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Hi Niamh we also have these jobs in our school too. The children loved gettig a title (and a hugh-vis vest!). This helped a lot with creating a space for all in our classroom. For awhile some had a habit of not picking up rubbish that ‘wasn’t theirs’. Often children can only see their own perspective but it is the job of teachers to make them see if everyone does their own small part it creates a better environment for us all.
In my local area and school sustainability is practiced through various community-driven initiatives and policies aimed at reducing environmental impact and promoting a greener lifestyle. One of the most notable efforts is the widespread adoption of recycling within our staffroom – this tookawhile to implement as some people weren’t aware recycling had to be clean and dry when disposed of but is a good way to show children that we lead by example. While the students don’t recycle as recently we have implemented a widespread Litterless Lunch initiative. This reduced the waste in our school in general as well as children being more mindfull on how they dispose at home, as well as superlative/excessive tinfoil and cling film. Parents have also expressed how interesting it is to see what their children actually bring home now rather than wasting food by throwing it out
Additionally, in our school there is a strong emphasis on conserving energy. We do a ‘no power hour’ in our school every day. And we have 2 members of the Coiste Glas go around to every classroom every day to turn off unnecessary lights and close the doors to keep in the heat in winter.
Like many other schools, we have a Bike to school and walk to school initiative (we are also fortunate to be situated just by the Greenway which is a blessing when the children need a safe nature walk. We have a Poly-tunnel and Eco-Club. Establishing a school garden where pupils can grow their own vegetables and learn about organic farming was a very powerful tool for us to teach about sustainability. An eco-club can serve as a platform for pupils to lead sustainability initiatives and share their ideas with the school community. In this instance we taught 6th class and helped them plant and then toward the end of the year the leaving 6th class explained how to do it to the current 5th class – what worked and what didn’t. This was a really good opportunity for peer-teaching too
By employing these activities I believe it fosters a deeper understanding and appreciation of sustainability among pupils. Encouraging them to think critically about their environmental impact and empowering them to take action will help cultivate a generation of environmentally conscious individuals.
Hi there – I like the idea of students doing their own research on a product – and maybe extending it further of how much of something else would you have to eat to get the same amount of protein as you would from for example, uscles, prawns/fish etc There is a good potential link for fractions and ratios here too
This module was very engaging displaying the advantages of seafood and its nutrition as well as the significance of eating healthy. While historically, the food pyramid (particularly in its first variation) was flawed – grouping fish meat and oils on the same level with no deliniation between lean meats and ‘fatty’ meats as well as not making any mention of portion sizing. Nevertheless, it is a good starting point of displaying as to what food should be eaten in moderation.
I like the idea of an ‘eye spy’ game to get children to engage and learn about different labels and teach them how to recognise sustainable Irish seafood on the market (the MSC and ASC labels). This could be an interesting conversation first on where we shop, ask children to bring in used empty and clean recycled (or just cut off the labels form the outside) and allow the children to sort them themselves. There might be a nice link here to make a collage art here of the recycled materials too.
I think most children have a limited knowledge on what we need to nutrients we do to survive – further exploring why we need protein – helps build muscle and keeps us full for longer – how to make a healthy meal with correct portion sizes, as well as reading, the back of labels would be significant here. For example one chief common misconception is that 100grams of salmon = 100grams of protein, when in reality our food is make up of a lot more macro and micro-nutrients.
Hi – I like the idea of getting children to make an online survey and possibey getting them to use Scratch – these are great ideas!
The online resources and lessons on the ARC are attractive, interesting and will be very useful for me in the next teaching year. The underscore the significance of aquaculture, particularly here in Ireland and they would provide a could springboard for interesting classroom discussions on this type of farming. More importantly this could generate conversations on how Science, Technology, Engineering (and Art -I often have observed many still using the term STEM instead of STEAM – art can easily be put in here as a cross-curricular link! Evidence from one of the videos explain how graphic designers are needed to make a seafood product eye-catching so that it will be purchased)
Most children in my school would come from an urban or suburban area and some might have small knowledge on dairy or cattle farming yet I think they would still find it very interesting to learn about aquatic life and farming.
I really liked lesson 2 on nutrition linking it in with the story of the Salmon of knowledge and why OMEGA 3, zinc iron and B12 are important for growing bodies. There are many opportunities here to learn about how aquaculture is sustainable. Recently in our Development Education Fairtrade project we ran we 6th class – we played the ‘Coffee chain game’ – we learned how coffee goes from faring, processing, shipping, roasting etc to supermarkets and how unfairly people are paid. There are relevant links to be made here in the shorter and more localised process of aquafarming (while acknowledging obviously how different these products are and how unfairly wealth and payments are distributed). The aim here would be to foster empathy for coffee farmers but to also make students aware how lucky we are to live in a country that is harnessing local produce and making it into an industry – as well as seeing the value in it.
You are correct a strategic location of a aquafarm can change the industry and by extensions future and sustainability of a small rural areas
I was very interested to learn how farming land will become scarce due to urban sprawl of towns and cities and population growth etc. And with only a fraction of the world’s seas and oceans being used for aquaculture, this leaves more room for sustainable growth for this industry.
Ireland’s aquaculture farms are predominantly located in sheltered bays and inlets along the west and south coasts. This is due to the fact that Ireland’s unique coastline (made from the Atlantic ocean’s erosion as well glacial erosion) have given Ireland its unique landscape which has features that are essential for aquaculture production for example: their clean waters, suitable temperatures, and natural protection from harsh weather. Some locations are: Donegal Bay, Dingle Bay and Bantry Bay.
This strategic location of aquaculture farms in various bays and coastal areas plays a crucial role in their socio-economic contributions to local communities. For example they provide direct jobs n farming, processing and distribution as well as indirect employment in supporting industries such as transport and maintenance. This employment helps sustain local economies, reducing outsourcing it to another community/place as thus supporting community stability. Similarly, the industry often supports local education and training programs, helping build a skilled workforce.
Also, by promoting environmental stewardship, aquaculture farms help to preserve natural resources which coastal communities depend on ensuring long term ecological and economic sustainability.
I loved the map reading activity, discussing the natural features on Ireland’s coastline – which features are important dependant on which species potentially being farmed. I think students would like discussing these ideas.I really enjoyed learning about this first module the videos and commentary were so interesting and attractive to watch – I’m sure students would also enjoy them too. The ARC as a mobile classroom would be a great environment for children to learn and raise their awareness about aquaculture. Even the fact that the room is designed to be the ‘opposite of a classroom’ with the chairs laid out like a theatre lends to the inquiry based learning which we as teachers are trying to use in all our lessons. There are many worthwhile and realistic links to be made there with literacy, numeracy and SESE – in particular development education – which is of great interest to me as I am part of the Green Schools Committee in my school. Similarly there are links with SPHE caring for the environment and stewardship of the earth etc.
Taste the Atlantic programme the seafood journey across the Atlantic way I think would have be of great interest in my school. As we are based in the South West and have a relatively short coastline – many of the families in our school have holiday homes in along the Wild Atlantic way and I think this would be of great interest here. Also there are worthwhile links to be made with history (Salmon of Knowledge story) as well as Science and Geography obviously, but also SPHE and healthy eating etc. These are two tools I would definitely use in my teaching in the coming year.