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Hi Claire,
I really enjoyed your moon walk idea. This would be great fun and ideal for use in Aistear in the morning. Thanks for sharing
I really like the ideas of step challenge for staff to reduce carbon footprint. Nothing like friendly competition to motivate staff. Great initiative
I agree, we are so fortunate to have access to really high quality of education in Ireland. Many of the international students we have in our school at the minute, site our education system as one of the reasons they have relocated to Ireland for work etc. We are really lucky to have education as a priority in this country with lots of access to a range of opportunities for everyone.
Hi Enda, I found it very interesting that the boys were stereotypically the leaders and girls subtly directly to other roles. I teach in a boys school so I don’t have any experience teaching in a mixed school. In our school, we try and strive to break down stereotypes around gender but it a constant challenge to find ways to counteract this as it is engrained in society.
We are also involved in green schools and they are great at focusing the whole school’s attention on issues such as reduce water waste etc. Development education could easily be tied into this also
Hi Catherine, I wasn’t aware that concern had a debating competition. I will look this up. Thanks for sharing
Hi there, My name is Siobhan and I teach in an all boys’ school. The pupils love all things space. My interesting fact is the Moon is 400 times smaller than the Sun and 400 times closer to Earth.
Class: Stem Investigation: Moon Crater
Introduction: I would start by introducing the children to the storybook Bring Down the Moon by Jonathan Emmett. This will help to spark a discussion with what we see in the sky at night. We will then discuss what we know about the moon and hat the surface of the moon looks like.
Stem investigation: We will recreate the moon surface by using white floor on a baking dish, and we will then drop objects into the flour bowl. This will recreate the moon surface. We will then drop a variety of bouncy ball, marbles onto the surface. We will discuss how this changes the moon surface as we drop the object. We will then use tweezer to remove the object without damaging the surface further.
We will then compare this to the surface of the moon by using real pictures of the moon surface. The children will then have an opportunity to draw their own moon surface and see how they are similar and different to the moon surface itself.Climate change is a global challenge that also impacts our local community in significant ways. In my local area in Roscommon, we have observed changes in weather patterns, such as more frequent and intense rainfall, leading to flooding the county. Additionally, warmer temperatures have affected local wildlife and agriculture, with some plant and animal species struggling to adapt to the changing conditions. My dad plants vegetables and the ground was so wet from rainfall which meant potatoes were planted really late this season.
To help pupils understand and explore the impact of climate change on our local area, we can take the following steps:
1. Local Environment Study: Organise field trips to local areas affected by climate change or conduct research on how the local area is affected.
2. Have students collect and analyse weather data from our local area over the past few decades to identify trends and changes in climate patterns. Interviewing older grandparents etc on what changes to the area they have witnessed.
3. Classroom discussions – invite local experts such as environmental scientist, local farmers, conservationist to visit the classroom to discuss how climate is affecting our communities.
4. Get involved in local eco – friendly initiatives. Involve students in school-wide initiatives such as planting trees or get involved in green schools. We are very lucky in our school to have a small garden where we get the students involved. This not only helps the environment but also teach students practical ways to combat climate change.
The focus of climate change could easily be use as priority for SSE. The target could be to reduce waste and increase recycling in the school. Lesson on recycling could be taught throughout the school. Before and after surveys could be conducted and targets evaluated to see if they were met.
great. Thanks for sharingThe school wide drive to collect supplies is a great idea. Previously, we have just focused on financial aid in our school but collecting supplies is very practical
In recent times, we have witnessed a significant increase in the number of children joining our school who are new to this country. Among these are children seeking asylum and living in direct provision. Our school is dedicated to making their transition to education in Ireland as seamless and supportive as possible. Our school community takes pride in leading by example in welcoming new students. Class teachers actively engage with parents, offering any necessary support to facilitate their children’s adaptation to the new environment. We ensure that every effort is made to provide a warm and inclusive atmosphere for all students. Understanding the challenges faced by new families, the school offers assistance in sourcing uniforms and any required school supplies. This ensures that all children, regardless of their background, have access to the resources they need to succeed academically and socially.
The Refugee Council and UNICEF do amazing work to support refugees. In the past, we have organized fundraising activities, including bake sales and non-uniform days, to raise money for the Red Cross. These initiatives not only provide financial support but also raise awareness about global efforts to help refugees.We continuously strive to create a welcoming and inclusive school community. By supporting new students and their families, we aim to foster a sense of belonging and ensure that every child feels valued and supported.Gender stereotypes affect students at a very good age. I teach in an all-boys school and I see lots of gender stereotypes in place. I have previously taught Junior Infants and see gender stereotypes present during playtime in Aistear. The boys will naturally gravitate towards male roles during role play. I use Aistear to challenge these stereotypes and try to have the pupils role play without any focus on gender. Role play is a great way to challenge the pupils’ thinking around lots of topics such as gender. As we are an all-boys school, I try to encourage the pupils to play with a variety of toys that challenge gender stereotypes. I feel there has been a positive shift within the past few years with gender stereotypes within our school community, where there is much more awareness and understanding around this topic.
By encouraging discussion around gender stereotypes will help to broaden student understanding and perspectives. I think its also very important to have positive role models that challenge gender stereotypes.One development goal that affects children is development goal 15 – protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. This is hugely important for children to understand and learn about ecosystems and how we can best protect them.
This can be applied to a local and global level by focusing on how we can combat deforestation and sustainably manage our own Irish forests, protecting our national trees. I think a good stimulus for action would be encourage children to plant trees within our school and local communities. There are lots of projects the children can get involved in, for example the INTO last terms was giving free tree saplings to schools. Schools can also take part in national projects such as national tree day. This would easily be a focus for within a school.<p style=”box-sizing: inherit; border: 0px; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px 0px 1.6em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #163c42; font-family: ‘Hind Madurai’, sans-serif;”>Development education is so important in today’s diverse world. We are seeing that global issues and challenges are impacting on local communities across the globe. I think his idea of common humanity has great appeal in a classroom environment. Development education helps promote empathy and address issues such as social injustice, poverty and inequality. Theses are all issues that children need to be aware of and through education hopefully can empower to effect positive change both locally and globally.</p>
I would try to incorporate development education in my classroom by reaching out to local and national organisations that work in this area. Classroom visits from these organisations or a video call would help children to become aware of local issues. Our school has become much more diverse in the past few years. Children from these different countries could speak to their class about some of the issues affecting other areas globally. Parents would also become a great source of knowledge here too.Development education would easily prioritised as a focus for SSE in the future
