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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.
The strategic location of aquaculture farms along Ireland’s coastline plays a vital role in supporting the socio-economic development of rural and coastal communities. Many of these regions face challenges such as limited employment opportunities, population decline, and reduced income from traditional sectors like fishing and agriculture. Aquaculture offers a sustainable alternative, creating jobs in production, processing, logistics, and research. By fostering local employment, especially in isolated areas, aquaculture helps retain younger generations and supports community resilience.
Moreover, aquaculture contributes to the diversification of local economies, reducing dependence on seasonal tourism or struggling fisheries. With Ireland’s clean, nutrient-rich waters, especially in counties like Donegal, Kerry, and Cork, the industry can continue to grow responsibly. It also encourages investment in infrastructure and enhances the skills base of the local workforce. When managed sustainably, aquaculture not only supplies high-quality seafood but also strengthens rural development, enhances food security, and promotes economic stability in coastal regions.
Sustainability is becoming increasingly visible in my local area through community-led initiatives such as recycling programs, community gardens, beach clean-ups, and the promotion of local produce at farmers’ markets. Renewable energy projects, like wind turbines and solar panels on public buildings, also highlight a collective shift toward more environmentally conscious living. These local actions provide a strong foundation for teaching pupils about sustainability in a real and relatable way.
To engage pupils further, I would begin by exploring what sustainability means in everyday life. We would take local walks to observe sustainable practices firsthand—visiting a recycling centre, a local farm, or interviewing community members involved in eco-projects. Back in the classroom, pupils could document their findings, create posters or presentations, and even design small projects to promote sustainability at school, such as reducing plastic use or starting a compost bin.
Linking classroom learning to real-world practices helps pupils see that sustainability is not just a global issue, but one they can influence locally. Through inquiry-based learning, discussion, and active participation, students become empowered to take ownership of their actions. By making sustainability tangible and locally relevant, we nurture responsible citizens who are more aware of their role in protecting the planet.