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Hi Shaun,
I love the idea of inviting speakers into the classroom. It really brings learning to life. When pupils hear directly from someone with real-world experience, it makes the subject more engaging and meaningful. It also helps children see the links between what they’re learning and the world around them.
To get my pupils involved in a creative project around our local natural or scientific heritage, I’d start by taking them for a walk in the area. We’d take time to notice the details: plants, animals, landscapes, or anything with a story, taking photos, writing notes and making sketches. Back at school, we’d chat about what stood out and start brainstorming on the interactive whiteboard. Pupils could then choose how they want to respond—some might write a story or poem, others might paint, create music inspired by nature sounds, or put together a short drama piece about a local scientist or discovery. I’d make it fun, flexible, and hands-on, giving them space to explore their own interests while connecting with the place they live. We’d finish with a mini exhibition in our classroom where they can share their work with different classes in our school.
Hi Natasha, I can only imagine the excitement in the junior classes as they carry out tests to see what their bridges can hold. This will really bring their learning to life for them.
How you would use a local engineering feature as inspiration for a classroom or outdoor design and make project:
There’s a big wind turbine just outside my village that I’d use as inspiration for a design and make project. It’s a great example of engineering that helps produce clean energy, so I think it would be a great starting point for learning about renewable power. For the project, we could design and build our own small wind turbines using simple materials like paper, cardboard, and wooden sticks.We could test different blade shapes and sizes to see which ones spin the fastest when placed in front of a fan or out in the wind. It would be a fun way to learn about energy, design, and how engineering works in real life. It also ties into what’s happening in our local area, so it would feel more relevant and interesting. It would also be a great group activity that mixes creativity and problem-solving.
Hi Dolores,
Bringing some of what the kids find back into the classroom for a nature table is a great idea. It woud keep the excitement going and give everyone a chance to share and talk about what they’ve seen. It’s a brilliant way to make the learning more engaging and to connect the kids with the world around them.
To register my school with the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, I would visit pollinators.ie and go to the “Schools” section. Then, I will download the Pollinator Plan for Schools guide and register my school as a “Pollinator-Friendly School” by submitting a simple form detailing my planned actions.
To help pollinators, we will take several steps in my school. We will start by planting pollinator-friendly flowers,avoiding chemical pesticides. We could create wildflower patches and leave some areas of grass uncut to provide food and shelter. We could install bee hotels and create log or stone piles for solitary bees. We could teach the children about pollinators through lessons and projects. We could also take part in citizen science projects like bee monitoring. We could encourage the children to create posters to show the school’s commitment and inspire the other children.
Hi Niamh,
I love the idea of the children completing the hands-on activity outside the classroom. Drawing the images as they move around the school and creating their own maps of a space they are familiar with, will make their work so much more relevant to them.
How I would plan and conduct a lesson on map making in the younger classes and how I would incorporate some online tools such as Google maps or Geohive
I would begin by showing different types of maps and asking students what they know about maps. I would then use Google Maps on the Interactive whiteboard to explore the school and local area, switching between map and satellite views, and using Street View for a virtual walk. I would also briefly explore GeoHive to show how maps can display layers like population or terrain.
I would then ask the students to create their own simple maps—of the classroom, their route to school, or a favorite place—using symbols and a legend. I would encourage sharing and discussion as rhe children are working and after the activity is complete.
Hi Danielle, the children designing their own solar panels is such a good idea as it is so relevant at the moment. A lot of the children, especially the older ones will be familiar with their parents getting solar panels installed on their homes and it will make the learning so much more meaningful for them.
Using the I-Lofar radio telescope as inspiration and some of the introduced lesson plans and themed frameworks as reference, outline how you would conduct an inquiry based lesson on waves, sound and light and make it accessible to your pupils.
First, I would show the children a short video about the I-LOFAR radio telescope in Birr, which “listens” to space using invisible waves.
Next, I would then ask them, “How can we hear or see things that we can’t with just our eyes or ears?”
Then, I would use the following activities for the children to explore this idea:
1.Sound waves: Stretch cling film over a bowl, put rice on top, and tap the side to show how vibrations move sound.
2. Water waves: Fill a tray with water and drop small stones to watch ripples spread.
3. Light waves: Use a mirror and flashlight to bounce light around the room. Shine the light through a glass of water to make a rainbow.
I would end the lesson by asking the children to draw their own space “listening” machine and ask them to present their drawings to the class, explaining how their machine would work.This is a great idea given the amount of development in areas at the moment and the issues residents are having in protecting green spaces in their areas. I like the idea of researching historical data and the children making predictions then about what it might be like in their area in years to come.
I used the Climate Detectives research question planner to develop my own research question in relation to a climate issue. The question I chose was as follows: How can planting more trees around our school help reduce the effects of climate change in our community?
The children could be divided into five groups. Each group could be given a heading to research. The five headings we could focus on could be: Absorption of carbon dioxide, Provision of shade, improving air quality, enhancing biodiversity & preventing soil erosion. The children could then develop and present projects based on their findings to the rest of the class. This could be extended and the children could then present their projects to other classes in the school.
The children could then be involved in the planting of trees in the area which would help them to learn further about the different benefits that trees provide. This could also give them a sense of ownership over taking action against climate change in their own area and over looking after the trees themselves.
I agree Laura, I think the children would love all three of the activities. I like the link you mentioned between patterns in Maths and the weather patterns in certain areas.
I chose to download the Teacher Guide & Pupil Activities for the ESA Resource ‘ Nose High Up in The Sky’. The resource has three lovely activities in it.
The first activity is based on weather proverbs. The children would really enjoy listening to the different weather proverbs and drawing their own conclusions on whether there is any truth to each of the proverbs from their own experience. They would also enjoy making the comparison between how weather is predicted now and how forecasting had to rely on human experience before the development of the technology that we use now.
The second activity follows on from the first by showing how meteorologists rely on Science now to predict the weather. It also includes the fact that we can use our senses to describe the weather. This activity could be extended to include research on how animals use their senses to predict the weather and other signs in nature that show us a certain type of weather is on its way.
The children would really enjoy the hands on learning in activity three where they can make their own anemometer to measure wind speed. This would be a lovely activity to do in small groups. The children could include the temperature, wind speed and rainfall amounts in a weekly weather diary.
