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I’m going to use the Climate Detectives Research Question Planner to develop my own research question in relation to Waste Management.
Does the question fit the theme of climate?–Yes– Is the question themed on a single problem or focus? –Yes (Waste Management) – Is the question too broad or narrow? –No it’s concise for Primary school children –Is the question clear and concise? –Yes – Is the answer to the question too readily available? –No the children will have to research ways to deal with effective waste management. – Is the question feasible? –Yes it is definitely achievable.
Finalise Question: The question will be ‘What steps do we take to reduce waste in our homes and in our school?’
Step 1 – Brainstorming and Mind Mapping. I would find out what my class already knows about Waste Management; How do they deal with their waste? Where do they put it? Do they separate it? Do their classmates separate it? Does their family separate it?
Step 2 – I would show my class Environmental Biology: Waste Management Strategies website https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-monroe-environmentalbiology/chapter/15-2-waste-management-strategies/#:~:text=The%20long%2Drecognized%20hierarchy%20of,disposal%20(see%20Figure%20below). which recommends dealing with waste in this order; prevention, minimisation, reuse, recycle, energy recovery, disposal.
Step 3 – We would discuss ways of preventing waste (bring your own shopping bag to the shop), minimising waste (using yoghurt cartons as plant pots), reusing waste (for Art projects and construction) recycling (green bins, ‘Bring It Back Scheme’), energy recovery (solar panels) and disposal (black bin)
Step 4- I would put the children into groups and each one would make a poster project about each of the ways to minimise waste and deal with waste management
Hello Aine, it would be a good idea to contact Paddy Madden in Marino Institute of Education about this. He has such a vast knowledge about the environment and always uses a very hands-on practical approach. The study of mini-beasts is always a popular topic, especially with younger classes as they love getting out and digging in the soil. It can motivate outdoor lessons where the children have to explore their school environment in a practical way.
I love the step by step approach you took in investigating this climate issue; Mind mapping, practical investigation, logging and recording, checking past recordings, posters and leaflets showing actions points. This has inspired me in my tackling of this module question.
Hey Colette,
This sounds like a fascinating lesson to do with my class. I must check out the YouTube videos you mentioned and research some art lessons that could be integrated with SESE. Was Chris Hadfield on the ISS? I used too show my classes his videos which were both educational and entertaining (how to eat in space, sleep in space, brush your teeth in space, go to the toilet in space). You mentioned some good points about integration with writing lessons and language lessons. I must explore all of these in September.
EO Satellites detect the changing planet, changes in the weather, arctic ice, air pollution, deforestation, energy consumption and can answer questions about gravity, soil moisture, the salinity of our oceans and the earth’s magnetic field.
I decided to download the ‘Satellite Tracker’ app onto my phone and was excited to find out what was soaring through the heavens above me……but when I opened it it said ‘no visible passes. The nearest one was the ISS which was off the south western coast of Mexico! When I explored the app it let me know that the satellite would be passing at 18.42 that evening. With further playing around with the app I realised that I had to ‘select’ the other satellites that I wanted to track. That’s when the fun began! Here are the satellites that passed Ireland recently and an explanation of what they are doing:
Seasat (Norad ID-10967) : measuring the sea; wave heights, ocean topography, liquid water content, surface winds and temperatures etc
Quess (Norad ID-41731) : measuring quantum communications from space, the goal is to be able to transmit secure, unhackable messages between financial institutions, multinational companies and military forces
Resurs-DK No.1 (Norad ID-29228) : measuring high quality visible images of the Earth’s surface
Aqua (Norad ID-27424) : measuring the Earth’s water cycle, sea ice, evaporation and soil moisture etc
Adeos II (Norad ID-10967) : measuring and observing the environment; fishery, meteorology and climate science
I must say I really enjoyed the 2009 French documentary ‘Home’ for its global message, picturesque scenes and amazing cinematography. I hadn’t heard of it before but I’m glad now to have seen it thanks to this module. I really liked the aerial shots which made you think about the bigger picture; that we are all on this spinning ball in space and we all have a responsibility to take care of it.
The Greta Thunberg ‘Ted Talk’ was fascinating, she is so intelligent and articulate. It would be very beneficial to show this to Primary School as they could really relate to her.
