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I love the idea of tapping into children’s interests with Buzz Lightyear! I think they would really enjoy creating a rocket for him using open-ended materials.
I would like to teach some lessons from the activity set ‘Alien Chemistry’. I have done the Dancing Raisins experiment in the past with Junior and Senior infants classes. What works well is discussing the materials that we are going to use and predicting what will happen when the raisins are put into the water. The children can draw their predictions before we test it out. I enjoy hearing them predict that the raisins will explode and drawing their prediction! After we observe the raisins moving up and down, I explain the reason behind it. I compare the bubbles to armbands and that’s what helps the raisins to float to the top before the bubbles pop. Afterwards, the children draw the result of the experiment and compare it to their prediction. I would like to try the Alka seltzer experiment with my 2nd class children this year. I would use the Marvin and Milo comic style instructions as the layout is appealing, but I would blank out the last box with the results. Before doing the experiment, I would ask the children how I could make a balloon take up more space. I would blow up a balloon and we would discuss what is in the balloon and if it uses space even though we can’t see it. The children would make predictions on what they think will happen to the tube when the tablet mixes with the water. I think that the element of messiness when the tube pops would be engaging for the children. Later on, we would complete the same experiment again but this time using cold water, room temperature water and warm water. Again, the children would predict what type of water would work the quickest before testing it out. We would discuss the importance of a fair test and ensuring the same variable is changed. This experiment would provide the children with an opportunity to ask questions, predict, observe, measure, record, review, amend and retest.<span class=”Apple-converted-space”> </span>
I hadn’t heard of these online resources before this course. For the same reasons that you have outlined, I also think they would work well and would also like to try them with my class.
I would choose the learning experience “Where do you live?” as I feel that it can become a hands-on learning activity and provides other open-ended learning opportunities. This activity covers all areas of STEM and also other curricular areas such as literacy and the arts. To begin, the children would discuss their homes and what is near their homes in the local area. We would use Googlemaps street view to view some different homes and talk about the different elements. There’s always great excitement and engagement when the children see buildings they recognise on the whiteboard! The children would begin planning the construction of their homes by designing it on paper and thinking about what materials they would use for different parts of their home. They would be provided with a range of materials such as cereal boxes, tin foil, felt, paper, lollipop sticks, match sticks, paper cups, straws, pipe cleaners and wool. The children would be encouraged to handle and investigate some of the materials before choosing what they would use. I would guide them by asking “Which materials are strong?, Which are flexible?, Which are easy to bend?, Which are good for making walls? and Which could be used for supports?”. Afterwards, the children would put all their houses together to make a our village. They would discuss what other amenities are needed in the area such as shops, playgrounds, churches, community centres and pitches. Overtime, the children could built additional structures to add to the village. For example, when making a playground the children could explore various ways of making swings and slide slides. Through an open-ended design and construction challenge such as this one, the children develop STEM skills by investigating material properties, applying scientific understanding of forces and stability, using mathematical concepts such as measurement and shape, and following an engineering design process to plan, build, test, evaluate and improve their model home.<span class=”Apple-converted-space”> </span>
Lovely ideas Elaine regarding the play doh aliens and the sensory element of bringing them to space. Open-ended art activities always go down a treat and add an element of playfulness. In the past I have also used rice, lentils, weetabix and other inexpensive materials to create sensory experiences too.
I would like to do the activity Special Life – Life in Space with my class. I would introduce life on earth with the story “Here We Are” by Oliver Jeffers. It is a really nice way to open the idea of all the different elements and things that are found on planet earth. I would encourage the children to think of an animal on planet earth that is special to them. The children would be introduced to an alien who has never heard of these animals before. They must illustrate their animal before acting out how their animal walks, moves or sounds. The other children must help their new alien friend to identify the animal in question. As a class, the children would brainstorm about aliens and what they could look like. They would then use their imagination to create a drawing of their alien. Linking with literacy they could write a short description of their alien and what they enjoy doing. This activity could also work across different art strands such as clay, fabric and fibre or construction. Using a range of materials the children could bring their alien ‘to life’ in further lessons.
That’s a clever mnemonic that I haven’t come across before! Adding an element of humour, especially with the older classes will definitely help them to remember. You also have some great ideas for cross curricular integration which ties it all together nicely.
I would introduce the sun and shadows enquiry based activity set with infants by reading the story “The Black Rabbit”. We would discuss who the black rabbit is and when/ how they appear in the story. The children could then further explore shadows by playing a game ‘What could I be?’ using animal and other easily recognised silhouettes. They would work together to identify or match the silhouette to the correct item. The children would then go outside to explore shadows on a sunny morning. The children would be encouraged to move about, jump up and down, move their arms and legs to see how their shadows change. Using chalk, the children could trace around one another’s shadows. In class, the children could then investigate how shadows are formed by using natural sunlight or torches with a variety of objects. The children would be encouraged to observe, predict, question, and test their ideas by changing the position of the light source and the objects to see how the size, shape, and direction of shadows change. Later in the day, the children could return to their previously traced shadow to see if it has now changed. As previously stated, this activity lends itself well to cross curricular integration such as oral language, maths and works particularly well with visual arts. The children could also bring dinosaurs/ animals outside and trace their shadows using paper and the sun before designing them.
I love the idea of this activity Sharon and how visual it is for the children. It’s definitely one I’ll be using with 2nd class. The use of chalk and going outside brings a playful element to the activity which I think the children would really enjoy.
Hi,
My name is Saoirse and I teach in Dublin. I’ll be returning to 2nd class having been on maternity leave for the last school year. Prior to this I thought infants for 3 years.
Mind map of space: sun, moon, stars, darkness, astronauts, missions, gravity, rockets, craters, orbit, satellite, vacuum, asteroid, meteor, black hole.
Favourite fun fact: The sun is a star.
Enquiry based learning with infants: Exploring shadows
Children are introduced to shadows by playing a game ‘What could I be?’ using animal and other easily recognised silhouettes. We discuss how they think shadows are formed before allowing the children time to explore and investigate. The children then investigate how shadows are formed by using natural sunlight and torches with a variety of objects. The children are encouraged to observe, predict, question, and test their ideas by changing the position of the light source and the objects to see how the size, shape, and direction of shadows change. This activity lends itself well to cross curricular integration such as oral language, maths and works particularly well with visual arts. The children can then bring dinosaurs/ animals outside and trace their shadows using paper and the sun before designing them. This enquiry based learning activity is open ended but also play based which will make it more meaningful for young children.