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I like the range of ideas Sophie, because it shows how easily the night sky can connect across music, poetry and art. The song choices would be a great way to start a discussion, especially with children who may already know some of them, while the poems could be used to explore how different writers describe the Moon, stars and night in very different ways.
<p data-start=”359″ data-end=”627″>The art ideas are especially strong because they give children a chance to respond creatively rather than just talk about what they have learned. I like the idea of inventing constellations and naming them, as this links nicely with storytelling as well as visual art.</p>
<p data-start=”629″ data-end=”1014″ data-is-last-node=”” data-is-only-node=””>I would also definitely include Michael D. Higgins’ <em data-start=”681″ data-end=”691″>Stardust as a stimulus. It would be a nice way of bringing in an Irish voice and showing that the night sky continues to inspire modern writing as well as older poems and songs. Most of the children would know who he is also, so that would be a nice way to start. The Celtic spiral idea also gives a useful link to Irish traditions and the way people observed natural cycles long before modern science explained them.</p>I would base this project around the idea that people have always created stories and traditions connected with darkness, night-time and things they could not easily explain. I looked through the Dúchas Schools’ Collection for examples from Co. Limerick and found some great starting points. In Ballingarry, for example, one account describes the Banshee as sounding like a dog crying and says she was heard when someone from an old family was about to die. In Athea, there is a story about Jack-o’-Lantern leading people astray on dark nights, while another describes the Banshee crying near a house before a death. There are also piseógs from Cappamore involving rotten eggs being hidden in manure on May Eve, apparently to bring harm to another household. I remember my grand-uncle telling me stories about the fairies leading him astray . I cannot remember off the top of my head, but I would research these stories too and add them to the project.
I would use a few of these short examples as a stimulus and then ask the children to become folklore collectors themselves. They could interview grandparents, parents or older neighbours and collect stories, sayings or beliefs connected with darkness, ghosts, fairies, strange lights or places people avoided at night.
I would then compare this with Aboriginal Australian traditions connected with the night sky. Rather than always joining bright stars like dots to make constellations, some Aboriginal traditions identify shapes in the dark spaces of the Milky Way, such as the Emu in the Sky. The children could explore how different cultures have looked at the same night sky and created very different stories from what they saw. I spent some time in Australia and I have nice photos and star maps etc from when I was there.
We could also discuss figures such as the Irish Bogeyman and the Kurdaitcha from Arrernte tradition, while being careful not to suggest that they are the same. The broad reason for the project would be: Why do people everywhere create stories about darkness and the unknown?
<p class=”PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer” data-start=”0″ data-end=”310″>Hi Sharon, I like how your activity brings the children out into their local environment rather than keeping biodiversity as something they only learn about in the classroom. Using the town park and nearby hedgerows would give them a good chance to see that even an urban area can support a surprising amount of wildlife.</p>
<p data-start=”312″ data-end=”637″>The link with nocturnal animals works well too, especially because bats and moths are species that children may know about but rarely get to observe closely. Asking them to compare brighter and darker parts of the park would help them make the connection between artificial light and animal behaviour in a very practical way.</p>
<p data-start=”639″ data-end=”983″ data-is-last-node=”” data-is-only-node=””>I also think the mapping activity is a strong idea because it gets them thinking about what animals actually need in order to survive, such as food, water and shelter. Finishing with a wildlife-friendly design gives the lesson a nice problem-solving element and lets the children use what they have discovered to suggest realistic improvements.</p>I would make sure that the school biodiversity plan considers what happens in the school grounds after we have gone home. Species such as bats, moths and hedgehogs are active at night, so protecting darker areas around the school is important. I would include the children in reviewing outdoor lighting, switching off lights when they are not needed and making sure necessary lights are directed towards paths and entrances rather than into trees, hedges or the sky.
I would also involve the children in identifying habitats around the school that could support nocturnal wildlife, particularly the hedgerows, our mature trees, the long grass at the bottom of the field and areas where insects are plentiful, especially around the bug hotels. I would draw on Éanna Ní Lamhna’s Wild Things at School and child voice when planning this work.
Planting could also support nocturnal species. Native honeysuckle is nice because its evening scent attracts moths. Other native plants such as red campion, meadowsweet, wild angelica and devil’s-bit scabious can also support insects that form part of the food chain for bats and other wildlife.
The children could help identify suitable areas and suggest simple actions for the biodiversity plan, helping them see that protecting wildlife also means thinking about the school grounds at night.
