Our first STEM showcase took place on Thursday 26th January with pupils from Bláthú visiting the pupils in 3rd and 4th class.

The Bláthú pupils had been working on the topic of Materials with a particular focus on waterproof and non-waterproof materials.

Strand(s) Materials
Strand Unit(s) Properties and characteristics of materials
The child should be enabled to investigate materials for different properties, for example
materials that keep us warm and materials that absorb water and those that are waterproof.

Children in Bláthú wanted to find out which materials were waterproof and which were not.
They looked at a range of materials – tinfoil, cotton wool, bubble wrap, sponge, kitchen roll and
plastic. They first sorted the materials by predicting which they thought might be waterproof
and which were not.
Children then placed a piece of material into water and observed whether it was waterproof or
not.

Children then recorded their results.
The children then took their completed result sheet into 3rd and 4th Class and explained the
experiment and their findings.

This was followed by questioning from the other pupils.

Well done to the pupils in Bláthú for their wonderful Scientific work .

Another STEM Showcase

 

Show and Tell Investigation on Farm Animals

 

Strand: Living Things

Strand Unit: Plants and Animals

 

The children in Bláthú share a special interest in animals. Therefore, we decided to focus our investigation on farm animals.

The overall objectives of our investigation included; 1) to identify each farm animal by their name, 2) identify their key physical features and 3) to create the sounds that each animal makes.

The children engaged in a variety of active-learning activities which included;

• An online virtual tour of an Irish Farm.
• A local nature walk. The children identified, discussed and gathered any evidence of farm animals along the way e.g., hoof prints in the field, wool stuck to a fence, feathers found beside a lake. The children had the opportunity to observe farm animals in their local habitat e.g., cows and sheep in a field, ducks in a lake.
• Explore the sound that each animal makes through the use of the storybook and song; Old McDonald Had a Farm.
• Create farm animals through art, focusing on their key physical features.

 

The children displayed their artwork on a noticeboard called Bláthú’s Farm. The children in the Junior Infant Bláthú Class were invited into our classroom. Through the use of the show and tell method, the children presented their findings to the class.