[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Totally agree Grainne,  whilst it is very important for children to become aware of how our actions influence the environment, we certainly need to be mindful of eco-anxiety and be mindful of the information that we teach them.

[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Module 2 Assignment : Siobhan ni hIceadha
After watching the Paxi video on Greenhouse gases I must say I found it very child /user friendly and easy to understand. The video is suitable for all age groups, and I really liked the use of simple language used whilst at the same time getting very important messages across. It explained very well what the greenhouse effect is. I know in the area I teach in , a lot of families have greenhouses in their gardens so the children could compare it to this very easily. I also like the way that we can help to fix the problem. Im thinking in particular of my infant class here- walk / jog / cycle instead of car where possible. We actually promote walk on Wednesdays as it is, which has proved very popular.Turning off lights / tablets/ tvs when not in use. I have a child eachweek in charge of making sure the classroom lights are off and the whiteboard at break times. The NEVER forget to remind me  !
Also promoting the planting of trees is very easy for infants to understand.
Using the tools for predicting future temperatures etc is very good . However, I fell it is more suitable for the older classes.
Activity 3 –climate reporters has some great activities and resources for teachers. Again however I feel these are more suited to middle/ senior classes mostly.The climate detective kids resource I would certainly use in future if I have an older class-chrn 8-12 years old. Howver I do think the Paxi animation videos I would use with my infants-these are great .

[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Totally agree here re brainstorming before introducing this. I am ofetn very pleasnatly surprised to find the children have alot more prior knowledge on topics than I would have expected.

[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Module 1 Assignment: Siobhan ni hiceadha
Review the paper Unravelling STEM
Download the ESA – Done
Watched Nose up / Weather v climate
Provide feedback to ESA resources:
The Unravelling STEM paper really highlighted the importance of a hands on and active learning approach. It also highlighted encouraging the children to become more critical thinkers.
I teach Senior Infants. I am happy to see that a lot of these activities in this module can be made age appropriate for all classes.
Nose up high to the sky and climate vs weather are very good resources to have seen here, and are very user friendly.
The creation of a Weather Station in school is an excellent idea for getting all children in the school involved and a great way of developing childrens STEM skills at different levels. I feel it is important here to make sure the green schools committee/ student council are responsible to making sure the purchased / made equipment is taken care of. We are very lucky in my school that we have a fabulous school garden which would be an ideal area to create a weather station for the whole school to use. We would need to purchase some equipment but also the older classes would really enjoy creating some equipment to record the weather.
For me in the infant classroom I would be using these ideas cross curricularly. Aistear would be a great way to teaching about weather /climate – from teaching the names of different types of weather/ weather measuring equipment/ drawing the weather/ role play of being the weather person of the day etc. Also have the weather corner where the weather each day is recorded pictorally. Selecting a weekly weather detective is another great idea which my infants would love.
I also have used a lovely idea where I take photos of our school garden in all different seasons. The children really loved this as it’s the same area but the can see how the different seasons/ weather change the landscape.

[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Module 1 Assignment: Siobhan ni hiceadha
Review the paper Unravelling STEM
Download the ESA – Done
Watched Nose up / Weather v climate
Provide feedback to ESA resources:
The Unravelling STEM paper really highlighted the importance of a hands on and active learning approach. It also highlighted encouraging the children to become more critical thinkers.
I teach Senior Infants. I am happy to see that a lot of these activities in this module can be made age appropriate for all classes.
Nose up high to the sky and climate vs weather are very good resources to have seen here, and are very user friendly.
The creation of a Weather Station in school is an excellent idea for getting all children in the school involved and a great way of developing childrens STEM skills at different levels. I feel it is important here to make sure the green schools committee/ student council are responsible to making sure the purchased / made equipment is taken care of. We are very lucky in my school that we have a fabulous school garden which would be an ideal area to create a weather station for the whole school to use. We would need to purchase some equipment but also the older classes would really enjoy creating some equipment to record the weather.
For me in the infant classroom I would be using these ideas cross curricularly. Aistear would be a great way to teaching about weather /climate – from teaching the names of different types of weather/ weather measuring equipment/ drawing the weather/ role play of being the weather person of the day etc. Also have the weather corner where the weather each day is recorded pictorally. Selecting a weekly weather detective is another great idea which my infants would love.
I also have used a lovely idea where I take photos of our school garden in all different seasons. The children really loved this as it’s the same area but the can see how the different seasons/ weather change the landscape.

[Siobhan Ni hiceadha]

Great idea Grainne to make the weather station accessible to the whole school. Also important to ensure the equipment is looked after and not get broken etc. Maybe school council children might enjoy this job.

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