[Carmel Wright]

Hi Helen,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course. I appreciate your earnest reflections on Dr. Liston’s paper and your newfound understanding of STEM. I like how you are now viewing these activities through a new lens, with a more holistic approach and long-term view in terms of what you want to achieve. As you said, the Earth doesn’t belong to us, and we must pass it on in good shape to the next generation.

Dr Liston’s work offers a deeper perspective, and I can see you have applied this to how a building shapes activity can be transformed into something with a greater scope and context, including social awareness and environmental considerations.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the course and gain an extended toolkit of resources for the coming year.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Aaron,
Thanks for your post. I hope you are enjoying the course and it adds to your toolkit for resources for the coming year.

It’s great to see that you plan to use the Curious Minds resources to run a seasonal biodiversity project, with a focus on butterflies, timed to when they can be seen from late spring to early autumn. Its a wonderful opportunity for art activities as a cross-curricular link too, to capture the unique wing colour patterns of various species.

By participating in Citezin Science activities like these, learners will develop their STEM skills while also cultivating an appreciation for local biodiversity and the importance of volunteering to contribute to Ireland’s national database.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Ellie,

Thanks for your post. I can see you plan to take advantage of a wide array of biodiversity resources and equipment for this year-long activity.

It sounds like it will be a busy year for your learners as the garden is to be renovated-a great time to reflect on what to grow and why. While it is overgrown, it is likely a good time to go on a bug hunt-what is traditionally perceived as weeds often is home to many inhabitants!

Making observations a regular monthly event is a great way to see the shifts in nature underway and for learners to begin to understand and observe the rhythm of nature across the seasons.

I love your idea for a nature table-I still have fond memories of one from my primary school years(many moons ago!). As you said, this activity will encourage curiosity, observation, and a deep connection to the local environment.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Mary,
Thanks for sharing. What a wonderful way to connect to local heritage and community! You are very lucky to have the resource of a library on your doorstep, and it sounds like you make the most of this local asset.

Talking to elders in the community as a primary historical source is a wonderful way to engage learners with Ireland’s rich history and local beliefs, creating connections and an opportunity to reflect on shifting baselines. The skies were so much darker in our grandparents’ time!

I love your idea to further connect with the broader community on this topic by holding an open evening to share the learners’ findings. I hope you enjoyed the course and make use of some of the resources in the coming academic year.

[Carmel Wright]

Hello Katie,

Thanks for sharing. Isn’t it amazing to see what is happening up there? Once you become familiar and confident using the app, it becomes a rabbit hole; time flies when you are having fun! There is so much to discover, only a click away.

Your evident enthusiasm for this will add to your learners’ excitement and engagement with this activity in the classroom. With a teacher having confidence in navigating the app and passion for the topic, learners will soon acquire the skills to explore the skies beyond what can be seen and learn of its passing satellites. It’s a great springboard for project ideas-from surviving on the ISS and its future decommissioning, etc.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Michelle,

Don’t worry about whether the post was submitted as a reply or a new post; the team can determine which is which.

Many thanks for your comprehensive post. I can see that you have left no stone unturned for this activity and considered its cross-circular links. For such a seemingly simple activity, it has great potential.

I am delighted to see that you have a local sundial that learners can visit to further their understanding. Blackrock Castle has a lot to offer!

I particularly like your idea to use Celtic patterns and natural materials to decorate the sundial, connecting ancient art to this ancient timekeeping invention.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the course and gain new ideas for the coming academic year!

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Treasa,

Thanks for sharing!

I can see you have taken time to reflect on the delivery of this important lesson and the importance of making it age-appropriate. I also agree that children need reassurance, not scaremongering, when it comes to climate change. At its most simple, it’s a problem that we have the solution for-this is a positive that is so often forgotten! We know what we need to do; we just need to get moving faster on the solutions. And already across Ireland, we can see changes-Moneypoint ceasing to use coal, wind turbines, solar panels, etc. There are a lot of positives that can be shared.

Posters are a great way to develop STEM communication and art skills on how to convey crucial information that engages its viewers and prompts action.

I am delighted to see that the climate change conversations are already being held in your classroom and hope the resources here help prompt further discussions and activities.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Niall,

Thanks for your post. What a lovely plan to use the inspiration of a local bridge for your class design and make activity.

