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I love the idea of a footsteps in time trail. Learning on the go, sketching, note taking and discussing are such valuable skills for the children learning to work as historians.
Our school is located in Ballyboy, Co. Offaly. It is a small rural country school but the locality is rich with history and set in a beautiful landscape at the foot of the Slieve Bloom Mountains adjacent to the Bog of Allen. Right beside the school is the site of a convent founded by St. Brigid in 500 AD. We could research how convents could have looked at that times and using cardboard and recycling materials we could create models of how we would think the convent would look and decorate it. We could use the Grow in Love song ‘Brigid brings the spring’. At the same location in the 1180-1200 the Anglo-Normans established a Motte and Bailey Castle at the same location. We could use creative writing to create letters that the Anglo-Normans might have sent home to their family to describe what Ballyboy was like and their plans for their Motte and Bailey Castle. As the mound still remains in the field in Ballyboy we could go on a walk down to the site and sketch how we imagine the Castle would have looked when it was first built. We could then look across the road to the hedge school established during penal times for the catholic children to access education. We could discuss the history of hedge schools, the risk families were taking just to get an education and the minimal resources students and teachers had to work with and then we could Role-Play what it might have been like to attend a hedge school. When the children have had time to explore and settle into their character role, we will then attempt some hot seating and get the children, still in character, to explain about how they are feeling and what it is like to attend a hedge school. We could then research old photos, maps or illustrations of the 2 historical sites we visited and using decoupage methods we could create collages as a class of the development of the area.
Wow Laura you are so fortunate to be located so close to such a fantastic natural habitat for you and the children to explore. It was lovely to read about the activities and the exploration that the children get to experience on your field trips there.
I pledged my garden and our school garden on the pledge your garden for pollinators.ie. The steps I have taken at home to create a pollinator friendly garden are as follows. I have began restoration on a crumbling bare stone wall to ensure it withstands the test of time and weather or years to come. The I have chosen to plant in my garden are perennial pollinator friendly for the most part. I made sure that I have a range that are in bloom from early spring until late summer to ensure the pollinators have ample to forraige through out the season. We follow no, mow may and have allowed clover to flower in our garden grass. We have planted 3 apple trees in our garden and we have ceased the use of pesticides, herbicides and any other use of harmful chemicals that could harm insects or wild life. At school we have begun working on the school grounds to enhance our biodiversity. We were lucky enough to win the Choill Bheag prize and planted 330 native Irish trees in our grounds which are thriving. We have installed bird houses with the correct hole size for birds to nest, we have several bee/bug ‘lodges’ around our play ground that we have fixed to the mature trees and we have one large bug hotel. We have started a raised veg patch this year and have a tiered herb and salad garden adjacent to the bug hotel. We have great plans to continue our work and start to plant perenial flowering shrubs and plants that will feed our pollinators from early spring to late summer. The children love to work in the garden and they like to get their hands in the soils and dig too. theres always a feeling of great satisfaction when we see the plants and trees growing and thriving and changing our school landscape for the better.
I loved the video where the farmer built his own bridge and would definately be using it as a stimulis during my bridge building lesson too. Evaluation and reflection are a key area that needs to be explored to consolidate learning after the activities are finished and something I forgot to mention in my lesson plan.
For a bridge building lesson with my class the first thing I would do is refer to curious minds and esero for resources, information and lesson plans to start to build my lesson. We would start with a basic introduction and understanding of what a bridge is, why is it needed, what is its function, who creates them, what travels over them, what are they built over…etc. Then we would look at some bridges in our local area. I would probably show them the video of the farmer who built his own bridge in Roscommon too to show them that anyone can give it a go if they have planned enough structural integrity for it to function safely and properly. We would then discuss materials we could use to make mini bridges. I would start with paper, cardboard and masking tape type materials. Then in another lesson we would revise what we have learned and use a more sturdy resource for creating our bridge like Brio, Lego or K’nex. We would create a quality control test for our bridges, something like can a person pass safely, can a car pass safely, can the bridge withstand a certain weight (500g, 1kg, etc)
I think thats a lovely plan Lori. We often take for granted that children should know what a map is and what its use is, but the reality now is that children havent any concept regarding a map. They may have seen google maps, but it is important to show children physical versions and how they relate to real life and how to use maps in other ways that isnt just navigation. There is endless possibilities to explore when using Maps as a focus children could use a range of physical and digital methods to compare and contrast. Showing the children how maps locate real places in your locality will be important in bringing to life the necessity of maps and their many great uses.
I absolutely loved using Biodiversity Maps. I got lost in all of the information, looking at endangered species and sightings in my local area. I think this would be a wonderful tool to use with the children they would love to investigate about the different flora and fauna in our locality. There are also opportunities to learn about protected areas, walkways, and places to visit in our locality through the use of the map. I think it would be a great tool to spark the children’s interest in biodiversity and the local landscape. In my opinion I think Met.ie is the best weather website. I think there are great opportunities to investigate our local soil, plants and animals in person on a nature walk we can then compare our findings with the website biodiversity Maps. We could also compare out own weather diary with local weather reports and Met.ie to see does the data correlate.
I agree with you Laura I was delighted with the resources provided and will be using the inquiry framework in my teaching of STEM in the coming year. As the teacher said in the video its a template to assist learning and not something to make more work for teachers. I love the idea of sparking curiosity too and allowing the children to explore and have more fluidity in lessons. I think the framework is very useful as sometimes STEM can be a daunting subject to teach if you dont have the confidence with science. The structure and lesson plans are ideal for allowing teachers to facilitate engaging lessons and as our confidence grows we can branch out into other areas with the children and explore questions that crop up taking our learning in different directions.
Just from the first module I am after gaining so many resources and ideas for teaching STEM in a curious and investigative way. I am delighted with all of the links and resources provided. I used Discover Primary Science all of the time when I had Junior infants but since moving into the senior rooms I just got out of the habit of using it and focusing on getting through the books and curriculum. I am so delighted to have foud out about Curious Minds and ESERO. I am delighted to have an outline of how to teach STEM and a template to document ideas for further investigation as they come up organically when working with the children on various projects. I will definitely be using both of these resources in the new academic year and incorporating them into my lesson plans and even using them for golden time as the children love a variety of activities during their Friday hour and it will be a wonderful option for them to add to the menu of Golden time options.