[Una Halpin]

Hi Veronica

You have outlined a very comprehensive plan for observing the moon with an older class. I love your approach of the classroom research followed by choosing the dates as a class and going outdoors to observe the moon in the mornings. I really love the idea of gathering as many telescopes and binoculars as possible and making the moon observation a whole school event. This would be sure to generate some excitement among your pupils and continuing the moon observation for homework at different times of year is a great way to preserve their interest. Bringing in art and language to describe and illustrate what they see is a nice touch and overall it would be a great introduction to further studies on astronomy.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Marian

I like the idea of spreading this activity over 2 lessons so it is not too rushed. Using your plan, the children will have time to explore Stellarium and get to know how to use it. Using the Zodiac signs as a starter point when asking them to list constellations is a nice touch as they might then start to think about other familiar constellations they may have heard of such as The Plough and Orion. I myself always remember the line from A Christmas Childhood by Patrick Kavanagh “Cassiopeia was over
Cassidy’s hanging hill”. Asking the children to present their constellations to each other and then find them all on Stellarium is a good way to conclude the lesson as it brings them back to their initial research.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Noreen

I’m glad you liked the Stellarium resource and have outlined a simple and straightforward plan for using it with your class. Building on the children’s prior interest in Zodiac signs to introduce the constellations is a nice idea and as you said, a good link to studying ancient traditions if we consider what people could see in the sky in the past, how these constellations might have been interpreted at different periods in history and how they have given rise to many stories and traditions. As well as designing and drawing their own constellations, the children could perhaps use their creative writing skills and draw inspiration from ancient legends to write their own stories about their constellations.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Aisling

I like your approach to using this video. Highlighting the positive images is a good way to inspire children to preserve the natural beauty of the Earth and to create an image of the kind of world we want to live in. Too many negative statistics while necessary to spur change in adults could overwhelm children so judicious use of short clips to highlight some of these issues and help explain the science of climate change and biodiversity loss, while focussing on the solutions to these problems is a good idea. I would also add some practical activities to model the greenhouse effect and some practical solutions focused project work on monitoring and reducing energy use in school or growing fruit and vegetables in the school garden.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Orla

As you said the “Nose Up High in The Sky” is a lovely resource for highlighting the history of weather recording and the use of weather proverbs.  It is a nice way of discussing the changes in weather forecasting methods and assessing what methods have changed and what have stayed the same and how the uses of technology such as satellite imagery and more accurate instruments have enabled better long term forecasting. As you said, it is a great way for the children to connect with older family members and to see how people were more attuned with their surroundings and with nature in the past. I wonder would these older methods of forecasting be as reliable today, given that our climate is much more unstable and extreme weather events have become more frequent?

[Una Halpin]

Hi Chloe

I like your approach here. Using clips from home as a stimulus for discussion of different global issues is a great idea and as you plan to intersperse these discussions with practical activities such as energy audits and research on problems and solutions, this will help to demonstrate to the children that while many of our actions are contributing to climate change and biodiversity loss, there are also ways that we can modify our own behaviour and take action towards limiting the effects. Your plan will help to make children aware of the issues but also demonstrate to them that they can make a positive impact.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Yvonne

Starting with a discussion on greenhouse gases is a good approach as it helps to identify not only what the children already know but also to identify any misconceptions. I find regularly when I start this discussion in classrooms that many children (and adults) believe that global warming is caused by holes in the ozone layer and a simple explanation of the role of greenhouse gases and tools like the Paxi video can help to correct this.

I love your approach to using the TEAL tool. As you said, it is quite complicated but shows some very useful information. You approach of picking one parameter at a time and just looking at the colours is a great way for the children to notice and discuss changes without being overwhelmed by too much data. Once they have looked at temperature in Ireland and understood what they are looking at, then they could move on to other aspects and other countries.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Veronica

That sounds like a lovely study to make children aware of the effect of urban heat islands and I love the fact that you are proposing to visit some of these locations with the children. Taking temperatures in different parts of the city is a great idea but it may be difficult to visit on multiple occasions so another nice addition might be to do a more in depth study within the school grounds if you have a variety of areas such as tarmac yard, beds or planters and shaded areas under trees. Temperatures in these areas could be taken on a daily basis over a few weeks to build up a better picture. Looking at pictures and studies of European cities where efforts have been made to green urban spaces would also be a good addition. Slightly off topic but maybe of interest is this initiative in Carlow Town https://www.carlowlive.ie/news/ecolive/1546922/carlow-concrete-spaces-given-over-to-rain-gardens.html

 

[Una Halpin]

Hi Michelle

That sounds like a great project. I love the combination of using the EO Browser to look at change over time and then having the children walk to their chosen areas to assess them for themselves.  Involving local people to speak to the children is also a lovely addition. There are 2 other resources that you may find useful in your study. Geohive.ie from the Ordnance Survey includes some older maps and aerial photos that are great for studying changes in land use especially when compared to up to date views from Google Maps. Also the mapping portal from Biodiversity Ireland https://maps.biodiversityireland.ie/ can help you generate plant and animal species records from a chosen area.

 

[Una Halpin]

Hi Tommy

I like your ideas for using the EO Browser to study geographical processes such as erosion and also the effects of human activities on our environment. It would certainly help to explain concepts such as urban growth and deforestation when the children have a visual images to show them the changes in an area over time. A lot of these concepts can seem very abstract if you can’t demonstrate evidence and seeing the images should help to stimulate questioning and discussion in your class.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Andrea

I like your idea of selecting clips from Home and the other videos from this module and using them as a stimulus for classroom discussion.  Using role playing and debate to help students understand the issues and the solutions is a good way to get them actively engaged in considering their own role in protecting the environment and encouraging others to do the same. Learning from examples of youth climate activists can help children to realise that they too can make a difference.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Irene

That sounds like a lovely question to investigate in your schools garden. The children could gather their own weather data and then compare it to the recorded weather data for each day and use a tool such as the Teal Tool to look at weather data for the same period in previous years.  They could then record their observations of how well different plants grow in the school garden and discuss if the weather might have had an impact on plant growth.  If this information was kept from year to year it would be a great long term project with each class being able to compare their observations with data from previous years.

 

[Una Halpin]

Hi Catherine

I love all your ideas for using these lessons with pupils with additional needs and it is great that you have taken inspiration from all of the materials. I love your ideas for the multi sensory lesson, encouraging children to notice the sounds, smells and feels of nature around them and to replicate those in the classroom.

[Una Halpin]

Hi Orla

I love the way you have structured this lesson with a very clear progression from one activity to the next and a defined objectives for each part of the lesson. I love the way that you have used a story as a prompt and also incorporated digital maps and the practical activity of creating their own classroom map. I love the idea of using stickers to add to their map which will add to the fun for junior classes. It is also great how each part of the lesson reinforces what they learned in the previous parts.

 

[Una Halpin]

Hi Phil

Your rooftop garden sounds like a lovely spot and as you said would be an ideal spot to place your sundial to get the most all day sunlight. I love the idea of starting with individual smaller sundials and then getting the class to collaborate with others on the design of a more permanent sundial and it sounds like a great way to involve parents in the school to construct something permanent that all classes could benefit from for years to come.

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