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Your memories of collecting and tasting mussels as a child really show the lasting impact that practical, hands-on learning can have. It is interesting that this experience has stayed with you and is now influencing how you hope to teach your own pupils.
I particularly like your ideas for introducing the topic through Aistear. A fish shop or seafood market would give Junior Infants opportunities to develop oral language, social skills and early numeracy while learning about where food comes from. Stories, art and discussions about healthy eating would also make the topic accessible and enjoyable for young children.
As I teach in the Midlands, many pupils may have less direct experience of fishing ports, seafood markets or the coastal environment. Your post has reminded me that meaningful experiences can still be created through role play, videos, visitors, food packaging and perhaps tasting activities, where appropriate. These approaches could help bring the topic to life and encourage pupils to appreciate both the nutritional value of seafood and the importance of Ireland’s seafood industry.
The Nutrition of Seafood module highlighted for me just how important seafood can be as part of a healthy, balanced diet. I was aware that fish is considered a healthy food, but I had not fully appreciated the range of nutrients it provides, including high-quality protein, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins D and B12, iodine and selenium. I also learned that eating seafood regularly can support heart health, brain development and overall wellbeing, making it an excellent food choice for children and adults alike.
From a classroom perspective, this knowledge offers many opportunities for cross-curricular learning. In Science, pupils could investigate food groups, healthy eating and the role of different nutrients in the body. In Mathematics, they could collect and analyse data on favourite types of seafood, create graphs or compare nutritional information on food labels. Geography lessons could explore where Irish seafood is caught or farmed and how it is transported from coastal areas to communities throughout Ireland. SPHE could also encourage pupils to make informed food choices and understand the importance of a balanced diet.
As my school is located in the Midlands, many pupils may have limited direct experience of fishing, aquaculture or seafood production. This makes the topic particularly valuable, as videos, photographs, maps and classroom activities can help bring the subject to life. Pupils could trace seafood from the sea or aquaculture farm to the supermarket, investigate different Irish species and discuss why some families may eat more seafood than others.
Overall, this module has increased my confidence in teaching about nutrition and healthy lifestyles. It has shown me that seafood can provide a useful real-world context for integrated STEM learning while also broadening pupils’ knowledge of an important Irish food industry.
I really enjoyed reading your post. Your pupils are so fortunate to have such a strong connection between what they learn in school and what they see every day in their own community. Although they may not have aquaculture farms nearby, being able to relate the lessons to the local fishing industry will make the learning much more meaningful.
I also liked your point about using the ARC videos to support pupils with ASD. The clear visuals, repetition and manageable lesson length would benefit many learners, not just those with additional needs. Your idea of developing this into a whole-school SSE focus is an excellent one and would help create a consistent approach to STEM learning across all classes.
It’s lovely that so many of your pupils have a personal connection to the industry through their families. That kind of real-life relevance is something that can really spark curiosity and engagement in the classroom.
Working through the ARC online lessons has given me plenty of practical ideas that I could bring into my own classroom. I particularly liked that the activities are based on real-life problems and encourage children to investigate, ask questions and work together to find solutions rather than simply learning facts. I can see pupils really engaging with topics such as aquaculture, sustainability and protecting our oceans because they relate to issues that affect Ireland today.
The lessons fit well with the aims of the STEM Education Policy Statement by encouraging inquiry-based learning, critical thinking, collaboration and creativity. They also provide excellent opportunities to integrate Science, Geography, Mathematics and Digital Technologies, helping pupils to see the links between different subjects instead of learning them in isolation.
On a whole-school level, I think these resources could support our School Self-Evaluation process by helping us develop a shared approach to STEM. Teachers could work together to plan common STEM themes across different class levels, share successful lessons and build pupils’ investigative skills as they progress through the school. We already place a strong emphasis on active learning in our school, and these resources would complement that approach while giving teachers practical, engaging ideas that can be adapted for different age groups.
Overall, the ARC resources have shown me that STEM does not have to be taught as a separate subject. Instead, it can become a natural part of everyday teaching through meaningful, hands-on activities that encourage curiosity, teamwork and problem-solving.
I really enjoyed reading your reflection, Lauren. Like you, I hadn’t fully appreciated the importance of aquaculture to Ireland’s coastal communities before taking this course. I also liked your point about helping children understand where their food comes from, as it’s something they don’t always think about. Using maps and photographs is a great way to make the topic more real and engaging for pupils. It’s a lovely example of how Geography and Science can be linked while also encouraging discussions about sustainability and caring for our marine environment.
Before completing this module, I hadn’t really thought about why aquaculture farms are located in particular parts of Ireland. I now have a much better understanding of how factors such as sheltered bays, clean water and suitable tidal conditions all play a role in deciding where farms are established. It made me realise how closely connected our coastline is to food production and the people who depend on it.
I was also interested to learn about the positive impact aquaculture can have on coastal communities. As well as producing high-quality seafood, it creates jobs in farming, processing, transport and other local businesses. In many areas, these jobs help people to stay and work in their own communities, which is especially important in more rural parts of the country.
