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Drawing on the rich heritage of Portumna — including its historic castle, ruined abbey, forest park and the annual Shorelines Arts Festival
I would design a cross-disciplinary art, music, drama and creative‑writing project that fully involves pupils.
Project overview (12 weeks):
Students would work in small groups to explore Portumna through field visits, photographs, sketches, and stories. Drawing inspiration from Portumna Castle’s Renaissance architecture or the evocative ruins of Portumna Abbey, each group would create a multimedia performance or exhibit.Creative writing & drama:
Pupils would write short narratives, poems or monologues imagining characters from Portumna’s past — perhaps a castle resident, an abbey friar, or a visitor at the forest park. These would be adapted into dramatic scenes or short plays to perform for classmates or the school.Visual arts:
Using sketching, painting, or collage, students would produce artworks inspired by local landmarks. One longer‑term option would be a mosaic echoing the “Pattern for Portumna” community workshop style
, with tiles representing elements of local history and nature.Music & sound:
We’d incorporate site‑inspired sounds or songs, perhaps composing ambient soundscapes evocative of the castle courtyard or the forest trails. Choruses or group singing inspired by Shorelines Festival themes would enrich presentationsIntegration and exhibition:
The final outputs — written pieces, artwork, recorded performances and soundtracks — would be displayed in a mini‑festival format, perhaps in the school hall or in collaboration with the local Workhouse Centre gallery. Pupils would experience the full creative process—research, planning, making, reflecting—and see their community and history through creative lenses.Using the suspension bridge in Birr Castle Demesne—or a local bridge—as inspiration, I would plan an exciting class or whole-school STEM challenge to design and build model bridges. I would begin by showing photos and videos of the bridge, discussing its purpose, materials, and structure. We would explore key concepts such as tension, support, and load-bearing in simple, age-appropriate terms.
Students would then be challenged to work in pairs or small groups to design their own bridge using materials such as lollipop sticks, string, paper, and glue. The design brief would include criteria like spanning a 30 cm gap and holding a small weight (e.g., a toy car or stack of coins).
Mathematical thinking would be woven throughout the project. Students would measure materials accurately, calculate the length and width of their bridges, and estimate weight-bearing capacity. Depending on the class level, older students could explore symmetry, angles, and even scale. Data from the testing phase—such as which bridge held the most weight—could be used to create bar charts or tables, reinforcing data handling skills.
This challenge promotes teamwork, problem-solving, and creativity, while integrating real-world maths and engineering in a fun and meaningful way for all learners.
To conduct a seasonal biodiversity project across the school year, I would use resources such as the Exploring Nature guides, biodiversity ID charts, and recording sheets from the Green Schools or Biodiversity in Schools websites. The project would involve regular outdoor observation sessions, where students explore local habitats—such as the school garden, hedgerows, or nearby park—to track seasonal changes in plants and animals.
We would go outdoors at least once a month, more often in spring and early autumn when biodiversity is at its peak. Using ID charts, students would identify common birds, insects, trees, and wildflowers, recording their findings on printed observation sheets. We’d also use tablets or clipboards to photograph or sketch what we find.
This project offers strong cross-curricular links. In science, we’d focus on habitats, lifecycles, and environmental awareness. In geography, we’d map our observation locations. In English, students would write nature journals, poems, or reports. Art lessons would include nature sketching and seasonal displays. Data from recordings would be used in maths to create graphs and charts, helping students analyze patterns over time.
For younger classes, a map-making lesson should be hands-on, engaging, and rooted in the students’ own experiences. I would begin by discussing what maps are and why we use them, using simple examples like treasure maps or school maps. To introduce the concept, we could read a story that involves a journey or navigation, helping children relate maps to real-life situations. Then, we’d explore our classroom or school grounds and create a basic hand-drawn map showing key features such as the classroom, library, and playground.
To integrate technology, I would use an interactive whiteboard or tablets to explore Google Maps, showing students an aerial view of our school and surrounding area. We’d zoom in and out to discuss scale and identify landmarks. Tools like Street View would help students visualize familiar places from different perspectives. For more detail, I might introduce Geohive to show simple maps of our local area, comparing them with our hand-drawn versions.
Throughout the lesson, students would work in pairs to create their own maps of the school or a familiar route, labeling key features. This lesson builds spatial awareness, introduces basic geography skills, and encourages the use of digital tools in a meaningful, age-appropriate way.
Having reviewed Unravelling STEM: Beyond the Acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths by Liston (2018), I have been prompted to reflect critically on how STEM education is approached in my classroom. Liston challenges the notion of STEM as a rigid acronym, instead presenting it as an interconnected, dynamic field shaped by context, creativity, and social relevance. In my classroom, STEM is often taught through distinct subject silos, with occasional crossover during project-based learning. However, this paper has highlighted the importance of integrating the disciplines more meaningfully to promote deeper understanding and real-world problem solving.
