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There are so many Songs / Poems /Art when we think about it that connect us with the Night Sky
Songs:
Starry starry night
Moon shadow
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star– esp for infants
A Sky Full of Stars(Coldplay)
Counting Stars(OneRepublic) .
Fly Me to the Moon
When You Wish Upon a Star
Space Oddity(David Bowie)
Rocket Man(Elton John)
Reach for the Stars (S Club 7)
Yellow (Coldplay)
Moon River
The Whole of the Moon (The Waterboys)Poems
Yeat’s poem He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven
Twinkle twinkle little star
I really enjoyed the poem by John O Donohue about the moths diverted by the street light
Also I did not know of Michael D’s poem, it is of Stardust we are…, lovely imagery
Love some of the poems suggested here also eg Stopping by the woods on a snowy eveningArt
Work on painting the Van Gogh Starry Night picture,
Making the constellation with tin foil
Constructing a light box, or a night sky within a Diorama box
Making a papier-mâché version of the solar system and asteroid belt and hang it from the ceiling in classThis is a really great list,
when I see the Oiche na Gala gaoithe mentioned, I think it links well into the power of Nature and Climate change, we found lovely handwritten accounts of the Night of the Big Wind 1939 I think, on the Duchas archives.
Also I like the list of the other folklore you have here, ther are more, fairy trees, Cu Chulainn, Fionn, Tir na nOg, etc on this website which some may find useful https://yourirish.com/folklore
I really like the idea of making posters which will help the children internalise their learning. I also thought that if we were to make bird boxes this would have great links to maths and art topics
To engage my learners to explore biodiversity in our local area I would conduct a biodiversity survey of the school grounds or a nearby hedgerow.
to do this I would follow the heritage council videos from teh garen walk and also the wildflower walk, we would draw a birds eye view map of the schoolyard/hedgerow firstly, or hedgerow, I would take note of lighting/sensor lights and see whether the children think this will affect he biodiversity. Note all insects found,
When investigating the possible impacts of light pollution on local biodiversity, the study on insects around londons streetlightin, staying near the lights instead of pollinating the plants, would be a nice stimulus.We could then find a local hedgerow near street lighting, eg near local church, and one in a truly dary akear eg down a bog road, and compare findings.
I agree Fiona, those light maps are a good comparison, and can show the change in a relatively short time. When I worked in the city I was always amazed by the yellow/orange glow in the sky, like a fog keeping me from seeing whats out there.
The first thing I always noticed and appreciated when I emptied the boot of the car in West Clare when I returned home was the stars dripping out of the sky at you, such a wonderful gift to still have in the rural and coastal areas, and worth preserving.
Detail how light pollution is impacting your local area and how you would engage your learners to explore this.
I live in an area of incredibly dark skies, on the Loop Head peninsula, in West Clare. I teach in the most Westerly school in Co Clare so I think the children are very privileged to see so many stars in the zenith above them. The stars are literally popping out of the sky at you.
We have had contact with Limerick Astronomy club in the past and they have set up telescopes in the school yard and in the local community hall so most have had the opportunity for stargazing which has been such a privilege for them.
As the street lighting has impacted viewing of late, the light pollution, esp with bright white LEDs has become more problematic. These bright LEDs are also used more in the winter months for the calving sheds of nearby farms and many of these cause noticeable overspill into teh night sky.
Some lights have been switched, following local pressure, to the warmer, more orange type, and the stargazing experience is even better. I think focussing on the increasing use of lights and for the children to do a survey of the school lighting in winter time, and to follow this on at home might help raise awareness the unwanted lighting. It is difficult to push back on street lighting once it is installed.
There’s probably enough in that project if done in tandem with a biodiversity survey to submit it for the Dark Skies Rising star awards.I like the idea of creating a night sky map in the classroom, very visual. I also like the Stellarium web views, this would be a nice visual add on. We have been lucky in our remote area that we have had astronomers in to talk about the planets and do dark sky viewings in a nearby hall, which has created lots of curious minds.
The Paxi videos are a good stimulus to start the stargazing lesson, and very child friendly. Questions to children of what they know of the stars in the sky will elicit prior knowledge. Using Uncle Al’s Hands On Universe Star Wheels helps children see what the night sky looks like at any time of night and any month of the year, and can be done at their desks, in small groups. I used the example given of UNCLE AL’S STAR WHEELS for Northern Hemisphere. They rotate the wheel so the date matches the time, and the window shows the stars and planets currently above the horizon. To observe a planet, children find its name on the wheel and check whether it appears in the viewing window. If it is in the east, it will rise soon; if it is high in the south, it is visible around midnight; and if it is in the west, it is setting. Turning the wheel through different months shows when a planet appears in the sky, helping children identify whether it is visible in winter, summer, evening, or early morning.
Once children can locate a chosen constellation using the Northern Hemisphere star wheel, they can recreate it using the tinfoil stars and black cardboard constellation activity. This follow on task strengthens pattern recognition and helps them connect the star map to a physical model they build themselves.I like these ideas Sean also, the vocabulary development is so important also, its surprising the lingo we take for granted that the pupils dont actually have.
I also used the compass in the local playground to help the children find North/South East and West. and to tell me something thats to the N/S/E/W of them to verify their understanding.
For drawing the shadows, the kids in our yard are very happy anytime we give them chalk to mark things out.
I used the ESERO 30 lesson guide as the basis for my lesson. Day and night can be taught very effectively through this lesson because it is entirely hands‑on, visual and rooted in real‑world observation. The orange activity is especially powerful: drawing a rough outline of Earth’s continents on the orange helps children link the model to the real planet, and I’ve used this successfully in the past to strengthen their spatial understanding. When the torch shines on one side, children immediately see how Europe can be in daylight while Australia is in darkness, exactly as described in the lesson: “the Sun only shines on the half of the Earth that is facing the Sun… on the other side of the planet it is then night.”
Having the children see the orange and a globe and a torch move in tandem is a very visual & Spatial experience for them and can help to remove the misconceptions around Earth in space.
I’ve found that taking the class to a shaded outdoor area also enriches vocabulary around light, dark, shade, parasol and shadows, reinforcing the idea that light travels in straight lines. A follow‑on sundial activity works beautifully here—children construct a simple sundial, measure shadow lengths, and link these changes to the Earth’s rotation. This adds mathematical measurement, prediction, and pattern‑spotting, making it a natural STEM extension.
The Department of Education emphasises Ireland will have the highest‑quality STEM learning, and this lesson aligns strongly with the ISTA Liston document’s aims: authentic STEM requires real‑world relevance, problem solving, creativity, and hands‑on engagement. “STEM lessons encourage children to go deeper… students become innovative critical thinkers… and understand how to approach and solve problems.”
By combining questioning, modelling, construction, and outdoor investigation, this lesson becomes a rich, authentic STEM learning experience.