I enjoyed the video ‘Ireland’s Climate Action Plan’ as it was short and concise with plenty of facts like:
1) By 2030 70% of all electricity generated must be from renewable sources
2) By 2030 there will be 950,000 electric vehicles on the road
3) By 2030 100,000 existing homes will be upgraded to a BER B2 ratingI would envisage introducing these climate change facts to my pupils by:
A) Encouraging the integration of drama into the lesson – can the children come up with short plays together to demonstrate techniques to protect the environment?
B) I would pause certain parts of each video to discuss the facts that are presented by asking How? Why? And What? Questions
C) Having shown my class the videos mentioned I would encourage them to form groups to complete a project called ‘Tackling Climate Change’. This could be done in a scrapbook, on a poster, or online (using a chromebook or laptop)Hey Aine,
You make a great point of how climate change is interlinked. Obviously some countries are more guilty than others depending on their size, infrastructure and pollution rates, but at the end of the day we are on one planet together so we must mind it together. I also liked how you would concentrate on the positive aspects of ‘Home’ as it is a hard hitting documentary (I suppose it has to be otherwise the message won’t be as effective). You recommend that the children concentrate on the facts and I agree that this would be a good way to motivate them to think up ideas to prevent climate change from an irish perspective.
Activity 3 (Climate Reporters) asks the children to look at future climate scenarios and analyse how these will impact temperatures. This is a great activity because it provides two excellent resources; the Paxi Video about greenhouse gases and the TEAL Tool.
The Paxi Video would be more suitable for junior classes as it is a very straightforward and simple carton with language geared towards younger children. I would use the KWL teaching and learning strategy. First I would ask the children what they already know (K) about greenhouse gases. We would brainstorm here and listen to their prior knowledge on the topic. Then I would ask the children what they want to know about greenhouse gases and we would write these on the board. Finally, having shown the children the Paxi Video we could all discuss what we have learned and take more notes on the board.
Using the TEAL tool would be more geared towards senior classes with access to their own laptop or chromebook. The excellent thing about this tool is that the children could explore climate variables (rainfall, temperature and radiation) from the 1950’s to the present day. They could each take a country and track its climate and then discuss their findings with the class. As a follow up they could do an interactive presentation for the class using the tool (as long as there is an interactive whiteboard in the classroom.
You raised some great points here Sharon, about the children’s awareness of greenhouse gases and the greenhouse effect due to the ubiquitousness of the media. Young children are well versed in recycling, the different colour bins we use and now with the ‘Bring it back scheme’ they are more motivated than ever to recycle their cans and bottles so as to make some money. I like the way you mentioned the heatwaves in some countries while others are experiencing floods. You said that the Paxi video ends with a positive outlook but I still think it would induce some level of anxiety and guilt in younger classes.
In reviewing ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics’, I learned that STEM education emphasises real-world applications and encourages students to apply their knowledge in meaningful ways, such as developing renewable energy solutions or advancing medical technologies. It aims to develop critical skills like problem-solving and critical thinking. This integrated approach prepares students for future challenges and opens up opportunities in some of the fastest-growing career sectors. In my classroom STEM is practised by taking on integrated projects on paper, construction, computers and model building which mesh the subjects Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics together in a meaningful way
Activity 1 – Initially the difference between weather and climate can be a difficult concept to grasp, especially for younger classes. However, once the children learn that weather is the short term atmospheric conditions in a specific place while climate is the long term weather patterns over a period of time, only then can they complete activities about their differences
Activity 2 – The children in my class would love this as they have been studying and recording the weather all year using a station which is located in our courtyard. They love taking turns to record the weather using graphs and pictures and are well reversed in using thermometers, light and moisture meters and anemometers.
The only improvement I could recommend would be to shorten this activities and make them slightly more concise.
Great points raised here Conor. My class did something similar when we studied the inventions of Leonardo da Vinci. Where others focussed on his fantastic paintings (The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper etc) my class found it more interesting to zone in on his original and world-changing inventions. From flying machines to submarines, all of his inventions involved some level of scientific, mathematical, technological and engineering-style thinking.
Your idea about asking the class what inventions could improve is excellent and is something I must delve into this coming academic year.
My only worry in the future is that AI will take over from people’s ideas and technology will replace original human thoughts
