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Research question: How can we reduce the amount of plastic waste leaving our school each week?
Plastic waste is an important environmental issue due to how long it can take to break down and it can contribute to pollution on land and in our oceans. I would try to get the pupils to participate by getting them to investigate how much plastic waste the school produces. The pupils could carry out a simple waste audit by collecting and sorting plastic waste from different areas of the school e.g. classrooms and staffroom. They could then record the types and quantities of the plastics that they find and note where they find most waste is. I would then get them to work in small groups to suggest ways of reducing this waste e.g. encouraging reusable lunch containers. They could then repeat the waste audit after implementing some whole school changes after some weeks and compate the results. This would allow them to be able to see if their actions made any measurable differences. The children could then present their findings in a graph and outline their project in a powerpoint which they could send to all classes to look over.Research question: How can we reduce the amount of plastic waste leaving our school each week?
Plastic waste is an important environmental issue due to how long it can take to break down and it can contribute to pollution on land and in our oceans. I would try to get the pupils to participate by getting them to investigate how much plastic waste the school produces. The pupils could carry out a simple waste audit by collecting and sorting plastic waste from different areas of the school e.g. classrooms and staffroom. They could then record the types and quantities of the plastics that they find and note where they find most waste is. I would then get them to work in small groups to suggest ways of reducing this waste e.g. encouraging reusable lunch containers. They could then repeat the waste audit after implementing some whole school changes after some weeks and compate the results. This would allow them to be able to see if their actions made any measurable differences. The children could then present their findings in a graph and outline their project in a powerpoint which they could send to all classes to look over.This is a great idea and very relevant to lives today with so much plastic around especially in packaging of food and drinks. It would be a very worthwhile piece of research for the children and you have a great plan for it to work. It would be great for the children to develop a greater understanding of recycling and its benefits
Using the app Satellite Tracker I found the following satellites over Ireland- Starlink satelllites- part of SpaceX’s Starlink collection. They are providing internet connectivity from orbit. Hundreds of Starlink satellites can be seen moving across the sky in groups. GPS satellites- providing timing and positioning signals,they form part of the Global Positioning System. Galilieo satellites-like GPS- operated by the EU and is very important for EU navigating. OneWeb satellites- providing high speed internet connectivity and International Space Sation- a large research laboratory in low Earth orbit. Astronauts live and work on board. They conduct experiments in science subjects such as physics and biology. It travels at about 27,600 km/h and orbits Earth roughly every 92 minutes. I hadn’t used this app before and think it would be excellent to show a class. It made it very real and is great that this is something that people can observe. It’s quite amazing to see all the satellites.
Using the app Satellite Tracker I found the following satellites over Ireland- Starlink satelllites- part of SpaceX’s Starlink collection. They are providing internet connectivity from orbit. Hundreds of Starlink satellites can be seen moving across the sky in groups. GPS satellites- providing timing and positioning signals,they form part of the Global Positioning System. Galilieo satellites-like GPS- operated by the EU and is very important for EU navigating. OneWeb satellites- providing high speed internet connectivity and International Space Sation- a large research laboratory in low Earth orbit. Astronauts live and work on board. They conduct experiments in science subjects such as physics and biology. It travels at about 27,600 km/h and orbits Earth roughly every 92 minutes. I hadn’t used this app before and think it would be excellent to show a class. It made it very real and is great that this is something that people can observe. It’s quite amazing to see all the satellites.
I think it is an excellent resource also and great for a class who are interested in space. it’s great that it promotes active learning, the children would enjoy this element and it would be more meaningful for them.
I agree with this. I like your ideas for addressing it with a more positive approach such as the idea of recycling and reducing waste etc. It’s important that children don’t feel that they can’t do anything to help. It’s important that they are very aware of the positive actions that they can do. I often find children are very quick to adopt positive behaviours around environmental issues.
The video Home was excellent and was very powerful and effective. It made the changes that are happening to our climate very real and showed clearly the impacts they are having. It showed clearly the effects of climate change. In order to introduce the facts I would show some of the video HOME and ask the children their opinions on a short piece. I would watch more and ask them to reflect themselves and maybe in pairs/groups on what they have watched. The children could have a group discussion. I could also show them more follow up videos e.g. Paxi and work on the area of greenhouse gases as follow up work. I think project work would also be a good way for children to show their learning and to explore the facts more fully. The children could present their findings/reflections to the rest of the class. This would afford the opportunity for further discussions.
I think a worksheet or notes copy is a good idea to highlight key vocabulary is a great idea as some children might find some of these scientific terms a bit daunting. I like the idea of making a word cloud about what could be done as a school to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Activity 3 is a good way to introduce pupils in the classroom to climate change by using scientific knowledge and the real world in which they live. The Paxi video explains the greenhouse effect to children in a very child friendly manner and it is also very clear and easy to understand. I think it would be a good idea for the class to do some of their own research before starting the activity. They could share this with the rest of the class. In order to extend the lesson I would ask the pupils to present their findings and understandings in presentation form e.g. look at what they could do in the future- practical ideas. In order to improve the activity some more differentiation could help e.g. some simple language for some terms or ideas for further project work.
Activity 3- Climate Reporters is a great way to introduce pupils in the classroom to climate change by using scientific knowledge and the real world in which they live. The Paxi video explains the greenhouse effect to children in a very child friendly manner and it is also very clear and easy to understand. I like the TEAL tool as it would give children the opportunity to look at future temperature projections. This is particularly important in todays world.
I think it would be a good idea for the class to do some of their own research before starting the activity. They could share this with the rest of the class. In order to extend the lesson I would ask the pupils to present their findings and understandings in presentation form e.g. look at what they could do in the future- practical ideas. In order to improve the activity some more differentiation could help e.g. some simple language for some terms or ideas for further project work.The article Unravelling STEM: Beyond the Acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics by Dr. Maeve Liston allowed me to think about how STEM is a part of my own teaching. I think Technology and Engineering aren’t covered as much but will be more so with the new Primary Curriculum. The article made me reflect what STEM can look like in the primary classroom. I really enjoy teaching the STEM subjects and try to use a lot of the nature of science and get the children to develop the skills of a scientist. I could do more technology and engineering in the future. The ESA Kids resources were very well structured. I definitely see myself incorporating these into my teaching in the future. The resources allow the children opportunities to explain their thinking through discussion and presentations. This allows the children to work together collaboratively and to also develop their confidence. I love the idea of having a weather station. It would afford the children to see Science in action and would give them a chance to work as scientists.
I agree that it would be important to include an element of differentiation into the lessons. Some children may find the language in the lessons challenging and the teacher would be able to adjust this for those children. There may be gifted children who could perhaps do some of their own work on the topics e.g. doing some further research