From a teaching point of view, I can see lots of opportunities to bring this topic into the classroom. It links naturally with Science, Geography and STEM and would encourage children to ask questions, investigate real-life issues and think about sustainability. It would also help pupils make connections between what they learn in school and the world around them.
Overall, this module has helped me appreciate the importance of aquaculture in Ireland and has given me plenty of ideas for engaging, real-world learning in my own classroom.
I think the development of an understanding of sustainability was a hugely important element of this module and you’ve hit the nail on the head when you highlighted the importance of the students’ awareness of these areas as being fundamental in developing their critical thinking.
I chose this course as my daughter was lucky enough to have the opportunity to visit the ARC mobile classroom this year and she came home enthused and curious about the fish we eat in our home!
I work in a rural school in the Midlands, where children’s knowledge of sea life is v limited and the scope for hands on learning is virtually non-existent. However, the pupil video clips make this topic v easy to introduce, even to children living in a county with no coastline!
Food origin and consuming local and seasonal produce is a large part of my teaching every year. The ability to broaden this to include Aquaculture would really enhance the children’s learning. The Young Chefs initiative reminded me of something we did many years agó, where a local chef visited our school and prepared fresh goujons with the children. The vast majority of the children were afraid to touch the skin of the fish and most had never seen a whole fresh fish before. This really highlighted for me the importance of children understanding the value of fresh local food
Having downloaded a number of different apps before finding one that would provide the information I required, I eventuallt hit on one that gave me a list of sing five satellites which have passed over Ireland recently, namely; Snoopi, BurstCube, Curtis, the International Space Station (ISS), and Kashiwa.
Snoopi focuses on collecting data on cosmic rays, facilitating scientists understanding of high-energy particles.
BurstCube detects and analyses gamma-ray bursts, the most energetic events in the universe. BurstCube helps track them to gain insights into their origins and behaviour.
Curtis is an Earth observation satellite, which monitors environmental changes, such as deforestation and urban development. I found this one particularly interesting and useful in its links to the teaching Climate Change in the classroom.
The International Space Station (ISS) is a space laboratory where astronauts conduct scientific research in microgravity. One app allows for the tracking of the ISS and a very user-friendly image of Earth as viewed from the ISS with easy manipulation of the image allowing for apecific viewing of night and day, light pollution etc.
Kashiwa collects data on crop conditions, assistinf farmers in making decisions to improve crop yields and sustainability.
Although this wasn’t the easiest task to navigate initially, I found exploring the various apps fascinating and I think the children would thoroughly enjoy exploring them too
I agree that the navigation of this activity was a bit confusing initially. It took me a few downloads to find an app that gave me the information I needed for this assignment. However, in pursuit of this information I found one app that I will definitely use in the classroom. It was very simple in its application and use, tracking only the ISS but giving fabulously clear images and allowing for easy manipulation of Earth from the viewpoint of ISS
I agree with this fully. I also think it’s important that the children can see themselves as leaders and instigators of change
I was captivated by the Home film and found it cinematically beautiful, to the point that I switched over to watch it on a bigger screen to fully appreciate it. I found the opening scenes humbling in reminding us of our comparative insignificance in the grand scheme of things. However, I am uncertain of it’s suitsbility for children, even for 6th Class. As I mentioned in previous modules, I am highly conscious of the levels of anxiety in children surrounding the area of the cliamte crisis and I’m not convinced that this film will impart the messages in a tone that is child-friendly. I could, however, envisage selecting clips from it as a focus for extension work. I have done a creative writing and poetry lesson on evolution over the last number of years (borrowed from the old Alive-0 programme, I’m almost certain) whereby the creation of the world as we know it is compressed into a day. This highlights for the children how much of the great change that has taken place has occurred practically on the stroke of midnight. It always captivates them, and I feel certain sections of this film would further enhance this lesson. Outside of that, I find David Attenborough’s A Life on our Planet to be far more child-friendly and positive and far less anxiety inducing than Home
I love the Kahoot idea! Children are always mad for Kahoots but I find them hard to link to lessons meaningfully. This is a great opportunity for that
In teaching the topic if Greenhouse Gases, I would begin with a whole-class KWL chart to establish prior knowledge and to set a focus for the learning.
I would then show the Paxi video and follow it with a class discussion. It’s important to note at this point that I have been very aware of children’s anxiety around the area of global warming and the climate crisis in the last number of years. While it is crucial that children are educated, I feel it is very important to place the focus and emphasis on the ways in which the earth can be healed and to ensure they understand that Climate Change and Global Warming are reversible phenomena. David Attenborough’s documentary illustrates this perfectly. I am unsure at this point whether I would use the prediction and simulation tool before or after showing David Attenborough’s documentary. However, I do know that I would be very mindful of keeping the focus of the lesson proactive and positive.I agree completely about our education in the 80s and 90s. Perhaps it was school specific, as I can see from another reply that not everyone had the same experience, but my experience seems to have been similar yo yours. No need for Aistear or STEM activities. We simply played, created, explored, devised solutions to problems, as did our teachers. Everything was repurposed or redesigned and all waste had a use. We could learn so much from those experiences and bring them with us.
