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A whole school exhibition is an excellent idea and a great way to build confidence in the children’s learning.
Great facility to have so close to home! A big learning opportunity for the kids in your school and loads of scope to work off of.
Very practical way of showing the children the importance of biodiversity and love the idea of “No Mow May”. Great way for children to see the effects of wildlife.
Great ideas here Yvonne! I especially love the idea of the Lego model first. Good visual aspect for the children.
I also agree with Yvonne on the curious minds support document. It’s going to be an excellent resource.
For a First Class group, I would introduce the challenge of designing and making a suspension bridge by exploring different types of bridges and discussing their purpose and features. We would look at what makes a bridge strong and identify key parts of a suspension bridge, such as towers, cables, and the bridge deck.
The children would work in groups to design and build their own suspension bridge using materials such as cardboard, string, paper, and craft sticks. They would create a simple plan, construct their bridge, test how much weight it can hold, and make improvements based on their findings.
Mathematical thinking would be developed throughout the activity through measuring the length, height, and width of bridges, comparing designs, and recording results. The children would explore shape and space by considering how different shapes and structures help create stability. They would also use number skills by counting materials, comparing quantities, and analysing which bridge design performed best.
This challenge would support the First Class maths curriculum by developing skills in measures, shape and space, number, and problem-solving while encouraging teamwork, creativity, and mathematical discussion.
How I would introduce mapping skills with my Junior Infants. I think I would begin by connecting the idea of maps to places that are familiar to the children.
I would start with a discussion about our classroom and encourage the children to use positional language such as beside, behind, in front of, near, and far to describe where things and people are. I would then introduce the idea that a map is a drawing that shows us where things are and helps us find our way.
I would create a simple classroom map with the children, allowing them to identify important features such as the door, tables, windows, and different areas of the room. We could use pictures or simple symbols to represent these features and discuss how maps can show places from above.
I would also like to explore this further by showing them the school on google maps and pointing out the different roads that lead to the school and make reference to local houses, shops, hurling field.For an art lesson , I would use the grounds of Birr Castle as an outdoor classroom where pupils can explore, observe, and respond creatively to their surroundings. The rich natural environment, including the gardens, trees, flowers, pathways, and historic buildings, would provide an excellent stimulus for developing children’s artistic skills and imagination.
The lesson could begin with a sensory walk around the grounds, where pupils would be encouraged to notice colours, textures, shapes, patterns, and interesting details in the environment. They could create quick observational sketches of features that catch their attention, such as leaves, plants, the castle architecture, or landscape views. This would help develop their skills in looking closely and representing what they see.
Following the exploration, pupils could create their own artwork inspired by the castle grounds. Younger pupils could use natural forms and colours to create paintings, rubbings, or collages, while older pupils could focus on perspective, composition, and creating a landscape piece. The activity could also link with other curriculum areas, such as History by exploring the castle’s heritage, or Science by examining plants and biodiversity in the gardens.
Using Birr Castle grounds would make the art lesson more meaningful by allowing pupils to engage directly with their environment.
I would use a seasonal biodiversity project to help pupils observe how the natural environment changes throughout the school year. Using resources from the course, such as biodiversity recording sheets, habitat surveys, tree and plant identification guides, weather charts and nature journals, pupils could collect and compare data each season.
I would aim to bring learning outdoors at least once a week, even if only for short observation sessions, with more detailed biodiversity investigations taking place once a month. Regular visits to the same areas of the school grounds would allow pupils to notice changes in plants, insects, birds and weather over time.
The project would integrate well across the curriculum. In Science, pupils would explore habitats and living things; in Maths, they could create tally charts and graphs from their findings; in English, they could keep nature journals and write reports or poems; in Geography, they could map habitats and study weather patterns; and in Visual Arts, they could produce observational drawings using natural materials. Digital technologies could also be incorporated through photography and digital presentations.
Overall, a seasonal biodiversity project would provide meaningful, hands-on learning while helping pupils develop observation skills, scientific enquiry and an appreciation for the biodiversity in their local environment.
For me, STEM is about giving children opportunities to explore, question, and discover through engaging learning experiences. Instead of teaching each STEM subject separately, I like to plan activities that naturally combine elements of science, technology, engineering, and maths. For example, children might investigate a real-life problem, work in groups to come up with possible solutions, and use digital resources or simple materials to test their ideas.
Liston (2018) highlights that effective STEM education is not simply about covering four subject areas, but about creating learning experiences that encourage curiosity, creativity, and independent thinking. This reminded me of the importance of allowing children to take ownership of their learning by asking questions, making predictions, and reflecting on what worked and what they would change.
I also believe that STEM should be accessible to every child. By providing a supportive classroom environment where different ideas are valued and teamwork is encouraged, children become more willing to take risks and learn from challenges. Through these experiences, pupils develop important life skills such as communication, resilience, and problem-solving alongside their STEM knowledge.