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I love those ideas. I am in the younger end of the school the last few years and the planet songs are always so popular and so effective in sparking interest.
Thanks for sharing.For Space Week, I would like to base my activities around the idea of “Alien Scientists” and use some of the experiments from the Alien Chemistry activities. I think this would work really well with First Class as the children would be able to learn through doing, exploring and having fun.
On Monday, I would introduce the children to the idea of aliens and ask them what they think an alien might look like and what kind of experiments they might do on another planet. We would design our own aliens and talk about what a scientist does. This would introduce the children to making predictions and observing things carefully.
On Tuesday, we would do Messy Mixtures, where the children could explore what happens when different materials are mixed together. We would talk about what they notice and introduce simple ideas about solids and liquids. On Wednesday, we would move on to Fizzing and Foaming. The children would make predictions about what might happen when the materials are mixed and then observe the fizzing and bubbles. This would build their understanding that materials can react and change.
On Thursday, we would do Dancing Raisins, which would be the main experiment of the week. I would show the children a glass of fizzy drink and some raisins and ask them what they think will happen when we put the raisins in. We would record their predictions before starting. We would then drop a few raisins into the fizzy drink and watch closely. The raisins will initially sink, but bubbles from the fizzy drink attach to the raisins and make them rise. When the bubbles pop at the surface, the raisins sink again, making them look like they are “dancing”. We could count how many raisins are dancing and talk about what we can see happening.
On Friday, we would bring everything together. The children could design their own alien planet and create it using recyclable materials. We could talk about their favourite experiment from the week and what they discovered.
I think this would be a fun way to celebrate Space Week while developing important Science skills such as predicting, observing, questioning and investigating. Most importantly, the children would get to have fun, get messy and enjoy Science!
What a wonderful idea. I’d like to have something like this for the coming year. Thanks fo sharing the ideas.
I would choose the Where Do You Live? activity because I think it would be a fun way to introduce Science to First Class and get the children thinking about the world around them. I would start by chatting with the children about where they live and what they see around them, such as houses, trees, roads, parks and animals. We could then look at different places and talk about what is the same and what is different.
To make it more hands-on and creative, I would give the children different recyclable materials such as cardboard boxes, paper, lolly sticks, wool and paper cups. In small groups, they could work together to build their own model of a place to live. They could decide what they wanted their area to look like and add houses, trees, roads, animals and anything else they thought would fit. I think the children would really enjoy getting creative and working together.
While they are building, I would encourage them to ask questions, make predictions and explain why they have included certain things. At the end, each group could show their model to the class and talk about what they made.
I think this would be a great activity for developing Science skills such as observing, questioning, comparing and communicating. It would also encourage teamwork and creativity and make Science more enjoyable and hands-on for the children.
I love that idea. That’s such a fun book as well. They would really enjoy that and gives them great scope for creativity.
I would use the “Draw Your Own Constellation” activity with my First Class pupils as I think it would be a lovely way to introduce the idea of stars, constellations and patterns in the night sky. I would begin by reading How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers. I think this would be a great story to capture the children’s imagination and get them thinking about stars and what they might look like up close.
After reading the story, I would ask the children what they already know about stars and what they notice when they look at the night sky. We could look at some photographs of stars and simple constellations and talk about how people have imagined shapes and pictures by joining stars together.
I would then give the children the opportunity to create their own constellation. They could draw their stars, join them together, give their constellation a name and create a short story about what their shape represents. The children could then share their constellation with the class and explain how they came up with their idea.
I think this activity would work particularly well with First Class because it combines science, creativity, language and numeracy. The children could count the stars in their constellation, compare their designs and talk about the shapes they have created. They could also use a digital drawing tool or take a photograph of their finished work and record themselves explaining it.
I like that the activity allows the children to use their imagination while learning about stars and constellations. Starting with How to Catch a Star would make the topic accessible and engaging, while the inquiry activity would encourage the children to ask questions, make observations, be creative and share their own ideas.
Great idea. I’ve tried lots of different materials and items to make planets but never chinese lanterns. I’ll give them a try this year. I’d say they look amazing.
I would use the “What Does the Moon Look Like?” activity with my First Class pupils as a starting point for exploring the Moon. As my class are in First Class, I think beginning with a story would be a good way to introduce the topic and capture their interest. I could use a story such as ‘Moon Mouse’ as a prompt and ask the children what they notice about the Moon in the story and what they already know about it.
I would then ask the children questions such as, “What do you think the Moon really looks like?”, “What is the Moon made of?” and “Does the Moon always look the same?”. I would record their ideas and questions before giving them the opportunity to explore different images and observations of the Moon. The children could then create their own drawings or models of the Moon based on what they have discovered.