It’s great to have such a prompt for this activity, and I have no doubt that it will create a lot of excitement among your learners.

I love your ideas for incorporating maths at a level suited to your learners. I have done this before and added a price to materials, adding another layer to the challenge: Who can build the cheapest bridge while still achieving required functionality? In senior classes it can even give rise to the allocation of roles within groups – architect, engineer, quantity surveyor, etc.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Orla,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the course!

I am delighted to read that you have already carried out observations with your learners, and I can see you have reflected on ways to record this. It is a pity you have limited options in the classroom in terms of windows, but where there is a will, there is a way!

It could be interesting to present this as a challenge for your learners to solve before mentioning anything about cameras or tablets, and see what they would propose. There could be several ways to achieve this that could be compared, refined and reflected on.

The sundial is a terrific activity, with minimal materials required, making it very accessible but with a lot of learning potential.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Marie,
Thanks for sharing and welcome to the course! Delighted to see you plan on using Paxi videos-they really do cover a lot, and work perfectly with your age group of learners.

I just had a quick look at “The Things I Love About Trees”-what a terrific read for young learners-great sensory details, seasonal observations and illustrations.

I like the thorough nature of your plan-joining the dots between weather, the seasons, clothing, biodiversity and evergreen versus deciduous trees. It is a great opportunity for learners to connect to their locality and the rhythm of its changes across the seasons.

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Cliodhna,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the course!

You make a very valid point: young learners tend to associate the Moon with nighttime only, and it is through observation that some will come to learn that you can sometimes spot it in the morning sky. It is itself a great example to explain the importance of observation!

Sketching is a great way to capture its changing shape, and I do love the Paxi video on Moon phases-these animations really do pack in a lot of great information with engaging visuals at an age-appropriate level.

Best of luck “catching the moon out” in the coming academic year!

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Eimear,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the course!

I like your plan for the sundial activity with your fifth-class learners. It can also be interesting to see if there are any ancient sundial relics or modern installations in the locality, to tie in a site visit and some history too.  For example, in Galway, a time and date sundial calendar was installed in 2006. A visit could extend the activity to discuss how sundials can tell the time and date.

There is also a wonderful Time Museum in Waterford City with a terrific array of timepieces from across the ages-I highly recommend!

[Carmel Wright]

Hi Marian,
Thanks for sharing! I am delighted to see that you enjoyed learning how to use it. Like most apps, once you give it a go it quickly becomes easy to use. I have no doubt your learners will also enjoy the opportunity.

Your list of satellites makes quite the read! From Kazakhstan’s military observations to NASA’s water monitoring, our skies are an unseen hive of activity, until this app makes it all visible. This activity is a wonderful springboard for further learning. The AQUA mission is an interesting one with plenty of further resources, including videos to explore with learners.

It can also open the door to discussions on space careers. Aeronautical engineer Norah Patten will be the first Irish person in Space next year as part of a research team-who knows if someone from your classroom will be next?!

[Carmel Wright]

HI Kieran,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the course.. I am delighted to see that you work to reflect Dr. Liston’s philosophy on STEM in the classroom through an integrated approach.

I like your plan to use an existing fixed object for your sun observations. I think it is great to see a commitment to observations over time-it’s a great way to incorporate a movement break too!

For making note of the date and time, I would recommend using something more permanent than chalk; otherwise, the rain is likely to wash away all observations. A good alternative could be to use an A3 sheet on the ground beside the yardstick, positioned in the same place every time.

 

It may also be worthwhile to carry out this activity once during the four seasons to see at noon the length of the shadow created and what that means in terms of the sun’s location-lots of Math’s links as you mentioned!

[Carmel Wright]

Hi David,

Thanks for your post and welcome to the course. Your plan is most fitting for your infant class in the coming academic year. By keeping it simple, using repetition and monitoring using landmarks, learners will begin to observe and understand the sun’s position throughout the day. By the end of a few days, learners should be confident in predicting where the sun will be during the three observation outings.

Using chalk to outline shadows as they change is a wonderful way to physically engage learners in a hands-on but meaningful activity. Lots of questions can be used to elicit existing knowledge and encourage further understanding of their observations. Here’s hoping for some sunny days to carry out this activity!

[Author]

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