Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
It is great to see seaweed being harvested in Ireland as mentioned by Cathriona. I think that seaweed is an important part of Aquaculture and a natural resource in Ireland that can provide huge potential for job creation and also form a part of a heathy diet.
Sustainability is very important in my local area. In school all students are encouraged to recycle both in school and when they take their lunch wrapping home. The school has a no single use for plastic bottles policy and all students use reusable bottles for their bottles for water.
We have a green council who check and ensure all lights, monitors are off in between breaks and at the end of the day and that all paper is used in a sustainable way by using both side of the page for photocopies and reusing discarded sheets for art activities. We also have walk to school week linked to active school week and encourage students to walk or cycle to school throughout the year.
The idea of sustainability is explored at the start of each year in class as part of a brainstorming activity before the green council is set up and this could be further developed by having each class set up a sustainability contract similar to a class contract where they identify areas in the school and in their local environment where they can take action to ensure that they are living in a sustainable way.
I agree with Cathriona that it is very important that children learn to identify the symbols on food packaging so they can identify where the food came from and that it is healthy, fresh and sustainable so that they can choose the healthiest option when they start shopping for themselves.
This module highlights the importance of seafood as a healthy sustainable way to get enough protein in our diet each day. It reintroduces us to the food pyramid which is an excellent way to highlight all the different food types that students should be aiming to eat each day.
When students learn about the food pyramid, they learn about how important a balanced diet is and it helps them identify which food should be eaten daily and which foods should be eaten in moderation. This can be developed into discussions and projects on making daily weekly and monthly plans on the best food to eat and how to combine different foods.
As all schools promote healthy eating in the classroom the food pyramid can be used to encourage this and help students self evaluate and identify foods that they should only eat in moderation or not at all. Hopefully this will enable them to see the health benefits of eating fish as an excellent source of protein, essentially excellent brain food and which can be fresh and obtained locally and sustainably produced in fish farms.
I agree with Mark that perhaps one of the most important points of Aquaculture which should form an integral part of STEM is sustainability. It is a key word in so many different areas today and essential in the food industry and a massive advantage of Aquaculture.
The Arc online lessons and resources would be ideal to be integrated into the STEM Education Policy at my school. The lessons and resources blend science, technology, engineering and maths in a seamless way and students will get adequate exposure to these areas.
I particularly like the video/lesson 2 which also links history and the story of the Salmon of knowledge with STEM as this is exactly how we are supposed to be teaching STEM in an integrated way linking all subjects together and not just Science, technology , engineering and maths.
When we do a SSE at my school we could use these lessons and resources as part of our school improvement goals to have more STEM related topics embedded in our yearly plans. Aquaculture and these lessons and resources would be ideal as they could be used to develop the students critical thinking in these areas while also linking to many other subject areas such as geography, history and ideal for project work.
Ireland’s aquafarms are located in the western fringes of Ireland not really suited to agriculture and therefore provide valuable employment in these areas. These areas are also privileged to have vast amounts of coastlines with islands bays and a fjord which offer coastal communities opportunities to develop sustainable fish farms.
As these fish farms are further developed and more and more people become aware of how healthy and beneficial fish is, these areas should see more growth and prosperity. They will offer more job opportunities both in the construction of these fish farms and in the maintenance and up keep of these farms.
Aquafarms will provide a healthy sustainable alternative to meat in these areas that local communities can consume. The fish that is farmed can also be exported to countries in Asia such as Japan where fish forms a central part of their diet and people already know the advantages of a fish diet.
I agree with the 5 points made by Michelle and think that Aquafarming is of immense benefit to communities in coastal locations where agriculture is not possible.
Ireland’s aquafarms are located in parts of Ireland not really suited to agriculture and therefore provide valuable employment in these areas. These areas are also privileged to have vast amounts of coastlines with islands bays and a fjord which offer coastal communities opportunities to develop sustainable fish farms. As these fish farms are further developed and more and more people become aware of how healthy and beneficial fish is these areas should see more growth and prosperity.
I agree with the above that the ARC would be a great way to introduce students to Aquaculture especially landlocked counties, but equally counties by the sea as students are often not aware of the importance of fish both as a healthy alternative to meat and that it can be farmed in a sustainable way with the potential to create thousands of jobs and career opportunities.
Using tools like videos, visuals, and quizzes on Aquaculture and Social License can really help students engage with the topic of Aquaculture. Learning about Aquaculture introduces the students to the wild Atlantic way and the coastline of Ireland. It also develops their knowledge of the life cycle of fish, shellfish and seaweed and identify that salmon, mussels and oysters are farmed in Ireland.
It will make students aware of the importance of sustainable farming and learn about the importance of the sea in Ireland which is a massive natural resource for food and job opportunities.
Having a school visit of the ARC would be an amazing experience for the students and would further help them connect and engage with the topic of Aquaculture and how important the sea is in Ireland.