I would also use digital resources to show the children photographs of the Moon and allow them to compare these with their own ideas. We could revisit their original questions and discuss anything they discovered or that surprised them.
I think this activity would work really well with First Class as it combines storytelling, questioning, investigation and creativity. It would encourage the children to be curious, share their ideas and develop their science skills while also providing opportunities to use digital resources as part of their learning.Lovely idea. I’ve just been provided with a tuff tray this year and I’m so excited about the possibilities. I’ll be researching ideas connected to space. Space rocks sound like a brilliant idea.
Good Morning,
My name is Síle and I taught First class last year and will work with First class again this year. My favourite fact that I’ve just discovered is that seemingly Uranus and Neptune have diamond rain as intense pressure deep inside the planets crushes carbon atoms in the atmosphere. The carbon crystallizes into actual diamonds due to the extreme heat and weight.I would love to use the recent solar eclipse as a starting point for an inquiry-based activity with my First Class pupils as it was just so cool to see the interest from children in our locality last night as we were out enjoying it ourselves. I would begin by asking the children what they noticed about the sky during the eclipse and what they think happened to the Sun. We could look at photographs or a short video of the eclipse and talk about what they noticed.
I would then ask the children some simple questions such as “Where did the Moon come from?”, “How did the Moon cover the Sun?” and “Do you think an eclipse happens every day?”. The children could make predictions and draw what they think was happening between the Sun, Moon and Earth.
Using balls or other classroom objects, the children could work in small groups to investigate how the Sun, Moon and Earth move and how the Moon can block our view of the Sun. They could experiment with the positions of the objects and discuss what they notice. They could then draw or photograph their model and explain their findings to the class.
I think this would be a great activity for First Class because it starts with something real that they have just experienced. It would encourage curiosity and questioning while developing their science, communication and observation skills. It could also link into numeracy through counting, comparing sizes and discussing position and movement. Most importantly, the children would be investigating and discovering the answers themselves rather than simply being told what an eclipse is.Such a great point that sustainability can be seen at a local level as well. Small initiatives and small changes can be so effective. You are right that the tidy towns are such a great example of sutainability in the local community. But even closer to home within the school uniform swaps are such a brilliant idea and it can really help others in need.
I love the idea of a book swap as well, it’s something I’ve thought about many times but perhaps this will inspire me to do that this year. Such a lovely idea to promote reading as well.Living in Wicklow, I feel we are very lucky to have such a beautiful natural environment around us. We have the mountains, coastline, rivers, woodlands and lots of wildlife, so sustainability is something that can be easily connected to the children’s everyday lives. It is important that children understand the need to look after these areas and appreciate the environment around them.
In our school, we promote sustainability through our Green-Schools programme and Green Flag. The children are encouraged to recycle, reduce waste and save energy and water. We also have Cycle to School days, which are a great way of encouraging children to think about how they travel to school. We recently carried out a survey to see how everyone travels to school, and the children were able to look at the results and discuss how we could encourage more sustainable ways of travelling.
I think there are lots of opportunities to build on this and explore sustainability further with the children. We could take walks around our local area and look at the plants, trees, insects and wildlife we see, or investigate how we could improve biodiversity around our school. The children could also look at the amount of waste we produce in the school and come up with ideas for reducing it. I think using our own local area and the children’s own experiences makes sustainability much more meaningful and helps them to see that even small changes can make a difference.Some excellent thoughts there regarding healthy eating policies which is something that can be challenging within classrooms. It’s a wonderful way to raise awareness and educate on healthy eating and give the children a chance to discuss their own thought around this area. I also completely agree that children will be more adventurous and try foods in the class environment than they would at home and it’s a wonderful way to expose them to new and nutritious food they might not otherwise consider or eat.
Learning about the nutritional benefits of seafood made me think about how I could bring this into my First Class classroom in a simple and practical way. I found it particularly interesting to learn about the health benefits of seafood, including protein, vitamins and minerals, as well as healthy fats such as omega-3.
As we are learning about the seashore habitat and living things, I think this would be a great opportunity to introduce different types of seafood and talk about where they come from. We could discuss why seafood can be part of a healthy, balanced diet and compare it with other foods we eat. This would give the children a chance to think about their own food choices and learn more about healthy eating in a way that connects to their everyday lives.
I would also like to include a simple food preparation activity. The children could work together to prepare something simple and more suitable to their age group, giving them the opportunity to learn about ingredients, hygiene and healthy choices in a hands-on way. This could also link nicely with Science, SPHE and Maths through looking at nutrition, measuring and comparing foods. It could then lead into procedural writing, where the children could write the steps involved in making the food.
Overall, I think this learning could make healthy eating more interesting and real for the children. I would like to use it to encourage curiosity about food and help them make positive and healthy choices.