[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Jack,

Welcome to the course. Thanks for sharing your sundial plan. Second class learners would be very inquisitve and could really engage with this lesson. I like how you plan to explore it in history also to allow time to think about how people told the time before clocks were widely available.

I like how you are planning to develop it with your own class first and then consider how to make it more permanent so other classes can benefit from it. Great idea, thanks for sharing. I hope you enjoy the course.

 

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Edel,

How wonderful to have such rich heritage in the locality of your school. What an experience to have recent archaeological digs too. Lots of opportunities to make connections between the learners’ own lives and history.

I like your plan to explore the Ward River valley with a focus on the arts. It allows for multiple ways for the class to show their learning and represent their local area through music and art. As you have mentioned, you can link to classical music too which may inspire their own compostions. Thanks for all your contributions across the modules. I hope you have enjoyed the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Marie,

Welcome to the course thanks for sharing your lesson idea for younger classes. I like how you are planning to explore the features of a map initially and discuss the relevance of a map key and using symbols and you develop on this by allowing the learners to create their own map key in a practical task. I also like how you are considering the use of symbols and the key as an assessment method when presenting their work to their peers. I also like your use of digital tools such as Google Maps and GeoHive to further extend their learning where appropriate.

Thanks for sharing, I hope you enjoy the other modules in this course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Michelle,

This is a very topical issue with many schools having had solar panels installed too. I was hoping to use the data from our solar panels at school with a focus on the summer months with my own class and compare it with my own family members’ data as I don’t have panels yet. The learners may then share, with permission, data from solar panels if they have them for more discussion. Thanks for sharing.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Naomi

It is great to hear your feedback on the Nose Up High in the Sky resource. I agree that the progression across the lesson consolidates knowledge and is very engaging. Weather lore and weather sayings are always popular and I too ask the class to check with older relatives for different saying. I recently learned the one A wet and windy May fills the barn with corn and hay!

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Máirín

I agree that Home is a great resource but would work best when we choose short clips that would be appropriate for use in with our own class. Clips allow for lots of discussion on what they have seen and could develop critical thinking also as you have mentioned. Making links to their own local area and local environments, as you have said, would also make the learning more meaningful and develop connections between what they have learned and their own lives.

Thanks for sharing.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Bernadette,

Welcome to the course. It is great to hear your feedback on the resources in this module. As you have said, they are well laid-out and there are opportunities to extend the learning in the extension activities.

The discussion on the weather on their birthdays is very engaging and as you have said ideal for the younger learners too. The concept of climate may be more difficult for younger learners to grasp as you have said. But this activity introduces the concepts in a child-friendly way.

Weather Detectives is great for all classes and as you have said there are lots of opportunities to link with maths and the use of data. I have found that when my class were gathering data themselves, they were so engaged in creating their own charts and graphs too.

Thanks for sharing, I hope you enjoy the other modules in the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Órla,
Welcome to the course. It is great to hear you found activity 3 interesting and beneficial to look at climate changes in a meaningful way with your younger class. The video explains the concept in a very child-friendly manner and as you have mentioned the visual explanations would support and engage the younger pupils.

The Teal Tool is a great resource also and I agree that it might be better suited as a teacher led lesson using the interactive whiteboard for the younger learners. I like how you are planning for a practical follow up including opportunities for the learners to take action themselves. Lovely ideas, thanks for sharing. I hope you enjoy the other modules in the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Ciara,

Thank you for your contributions across the modules in this course. I like how you are planning for different ways to explore the local area through the arts. Mallow castle and river walk allow for lots of exploration of the history of the area and also the wildlife and biodiversity through the various arts activities outlined. You could consider the bridge near the park also for art activities such as construction. I like how you are planning to allow the learners to share their work with other classes and parents to further engage them.

Thanks for sharing, I hope you have enjoyed the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Sharon,

Thank you for your contributions across the modules in the course. You have shown how to explore your local area to raise awarness of light pollution and also exploring biodiversity in the park local to the school.

I haven’t heard of this poem by Yeats but I do think it is very fitting for senior class learners and it does create beautiful imagery of the night sky. I like how you are planning to allow the learners to have autonomy over their cloths of heaven and create their own designs using all the learning from previous activities in this course. This would allow the learners different opportunities to show their learning. Lovely idea, thanks for sharing. I hope you have enjoyed the course.

• This reply was modified 3 weeks, 2 days ago by Michelle Mannix.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Caroline,

Welcome to the course. It is great to hear your feedback on the many resources for observing the night sky.

I like how you are planning for and supporting the observations of planets at home with a focus initially on Venus. I also like how you plan to extend this with observations of other planets across the year and not just for one activity in the Autumn. You could also consider planning for beginning the observations during Space Week in October.

Stellarium is also a fantastic resource for the classroom for the learners to explore the night sky which can also help and guide them with their own observations at home. Thanks for sharing, I hope you enjoy the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Eimear,

Welcome to the course. Thanks for your feedback on the activities and how they promote skills development along with knowledge of climate and weather.

Activity 1 explores the concepts of weather and climate in an age-appropriate way and I like how you are also exploring traditional weather lore with this task which could create links with home and older relatives.

While I have made rain gauges with my class, I hadn’t thought of using jelly in the bottom to make it more stable. Great idea, thanks for sharing. I think allowing the learners to create their own weather instruments and collect their own data is very engaging and gives them ownership of their learning.

Thanks for sharing, I hope you enjoy the course.

 

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Shandon,

Thank you for your contributions to all the modules in this course. It is great to hear your approaches to STEM learning but also the great work towards pollination and biodiversity in your school and Green Schools Committee.

It is great to hear how you would use the local area of Tralee and explore the local heritage from the lighthouse to the wetlands around Blennerville. I like how you are planning for different approaches to the Arts and also within the learners’ own creative writing pieces. Writing from the point of view of the lighthouse keeper would allow for creativity and even some critical thinking. I also like your final task which focuses on how the local area inspires the learning in your class.

Thanks for all your posts, I hope you enjoyed the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Sarah,

Welcome to the course. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Activity 3 and the Paxi video. This video is very engaging and discussing the concept of greenhouse gases in an age-appropriate manner. The Teal Tool allows for use of data sets to predict future temperatures building on knowledge from the video.

For 3rd class it is important, as you have mentioned, that there are plenty opportunities for discussion and the learners sharing their thinking to ensure they understand the concepts. While the Teal Tool is a great resource, you could consider a teacher led demonstration initially before the group work to ensure everyone is familiar with the tool. As with every resource, it is important to adapt the resources and worksheets to suit our own classes and as you have said differentiated worksheets could also support pupils who need extra help.

Thanks for sharing, I hope you enjoy the other modules in the course.

[Michelle Mannix]

Hi Donal,

Welcome to the course. It is great to hear your thoughts on activity 1 & 2 in this module.

I agree that activity 1 allows for younger learners to explore the concepts of weather and climate and the use of weather on their birthday brings connection to their own lives also. The sorting activity would allow for lots of discussion and critical thinking as you have said where children can justify why a statement is in a particular category.

Activity 2 allows for lots of cross curricular links with opportunity to explore data using real life data sets or encouraging the learners to collect their own data. As Sarah has mentioned, the choice of data chart or graph can be adapted depending on the class level.

Lovely ideas, thanks for sharing. I hope you enjoy the course.

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