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The use of ICT is highly encouraged in our school and benefits all children, some more than others. There are great resources online which can be used by pupils to gather information about plants, animals and soils. Videos included in this module like ‘How to make a Biodiversity map of your garden’ and worksheets like the garden map challenge can all be used in lessons as stimulus and assessment activities. There are also great websites that name plants including ‘Vocabineer’ which lists 100 common plants with pictures. We are lucky enough to have a school garden in our school with a range of plants and a man made pond. There are so many opportunities to teach across the curriculum with examples being Science; investigating the life cycle of the plants, Maths; creating a bar chart or pie chart as part of a data lesson based on how many of each different type of flower is planted in the school garden or Visual Art; pupils can draw the different flowers as part of a project and/or design a map of the garden which can also incorporate ICT.
Using Birr as my local area, I would plan a class project exploring the scientific and natural heritage of the town over a six-week period. The project would focus on areas such as the gardens and biodiversity of Birr Castle Demesne, the Great Telescope, local wildlife habitats, and the River Camcor. Pupils would investigate how science, nature, and history are connected within their community.
Activities would include nature walks, tree and insect identification, water investigations, map work, and visits to local heritage sites. Younger pupils could complete observational drawings and simple experiments, while older classes could research local scientific achievements and present findings digitally.
To engage all pupils, activities would be hands-on, collaborative, and linked to real-life experiences in the local area. The project could conclude with a whole-school exhibition where pupils display artwork, reports, models, and photographs to share their learning with the wider school community.
This is a lovely idea that combines biodiversity, creativity and sustainability. I really like the idea of using native Irish plants to support pollinators while also giving pupils the opportunity to design and care for the living wall. Using recycled bottle caps for the mural is a great way to incorporate art and recycling too. It would be a fantastic hands-on project that pupils could continue to observe and enjoy throughout the year.
I would use the resources from this course to develop a seasonal biodiversity project that would run throughout the school year. At the beginning of the year, pupils would learn about biodiversity and pollinators and we would map the school grounds, identifying existing habitats such as hedgerows, trees, flower beds, long grass and wild areas. We could also register the school garden with the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan and record the actions we take to support pollinators.
I would aim to bring learning outdoors regularly, ideally once or twice a month, so that children could observe how the school environment changes throughout the seasons. We could repeat the same nature walk at different times of the year and record changes in trees, wildflowers, birds, insects and other wildlife. Resources such as the Carlow Sports Partnership biodiversity checklists could be used or adapted for different class levels. Photographs of local plants and animals could also be turned into simple identification sheets or biodiversity challenges. Older pupils could use identification books such as Wildflowers of Ireland and share what they discover with other groups.
Recording sheets would include seasonal wildlife checklists, nature-walk observation sheets, maps, species identification sheets and simple tables for recording the number and type of species found. Pupils could take photographs and keep a biodiversity diary or portfolio to show changes throughout the year. Findings could also be shared through monthly Green Team presentations at assemblies.
The project would provide many opportunities for cross-curricular learning. Geography could include mapping, habitats and developing a sense of place, while Maths could involve collecting, displaying and comparing biodiversity data. Science would involve identifying plants and animals and exploring seasonal change and habitats. English could be incorporated through nature diaries, reports and presentations, while Art could include nature-inspired artwork or even creating patterns through selective mowing.
Practical projects could include bird boxes, bug hotels, planting pollinator-friendly flowers and allowing areas of grass to grow longer. Initiatives such as “No Mow May” could encourage dandelions and other wildflowers to bloom. Overall, the project would allow children to observe, record and actively improve biodiversity in their own school environment while integrating learning across a range of subject areas.
What a lovely idea, especially as the two bridges are such an important and familiar part of the local area. I really like the idea of taking the children on a walk to see and compare the bridges firsthand and using the iPads to photograph what they observe. Recreating the double bridges using blocks or Lego would be a great hands-on way for the children to explore strength, structure and engineering through play. Testing their bridges with toy cars would also add a fun problem-solving element. There are fantastic opportunities for cross-curricular learning here, particularly through Maths, History, Literacy, Gaeilge and Art. The strong local connection would make the learning especially meaningful and engaging for the children.
