[Helen O Sullivan]

·       Outline how you would use some of the course resources to conduct a seasonal biodiversity project to run throughout the school year. What resources and recording sheets would you need? How often would you bring learning outdoors? How would you integrate other subject areas?

 

Project

Observing seasonal changes in trees throughout the year

 

We have a fabulous school caretaker who is a nature enthusiast. He has created a catalogue of all the trees in our school grounds. We also have a grove across the road. It is beside a beautiful river so we have plenty of scope for investigation.

I would make great use of this https://carlowsports.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CW2001-Leaf-Identification-Challenge.pdf to talk to the children about identifying leaves to help them eventually make our own class catalogue of the trees we have .

We would observe and take photographs on our iPad of the tress in September /December /March and June.

This will enable the children to observe the seasonal changes through the year with the leaf identifying website above the children can anticipate which leaf for the various trees will appear.

Citizen Science is a fabulous idea. On the portal we can learn about the flora and fauna in our area.

In our grove we can explore our immediate environment.

We can upload onto the portal some of what we find. This will make it so exciting and interesting for the children!!

Resources will include the above apps and websites, drawing materials, gloves etc.

This can be easily integrated into most subjects for a thematic approach.

Literacy: Reading about trees and identifying leaves.

Writing: about the seasonal changes

Irish: Learning the names of trees and leaves in Irish

Maths; making simple graphs in Junior classes indicating the types and amounts of trees found

SESE: Is everything we are doing above in

Art: Making drawings.

Music: Creating with instruments the sounds of the trees

Drama; Creating our story about magical fairies in the forests

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi there

Creating soil layers is a lovely and interesting way to get children involved .I would enjoy doing this .

[Helen O Sullivan]

Describe how you would plan and conduct a lesson on map making and explain how you might incorporate some online tools such as Google maps or Geohive

Lesson Plan

Introduction

Sing song songs about Gardens and Wildlife. There is a huge variety available

Then we would talk about all the flowers that grow in our school garden and at home.

We would create a quick map on the board of our own beautiful sensory garden at school. The caretaker will be involved to add an extra dimension to this.

After this is completed we will say that we are going on a little a walk and after we will create a map of our walk.

We will have prepared by this by having the correct walking and rain gear

 

Development

Introduce Geeohive. We will explain that we can do a quick search on what animals and wildlife might be in our area. We can print out photos of common animals and fauna that may be seen. This will lead to much excitement. I will explain that we may not see any animal at all but as we are walking to imagine where a squirrel may have been. We can get a print out of animal footprints and match them to any footprints can be seen .draw what we see

I will tell them to draw what we see in the environment such as bridges and houses and sheds as we will make physical map of this later

 

So off we go on our walk. We will have our paper for observing and drawing. We will talk about our Geohive findings and about the flora, fauna and footprints. I will allow these young children plenty of creative licence in telling me about footprints etc that they have found!!

 

We will return to schools and with our Geomap of the area we will talk about our findings and find them on the Geomap .

At this stage the children who are well versed in using I pads will have these to navigate the Geomap themselves.

This will lead to much oral expression on the local area.

 

Conclusion

Group work.

We will go outside and use physical material like sticks, grass and stones to recreate the little walk we went on.

We can discuss how different this would look perhaps during the other seasons.

We can discuss the difficulties like making the bridges and how best to solve that problem!

We can them take photos and make our class blog of our own maps!

We will of course return all physical stones etc. to where we found them!

 

[Helen O Sullivan]

I really enjoyed reading this and have learnt so much from your reply !!

Will definetly be using these ideas in next school year .

[Helen O Sullivan]

Describe how you would conduct a lesson on mirrors, lenses and telescopes or looking out at the night sky for your class.

 

Introduction

Engage my class by using star cut-outs and have the children trace the light path while looking in a mirror. This will introduce reflection in a fun a simple way. They will easily enough use the term. We can have fun with this by using 2 mirrors at 90 degree angles to create multiple reflections!

With the older classes they could perhaps explore different angles between mirrors to observe how reflections change

 

Development

We can now discuss how telescopes work. I can show them slides of telescopes through the ages and ask them to focus on how they think mirrors play a part this.

We can introduce the terms reflection and refraction.

We know about reflection so we can move onto refraction by placing a pencil in jar of water and have fun discussing what has happened.

We can introduce the terms concave and convex.

The terms can be confusing so I tell the children that a concave lens caves in and gets thinner in the centre and so then the convex is the opposite. They can have fun drawing these while becoming familiar with the terms,

 

By now they have the terminology the need to make a simple telescope

 

 

Exploration

Making of our telescope

·       Cut a cardboard tube to 12 inches/Cover one end of tube with black paper. /glue a magnifying glass to an open end of tube…with convex side facing outwards/cut small hole in centre of black paper/attach another lenses to other end of tube. With convex side facing out /look through eye piece /point it at faraway objects

At this stage we will stop and the children will discuss what they think will happen

They will see that the “telescope “will magnify distant object making them appear closer

 

The Night Sky

In previous lessons I will have discussed the night sky.

I can use simple real telescopes to show the children how we can observe the sky

 

All this can be linked with Oral Language /History …..so much history here /Art and much more

 

 

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi

My goodness there are some fabulous ideas here .I will certainly be using this during Science week .

[Helen O Sullivan]

Activity: Rockets

I love the idea of rockets. I think this is something that all children are fascinated by.