Inspired by Liston’s argument, I recognize the need to embed STEM within broader cultural, ethical, and societal contexts. Rather than simply teaching coding or scientific concepts in isolation, I now aim to frame lessons within authentic problems that require interdisciplinary thinking—for example, designing sustainable solutions for local environmental issues. I also acknowledge the need to make STEM more inclusive by addressing gender, cultural, and socioeconomic barriers that can affect student engagement. Moving forward, I want to foster a classroom culture where students see STEM not just as technical skills, but as a way to explore, critique, and shape the world they live in. This reflection marks a shift in how I plan and deliver STEM learning experiences.
Using Shooting a Rocket into the Air in My Classroom
To support inclusive, hands‑on learning, I’d choose the balloon-strung rocket v. This simple design involves attaching a balloon to a straw threaded on a taut string—students inflate the balloon, release it, and observe how it zooms along the line, propelled by escaping air.Materials & Setup
Balloons, straws, fishing line, tape, clothespins
Stretch the line across the classroom or corridor, 1–2 m long
Students work in pairs to build the rocket and plan trialsStructured Inquiry
Pose a question: How does the inflation level or launch angle affect the rocket’s distance or speed?
Hypothesize: e.g., “More inflation equals greater thrust” or “A slanted launch travels further.”
Test & Collect: Conduct multiple launches, measuring distance traveled or time along the line
Vary Conditions: Include horizontal vs inclined strings, varied balloon sizes twinkl.co.nz+10teachengineering.org+10reddit.com+10
Analyze: Chart results, discuss Newton’s Third Law, air resistance, and thrustDigital Records
Students use phones or tablets to video the launches—later, they can review frame-by-frame in software like Tracker to measure velocity or observe patterns. This doubles as both data analysis and engaging digital literacy.Reflective Commentary
Implementing this activity in my SET-inclusive classroom is ideal because it combines tactile engagement, visual evidence, and structured inquiry—essential elements for accessible learning. Students collaborate to design and test variations, fostering teamwork, communication, and executive functioning skills. The clear, visible thrust of the balloon rocket and sound of escaping air provide immediate sensory feedback, supporting retention and concept reinforcement for diverse learners.By documenting experiments with video, students can self-assess and reflect without relying solely on written reports. This suits learners who prefer multimodal expression, and it enriches scientific literacy as they measure, annotate, and draw conclusions collectively. Reviewing video footage in small groups promotes peer learning, meta-cognition, and language development—key for SET students.
Furthermore, exploring changes in launch angle and inflation levels encourages higher-order thinking: students plan fair tests, control variables, and interpret graphical data. Linking this back to real-world rocketry (e.g., how angled launches enter orbit) gives authenticity and deeper meaning.
Overall, the Balloon Rocket activity supports inquiry-based STEM learning while honoring individual learning styles. It demonstrates how simple, low-cost materials—and thoughtfully scaffolded reflection—can inspire curiosity, confidence, and scientific thinking in every learner.
At our school, I’d start by gathering : surveys and informal interviews with teachers, students, parents, and leadership to map strengths and areas for development in STEM—their attitudes, practices, and resource availability. This aligns with recommendations from Teachnet.ie on using teacher/self‑reflection and SCOT/SWOT to inform STEM SSE
Next, I’d conduct an audit of existing resources—tech tools, maker kits, lab spaces—and compare against a “wish list”, identifying gaps in equipment, training, or curriculum integration
We’d then form a small STEM Committee—including SET, science, tech, and parent reps—to analyse data, prioritise goals, and develop a focused action plan, using frameworks such as Education Scotland’s STEM self‑evaluation improvement tool
Within this plan, we’d include CPD sessions focused on inquiry-based science and inclusive strategies, possibly using resources like SFI’s Curious Minds and UL’s
Finally, we’d define measurable success indicators: increased STEM integration, higher student engagement, improved formative assessment data, and inclusion of SET students in science activities. Annual review will ensure the process remains dynamic and responsive.
Reflective Commentary
Engaging in a structured, evidence‑based SSE process supports not just quality improvement but also equity. Gathering voices across the school ensures that diverse perspectives—particularly of SET learners—are heard. Our audit reveals where resources are under-utilized or inaccessible, and the STEM Committee strengthens shared ownership and collaborative planning.. Integrating digital tools—e.g., inquiry-skill simulators from EPI•STEM—further enriches our pedagogical approaches
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Supporting teacher CPD through SFI Curious Minds builds capacity and confidence, especially around facilitating hands-on challenge-based STEM where SET learners thrive with visual, tactile, and collaborative experiences
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Overall, this SSE process promotes a culture of reflection and continuous improvement. It moves the school from ad‑hoc STEM moments to an inclusive, strategic, and joyful STEM ethos—where all learners, including those in SET, can explore, question, and innovate together.
