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As a city school I feel a good research question would be How does the amount of green space around our school affect local temperatures, and how could planting more trees and plants help reduce the ‘urban heat island effect’? It would obviously be necessary to explore urban heat island effect with them beforehand. I feel this is relevant as we are experiencing increased temperatures due to climate change. I would begin by getting the children to observe different areas around the school and I would ask them where they feel hottest and why do they think that is? Children could work in small groups and measure temperatures, record observations, use maps and discuss their findings. This supports the development of scientific inquiry, critical thinking, collaboration and communication while integrating learning across Science, Geography and Maths. I would encourage the children to share their findings with the rest of the school and suggest realistic actions, such as planting trees or creating more green spaces.
Hi Ruth, I really like your idea. It is in keeping with the students’ interests while helping them think about sustainability in a practical way. The swap shop and sewing workshop sound like great hands-on activities.
I decided to use a satellite tracker website to discover what satellites have passed Ireland recently. I found it interesting to see how many satellites pass over Ireland every day and how they all have different jobs. The five that have recently passed Ireland are the International Space Station (ISS), Sentinel-2A, Sentinel-2B, NOAA-20 and also a Starlink satelllite. The ISS is primarily used as a place for astronauts to carry out some experiments in space. Sentinel-2A and Sentinel-2B satellites are used to observe Earth, they take detailed images of land, forests and coastlines. They are also used to monitor flooding, wildfires and changes in the environment. NOAA-20 collects weather and climate data which helps in predicting more accurate weather forecasts and to monitor storms. The Starlink satellite is part of a large network that provides satellite internet, especially in remote areas. I enjoyed using this resource and I feel an older class would really enjoy this and find it fascinating.
I really like your point about comparing images from different perspectives. It’s a great way to help children understand that each view gives us different information about our world. I agree with you also that using satellite images makes learning more engaging for the children. It is definitely a resource I will use in the classroom.
Watching HOME really made me reflect on the impact our everyday choices have on the planet. The footage was both beautiful and thought-provoking. The video highlighted the negative effects of our actions but also provided some hope for us by showing how small actions can make a huge difference. I feel Greta Thunberg’s TED Talk would complement the film in class by bringing a personal and urgent perspective to the climate crisis. Her passion and determination is inspiring and I think children would relate more to seeing another younger person sharing the message about climate action and the part they can play in it. I think her talk reinforces the importance of listening to scientific evidence and taking responsibility for protecting our future.
I would introduce these concepts in an age-appropriate and positive way. It is a real issue that we must all be aware of but I would be conscious that some younger children might feel frightened. I do feel the HOME video might be more suited to an older class. I would use short video clips, discussion, stories and practical activities such as planting seeds, recycling projects and exploring biodiversity in the local environment. I would hope to help the children understand that although climate change is a global challenge they can help with small everyday actionsI agree with you Elspeth about this video. It is very powerful, but it’s important to consider the age of the children before showing it. We would need to look at presenting factual information in a positive, age-appropriate way can help pupils understand climate change without making them feel overwhelmed.
Hi Claire from reading your post I like how you focused on making the learning practical and relevant for younger pupils. I also agree pairing the class with older children is a great idea as this type of peer learning can build confidence and encourage collaboration while supporting understanding. I also agree that linking the activity across different subjects would help reinforce the key messages in a meaningful way.
I enjoyed the PAX video and think it is a useful resource for the classroom. There would need to be some preparation for the vocabulary to ensure children can engage with the content.
I also liked the Climate Reporter activity using the TEAL tool. The time slider allows pupils to see how climate data has changed over time, making the information more meaningful. Working in pairs on the computers in our school using a worksheet and teacher available for guidance would encourage discussion and prediction. As the children discuss the results, it would provide an excellent opportunity for pupils to consider how rising temperatures might affect their own lives including birthday, holidays, plants and animals. This could naturally lead into a problem-solving activity where pupils develop practical ideas for reducing the greenhouse effect and protecting the environment for their future selves. I do feel the activities may be difficult for younger classes so maybe some “buddying up” with older classes would help.
After reading your response I agree that linking weather and climate to children’s own experiences such as their birthdays is a good way to make the learning more meaningful and also easier for pupils to understand. I also really like your suggestion to include more ICT, I think pupils would enjoy using Excel to present their information and create bar charts etc.
After reading your response I agree that linking weather and climate to children’s own experiences such as their birthdays is a good way to make the learning more meaningful and also easier for pupils to understand. I also really like your suggestion to include more ICT, I think pupils would enjoy using Excel to present their information and create bar charts etc.
After reading Liston it has shown me that STEM is about much more than teaching Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths as separate, it is about bringing these areas together through practical, engaging and meaningful activities that encourage pupils to think critically, solve problems, work with others and to be creative.
During my teaching I always try to have opportunities for children to learn through exploration and hands-on experiences. Activities 1 and 2 are very useful as they are easy to implement in the classroom while being engaging. Activity 1 introduces the difference between weather and climate in a way that is easy for pupils to understand, while Activity 2 allows them to collect and record weather information themselves. I like that this activity also gives a chance to use some Maths Skill as they are measuring as well as organising and interpreting the data they are collecting.
I would use these activities as an integrated unit. We could compare weather with another area in Ireland etc. One area for improvement would be that I do feel the activities are more suited to an older class after having infants for a number of years.
I also really like the idea of building the spacecrafts. I could use this idea with my infants to do as an activity with their 6th class buddies.
I would like to focus on some activities I could add in for Space Week. As I teach infants I feel that Aistear is a great place to have lots of space related activities.
Oral Language: Using posters and videos to introduce the space related vocabulary you would like them to use that week.
Role play – The children could act out being on the space station /as aliens etc
Small World Play: set up a tuff tray using astronauts, rockets etc. /draw stars, planets etc onto tray.
Playdough – Designing and creating their own rocket out of playudough
Construction: Build their own rocket/Space station etc.I would also add in some numeracy games with a space theme during ready set go maths such as space race-roll the dice and count to 10, fill the spaceships with the correct number of aliens, alien hunt etc.
We would use fictional space themed books for our story that week. We could also focus on some space themed songs/poems. I like the idea of a whole school assembly also for each class to showcase their work during Space Week. We also work with 6th closely as they act as buddies for the juniors so we could definitely collaborate on an experiment/an art activity like paper mache planets etc.
Following this module I decided I really liked the lesson ideas for What Clothes to Wear (ESERO)/Investigating Children’s Coats (Curious Minds) in my infant classroom.
I have found that a sorting activity always works very well while also providing the opportunity for a great discussion. In small groups, the children would have a variety of weather and clothes-related pictures which they would need to sort into the four seasons.
Following on from this, I really liked the What Clothes to Wear? activity. This involves the children choosing appropriate clothes for each season from the dress-up box and using teacher questioning to informally assess understanding. For example – Why do we wear fewer clothes in summer? Do you need to put your coat on to go outside in the winter? Why? Focusing on the seasons is relevant to infants but also allows for plenty of integration across the curriculum such as An Aimsir In Gaeilge,, during Aistear and also seasonal art activities.