Introduction

Sing: We are Going to the Moon ‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEHBrmZxAf8

I would show the children real videos of rockets being launched into space. As young as they are this will really appeal to them and spark interest.

I have often shown children the Chris Hadfield videos and they are intrigued by the everyday ordinary things which he does

Hands on Activity; make our own balloon rocket.

 

 

The Process
Supplies
Balloon ,straw,string,tape,2 chairs
Step 1
Tie one end of string to the one chair which will be about 10 fee from the other chair
Step 2
Thread the string through the straw and place two pieces of tape near the middle of the straw.
Step 3
Tie the loose end of the string to the other chair and make sure the string is tight
Step 4
Blow up below .Hold the end so air can’t escape .Use the two pieces of take to secure the balloon to the straw.
Pause
To reflect and predict what might happen
Step 5
Move the straw and balloon to one end of the string ….then let go of balloon and watch what happens !!
Step 6
The children will love explaining in their own words what has just happened

Consolidation and follow up activity

Using a simple worksheet below the children can record what just happened. We can write and what we needed.

Then we can draw steps of the process and talk to each other what this was all about!

 

Balloon Rocket
What I needed
Name
Draw

First

Then

Then

Then

Last

To finish

We could sing song

We are Going to the Moon

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi

I really enjoyed reading this post, especially re the circle and having  clothes in the centre which the children use to dress up in for different times of the year.

This would be such a fun activity for them.

[Helen O Sullivan]

I very much enjoyed exploring the stellarium web. The children would really love looking at this.

While it is advanced for them they would certainly enjoy it.

They would be amazed by it. It links to the phasing of the moon and this is something that they can see clearly in the sky themselves. It would teach them so much about natural nature. The night sky and stars are fascinating and this website would nurture that innate interest we all have in the skies.

Follow up activities would be amazing. imagine how wonderful it would be for the children to draw the phases of the moon as they occur on a sheet of paper divided into sections. I think it is something they would remember for life.

Next year’s class will have a child from Australia. It will be really interesting for her to see what the moon will be like there.

This will all link to science. Gravity in previous module can be explored by looking at Australia on the globe and wondering why we don’t fall off!

This was the best module and website I have ever covered. It was so interesting!

 

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi Sinead

I love these alien activities especially the flying aliens using the balloons!

The Grow your Own Alien is a fabulous activity. It will lead to lots of shrieks and excitement. This is an activity that they will remember forever!

 

[Helen O Sullivan]

I would start with stories /songs and poems about the stars and night sky. There are so many wonderful resources available on line. This will peak their interest and stimulate so much interest in the activity to come.

So much Art /Craft can be integrated and linked to the activity. We could make star mobiles/decorate the night sky with stars which they could colour.

In Maths we could make up our own star problems during Maths talk.

By now they are ready and set to start the

Star Activity: Draw your own constellation

It’s a most beautiful activity which lends itself to so much oral language as I am circulating. The children will use their imaginations to draw their own constellations with the template provided.

With my own templates then I can provide star constellations in shapes of various animals and they will have great fun talking about their constellations and giving them names

They can then cut around their constellations and paste them on to a black background which will serve as the night sky.

Finally, we can create oral stories about the adventures of their animal constellations in the sky.!

 

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi Ciara

Hi Ciara

I loved the approach you used here.

Children do not /perhaps cannot link the sun to the time of day so starting with them in the classroom will certainly peak their interest.

Then moving onto the sun house is a great point give the need for sunlight in growing plants.

Our school is installing some solar panels at the moment so that’s ideal for observing and noticing and seeing the reason why.

[Helen O Sullivan]

I particular loved the Sun and Shadows section. I think the children would absolutely love this especially making the sundial

We could start by eliciting from the children all the different ways from where we get the time. Then I am sure it would amaze them by telling them that people long ago could tell the time without any of these and that we are going to make what they used to do.

I love the idea of using a simple flower pot, a bamboo

stick and stones and chalk!

We can mark where the sun is every hour using our shadow!!

They will mark where their shadow is very hour.

From this so much so much cross curricular integration can take place from from this

It is such a cool activity

As we are out there at all we can measure our shadow at diffrerent times of the day, discuss when our shadow is longer /shorter.

When we go in we can explore with flash lights and shapes to keep the whole exploration of shadow theme going.

I am really excited about all of this already!

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi

I love doing this with the children ,Its certainly the one that gives them the most joy and the most fun .It is also the one the parents say that  they love to talk about and do at home !

[Helen O Sullivan]

Hi

My name is Helen O Sullivan and I am a Senior Infant teacher .I love every minute of teaching the seniors.I love their curious minds and their total lack of filter !!!

My amazing space fact :Myself and the1st  landing on the moon are the same age !!!!

Inquiry based Activity

My children loved this

It provides plenty of scope for discussion and oral language. There is scope for worksheet activity after where they can write, label and draw their activity.

Title: Chemical Bonds: stretch when freezing so that ice becomes less dense that water

I have great fun asking them to explain how they can watch this property in action!

Activity

So we pour the water into a plastic bottle

We note where the water level is at.

After leaving in a freezer

We compare the volume of the liquid and solid after freezing.

I then ask them how can this work in reverse/where should we leave the water/how long should we leave it there for

 

We make a jug of ice water. Again mark the level the water is at.

Allow the ice to melt and note the new level

 

This whole activity allows the children to see two activities around one concept

 

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