I really like your idea of using the aurora borealis as the starting point Hilary, because it is something that the children will remember hearing about or seeing for themselves. There have been 2 pretty major instances of it being visible in the past few years here in Co Limerick. It gives a very real reason for discussing why the night sky can look so different depending on where you are.
Comparing photographs from Limerick city and darker rural areas would make the idea of light pollution very easy to understand. Maybe some of their parents took pictures and they could send them in and do a real life comparrison. I also think the light pollution map would be a great visual tool, especially for showing how quickly conditions can change as you move away from built-up areas.
The home observation could work really well too, particularly if the children record more than just whether they can see stars. They could note if there are streetlights nearby, whether their garden is bright or dark, and how cloudy the sky is. Bringing the results back into class would give a lovely opportunity to compare experiences and discuss why some children can see much more of the night sky than others.
Living in Co. Limerick, we are lucky to have relatively dark skies in lots of rural areas, but there are still local examples of poor lighting design. At the edge of my local village, there is a pedestrian crossing where a lot of the light shines upwards into the sky, rather than being directed towards the road and crossing itself. I have often thought this is dangerous as you cannot really see if there are people waiting to cross at night. It could be a useful example for children to learn about light pollution because it shows that it is not only about not being able to see the stars – badly directed lighting can also be wasteful and actually dangerous.
With a second class group, I would show photographs of different street-lights and open a discussion around, “Where should the light go?” The children could then investigate useful and wasted light using torches and simple cardboard shields in a darkened classroom.
They could work in groups to design an improved light for the pedestrian crossing, showing how it would direct light towards pedestrians and the road while reducing light escaping into the sky.
As a real-life follow-up, the children could present their findings and designs to the local councillor. This would give the activity a genuine purpose and allow them to see how science and engineering can be used to identify and suggest solutions to problems in their own community.Hi Michael, I like how your lesson builds on the pupils’ existing knowledge and uses prediction questions to keep them actively involved. Stellarium would make changes in the night sky much easier to understand. The planet research task is also a useful follow-up, linking science with research and presentation skills.
I would begin the lesson with a second class group by showing two pictures: a night sky over a brightly lit city and one over a dark rural area. I would ask the children, “Where would it be easier to see the stars, and why?” This would introduce the idea of light pollution and connect well with the majority’s experience of living in rural areas.
Using Stellarium, we would set the location to Limerick and choose an evening time. Together, we would look for the Moon, the Plough, the North Star and any bright planets visible at that time of year. The children could then work in pairs to be star detectives and find a star pattern/constellation and draw it out.
For an extension design activity, each child could make a constellation card. They’d draw the constellation using dots (maybe on graph paper to help them), join the dots with lines and add its name. They could also include one simple clue, such as where to look or what shape it resembles.
The cards could be tested against the sky shown in Stellarium. Children could then bring them home and, with an adult, try to spot the constellation on a clear night.
I really like how this lesson brings together science, maths, geography and history. Using the school’s location to work out the correct angle gives the children a real reason to learn about latitude, and the use of Google Maps would make it very engaging. This is a great idea!
Working in pairs to make the sundials would give the children plenty of hands-on learning. They could also test them at different times of the day, spot any problems and make small changes if needed. This would add a strong engineering element through designing, building, testing and improving. I might adapt elements of this, if you don’t mind!!
I would love to do with a 2nd class group. I’d introduce this activity by doing an odd one out activity on different clocks and a sundial and hopefully prompt a discussion on how people might have told the time before clocks and watches were invented. We would then go down the field together and look for place that is not shaded by the school or any trees. As sunshine can be unpredictable (!) in Ireland, we would have to carry out the observations over several good days. I think it would be a lovely activity to do in September.
To include an engineering element, the children could work in small groups to design and build their own simple sundials. They could choose from different materials such as cardboard, paper plates, clay, sticks etc. Before building, each group would draw a plan and decide how to keep the upright pointer steady, make the base weather-resistant and ensure the sundial would not move. We could also work together as a class to create a larger sundial using a stick and stones, as outlined in the video.
The children would then place their sundials outside, mark the shadows at different times and compare how well each design worked. They would look for problems, then improve its design and test it again.
Before each observation, I would ask the children to predict where the shadow might appear next. We could compare the length and direction of the shadows and discuss, in basic terms, how the Earth’s movement makes the Sun appear to move across the sky. If it was cloudy, pupils could record that no clear shadow was visible and discuss why a sundial is less reliable in Ireland than a clock.