I would incorporate this class or whole-school challenge into Engineers Week, using Youghal Bridge as a local connection. To introduce the lesson, children would brainstorm bridges they know and discuss the purpose and features of Youghal Bridge. We would explore different types of bridges, the materials used to construct them, and the advantages and disadvantages of various designs. Children would also learn about the role of engineers through Crash Course Kids videos and identify which engineers might be involved in designing and building a bridge. Using Curious Minds resources, pupils would investigate features that make bridges strong and stable. Working in groups, they would plan, design and construct a bridge to span a set distance using equal amounts of materials. Maths would be integrated through measuring lengths and angles, investigating shapes and estimating weight capacity. Bridges would be tested using 20c coins, with results recorded and graphed. Pupils would then compare designs and suggest improvements.
This is a great idea for helping pollinators around the school. I like how the children can get involved by mapping the school grounds, identifying pollinator-friendly areas and looking for ways to improve them.
I agree with your points that an integrated approach is encouraged and allows pupils to explore, question and think critically.
Upon reflection of the STEM practices in the classroom over the previous years, and after reviewing Liston’s work ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics’, there has always been a lot of STEM used in the learning. Things like group work and getting the children in groups or teams to work together and think critically about the chosen subject has encouraged great engagement from the pupils. Not only has there been great engagement but the pupils are recording their findings and sharing what they have worked out with each other, which I found has solidified a lot of the learning when they share with each other their own findings. Liston’s review states that one of the characteristics of STEM education is to inspire creativity as well as problem solving inquisitive thinking and teamwork. This is something I focus on in lessons. The use of concrete materials to make or build things and the use of nature around the school grounds have been hugely beneficial to learning.
In my local area sustainability is very important and there are recycling schemes, bottle banks and clothes banks spread around the town for people to have opportunity to recycle. As well as this many local coffee shops charge for their coffee at a slightly discounted when you use a reusable cup instead of using the plastic or cardboard cups provided. With regards to this, our school also promotes the use of reusable water bottles for the pupils and staff in the school environment to cut down on the use of plastic waste and has even had a water station installed in recent years which has been used to great effect by all in the school.
With regards to aquaculture and seafood, following on from teaching the children the importance of healthy eating and the benefits of seafood for the body and brain in terms of macronutrients and micronutrients, lessons can be taught to the children on how to understand some of the labels on food packaging. I personally feel, a power point slide with videos to accompany the reading and pictures about different logos to look out for, for example, Fairtrade or the MSC or ASC can teach children to understand more about sustainable production and keep the conversation about the importance of sustainable practice to the fore.Creating healthy eating habits and educating children about what is a healthy eating habit and what isn’t a healthy eating habit is very important in schools. Using a food pyramid to give children an understanding of how much of each type of food to consume is very good but you can also delve deeper into the nutrition of seafood when discussing the food pyramid. Promoting a healthy eating lifestyle is important and can be helped by making the lesson about the interests of the children, for example, using a famous soccer player or an Olympic Athlete as an example of creating a healthy body and mind as a result of a healthy diet which may contain seafood.
There are many amazing ways to integrate the importance of seafood and to teach about sustainability throughout the curriculum. Teaching children to understand the labels on food products is very important so that they can tell the benefits of a product and where it is from. Even simply getting children in groups to list as many different seafood varieties that they can encourages the discussion around seafood, healthy eating and is a fun way to ensure engagement from the class which can be linked to a science lesson. An art competition in the class to create a new label for a seafood product would also make things fun for children and allows more potential for learning for the creative child who may learn better through creative means.
There are several ways in which The ARC Online lessons and resources can be used and integrated into lessons to enhance the lessons and make lessons fun for children. There is a great opportunity to integrate the lessons on aquaculture throughout the curriculum especially into the SESE areas of history, geography and science as well as into maths. This really lends itself well to integrate well with the STEM Education Policy especially in the areas of Maths and Science. I think I would use group work and interactive activities where possible to really bring on the engagement levels and enjoyment of the lessons in 4th class.
I really like the idea of a Marine or Aquaculture team in the school which could be teacher led with children from 3rd to 6th classes. As a teacher in a school in a coastal town I believe this would be hugely beneficial for all involved and even the wider school community and could be an area looked into for an SSE. A Marine or Aquaculture team could spread awareness in schools of the sea life being farmed in the country and where in the country that happens as well as different job opportunities. Fun things like poster competitions could be run in the school also to keep children up to date with and talking about aquaculture.