.
- Hold two different objects at the same height.
- Count down and drop both objects at the same time while another child uses the stopwatch to measure the time it takes for each to hit the ground.
- Record the times in the notebook.
- Observation and Discussion:
- Repeat the experiment with different pairs of objects
- Ask the children to observe which objects fall faster or slower.
- Discuss the results: Did the objects fall at the same speed or different speeds? Were their predictions correct
- Conclusion and Reflection:
- Summarize the key points:
- Gravity pulls objects down, and all objects fall at the same rate if we ignore air resistance.
- Ask the children what they learned and if there were any surprises
