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Hi Michelle,
I like your idea to make children aware of their carbon footprint and also to focus on reducing plastic waste in the lunch boxes as a starting point. Making parents aware of the volume of plastic wastes is important, in my own school I ask the pupils to take home all their own lunch box waste so parents can see what they have eaten but also to increase awareness of reusable options. We also recommend the reusable water bottles which has helped to reduce the single use cartons and bottles coming in. If we encourage change in school this will hopefully encourage change at home as you have mentioned.
Hi Doireann,
I like your plan to create maps of the own immediate environment and explore habitats and biodiversity in these maps. Within the map you also want to add the artificial lighting and this would encourage the pupils to reflect on the artificial lights and the impact it has on the insects and animals around it and developing links to biodiversity also. Pupils can be made aware of small changes they can make at home and in school to support the wildlife in their own local area.
Hi Niamh,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts on module one. I like how you plan to use the globe as a trigger to explore what the children already know. Knowing their own prior knowledge will give you a starting point to explore the seasons across the world and address any misconceptions the children may have.
I hope you enjoy the course and the many resources across each module.
Hi Louise,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts on module one. The paper by Dr Liston would allow for us all to reflect on our own classroom practice and how to improve our STEM based activities. Recently I did the Steps Young Engineers with a 3rd & 4th class group. It encouraged them to look at problems in their local area and then come up with solutions and make a prototype. It was a great opportunity to explore the local area and also get the children to solve real life problems through engineering. While it is aimed at 3rd & 4th class, this approach could be used by others also.
I hope you enjoy the course and the many resources across each module.
Hi Fiona,
What a great location for your school to be able to access or visit Dunsink Observatory and if possible collaborate with them for a dark sky event. I’m sure the children in your school along with the school community would appreciate such an event and it would also raise awareness about light pollution.
Hi Simon,
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing your thoughts on module one. I too have many different STEM boxes in my classroom along with tasks for the children to complete. Revisiting these I will have to check whether they address all aspects of STEM.
I have a digital weather station that I got in Lidl and my own class have compared the inside temperature with the outside temperature. We also recorded the temperature at a specific time each day over the course of a month. We created our own data that they could then plot in maths. It gave the class such responsibility over their own learning. I hope that your class enjoy using your weather station also.
Hi Caroline,
Thanks for sharing your own thoughts, while covering this course I was also up early and I actually began to take notice of the street lights in the area around me. Having grown up in the countryside I didn’t appreciate the dark night sky until I moved to an urban area.
It would be interesting to cover this with your pupils given that they are from different areas and to see what their experiences are, you also have the Dark Sky Reserve in Kerry that might be of interest to your pupils. You have developed a good plan to explore light pollution with your class and make connections to their own lives.
Hi Triona,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your own thoughts on this module. We often teach about the weather in the class, but creating a weather station and recording the weather over a period of time will give the children responsibility over their learning and allow them to make meaningful connections between learning about the weather in SESE to analysing the data from the weather station in maths.
I hope you enjoy the course and get many resource and ideas for your own class for the next school year.
Hi Grainne,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts on this module. I like how you would use the video to identify the language and vocabulary your class have on this topic and to assess prior knowledge. I agree that at times there can be uncertainty and anxiety among children regarding climate change and the resources in this module provide for positive outlook and encourage children to make small changes and how this can help overall.
I am glad that you liked the resources in this module, there are many great resources across this module that you can use with your own class next school year.
Hi Christine,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts on the Paxi video. I agree that this resource is very pupil friendly and also ensures a positive outlook on changes the pupils themselves can make to play their part. Often there can be a level of anxiety among pupils about climate change. The temperature predictor can also support pupils in making changes or suggesting changes in their homes and local area.
Hi Michelle,
Welcome to the course and I am glad you have enjoyed module one. There are many great resources across this course that you can use with your own class next year. Having used some myself with my own class, I agree that they are very clear and easy to follow.
I also think it is important to explicitly teach the difference between weather and climate as people can often be mistaken as you have mentioned. Using real life examples such as the children’s birthday can help their understanding.
I hope you enjoy the course and get many resources for your own class.
Hi Una,
Thanks for sharing this comprehensive list of poems, songs and art. It is a great starting point to integrate the theme of the night sky across the curricular areas. I also like your idea of getting suggestions from home to add to the list for school. I also hadn’t thought of the propaganda from the Space Race which would also integrate with History for the senior classes.
Hi Catherine,
Thank you for sharing your own experience with Junior Infants, having wellies in school will definitely make outdoor learning more accessible. I had wellies in the cloakroom for my own infants and it was great for outdoor learning without the fear of getting wet. Children love the opportunity to explore the outdoors and it sounds like your school has lots of outdoor areas within the garden for exploring. Through exploring your own local area you could look for nocturnal animals in your area to allow for meaningful connections for the children.
Hi Grainne,
Thanks for sharing your plan to observe planets. I like how you have included lots of work in the classroom prior to observing including making a model of the solar system. Having some knowledge of the planets will engage the pupils for the observation task. You also have great ideas of resources to support your pupils during the observation.
Hi Frances,
Welcome to the course. What fascinating work monitoring and conserving the bat population, you will have loads of images and resources to share with your class next year. Bringing your own experience into the class will add to the engagement of the children also.
The ESERO resource Day & Night in the World can be easily adapted to suit the range of needs in your class and as you have mentioned there is also lots of opportunities to integrate with maths, science and vocabulary work. This will also suit the individual needs in your class and allow for universal design for learning. I am glad you like this resource and I hope you enjoy the course.
