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I really like the idea of making this a whole school project and involving the Green Schools Committee. The idea of focusing on smaller changes is definitely a better approach to achieve success.
How has the recent very hot and dry weather affected life in the local community?
To begin this lesson we would have a class discussion and brainstorm what happens when the weather is hot and dry and how people /animals respond to this. I would then divide the children into groups and look at certain aspects in more detail-affects on people, animals, land, water supply. The children will discuss these and present their findings to the class. We will then look for evidence to consolidate some of the ideas the children had. We will research the actual temperatures and look at local media reports etc. I will also encourage the children to talk to people at home/in the local community and get their views on how the weather has affected them. I will inform the children that it may not always be negative and some people will have found very positive aspects of the recent heatwaves. Following on from this we will look at how if this happens in the future how can we be better prepared and what measures can be taken to ensure that people are safe and have the resources they need to deal with more extreme temperatures and prolonged periods of drought.
I like the idea of using the satellite tracker apps as an extension on to this lesson and also to compare the data collected in the class and the more accurate data from the satellite.
The Nose High Up in the Sky is a very effective resource and one which you could certainly use with the older classes. I really liked the first activity where the children had to discuss proverbs relating to the weather. I think deciphering their meaning and possibly testing their accuracy would be very interesting for the children. I think this could also be used as an activity to link home and school. The children could do some of their own research on weather proverbs and include other family members. The second and third activity is very practical and hands on. It links into art very well as the students have to make their own weather instruments. This would be a great groupwork activity and again the pupils could test the reliability of their instruments after. This resource combines a nice mix of opportunities for oral language development and can be linked also with history and art which makes it ideal for completing a thematic unit on weather and climate.
I think the idea of having follow up practical activities is excellent. It reinforces the concepts for the children and lends itself to all learning styles.
I found the video HOME both interesting and thought provoking. The strong imagery of planet earth is very effective and shows just how much change has occurred throughout the years. The video portrays how human activity has impacted our environment and how it all has a knock on effect. I think it would be worth showing parts of this to an older class as I do think it would be a good stimulus for discussion and also would make them think about the last affects of human activity on planet earth. For 5th and 6th class I would chose maybe one or two aspects e.g. deforestation and climate change and focus on these only for the lesson to start with. I would use the parts of the video that deal with these issues as a stimulus and then ask the children to work in groups to discuss and record how these issues impact us.
I agree that a weather station would be a fantastic resource to have in the school yard. It would make children more aware of the different types of weather each day and I like the way that knowledge could be passed down from the senior classes to the younger classes.
I agree here with making a link to the local area and community. I think this can make the concept of climate change less abstract especially for younger children.
I thought the Paxi video explaining greenhouse gases was very effective and engaging. I think it makes what can be an abstract concept for children to comprehend easier to understand. This could definitely be used as a stimulus for discussion for a lesson on climate change. I found the tool for predicting future temperatures very interesting especially in light of the recent extreme temperatures that Europe has seen over the Summer. This could also act as a great stimulus for discussion and is a good visual to explain how the earth has and is heating up over time. I found the activity based on climate reporters to be lacking a bit of practical activities. I could see that there was a worksheet to be filled in but I think this could be broadened to include some opportunities for actual reporting and researching. Linking it to the weather here in Ireland would make it more real for the children. There could be opportunity for discussion on the effects of climate change on different aspects of life here in Ireland. The children could then present their research and opinions to the rest of the class or to other classes in the school.
I think the paper Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics is quite thought provoking in that it makes you consider how you teach STEM in your classroom. It is arguing that a true STEM lesson should include all four areas, science, technology, engineering and maths. It does make you think about the lessons that have been labelled ‘STEM’ but might actually only have one of the elements in them. It is something I will consider going forward when planning for STEM in my classroom.
Having looked at the climate vs weather resource I have considered how I would teach this to 5th and 6th class. I think as an opening to the topic we would discuss the weather on that given day. I would then ask the children if they think the weather would be the same on this day next year. This will introduce their thinking towards climate vs. weather. We will then look at the definitions of weather and climate and discuss. We will then engage in the first activity. The pupils will engage in group work to discuss which statements are weather and which are climate. I will then ask the groups to explain weather and climate in their own words. I think the groupwork aspect will help children who may find this concept challenging as the groups will be of mixed ability facilitating peer learning.
For activity two we will firstly discuss some temperature predictions. I will ask the pupils to predict what the temperature is outside and also discuss how we can accurately measure it. We will then discuss where the thermometer should be placed and why it should be in a certain area. We will then record the temperature of the school yard over the period of a week and then work on plotting the results on a graph. This lesson is effective as it incorporates lots of oral language and I particularly like the way it includes some maths work with presenting the data at the end.