We celebrated a fun-filled, action-packed Science week in our school from 10th -19th November 2024. The theme for Science Week this year is Regeneration! From protecting nature, creating more sustainable approaches to materials and energy supply, developing new solutions for health and healing, and developing new ways of understanding our world, it’s time to reimagine our approaches and grow our shared strengths.
Children in all classes participated in the live Science Show on Monday 11th November. Hosted by Gráinne Bleasdale this bespoke show was full of exciting experiments, show-and-tells and much more and it really got us ready for Science Week 2024.
Mark Langtry (Mark the Science Guy) showed us how to warm-up like an astronaut. Nuala Madigan showed us how to build a pond with a school group.
We explored a visit to Airfield Estate to find out how to Soil Your Pants with Aoibhín Moore Heslin and witnessed a follow-along experiment to create a tornado in a bottle with Cian O'Toole.
Curious Minds Science Week Show for Primary Schools
On Tuesday 12th November we were very excited to meet our Guest Science Speaker Geoff Robinson. Geoff works for BIM (Bord Iascaigh Mhara) and he conducted a power point presentation to the children based on regeneration, with a focus on how we have learned, and are still learning, about how to make our waters more sustainable as well as speaking about Biodiversity in our waterways.
For the rest of the week children were researching and conducting their own science experiments at home/school and getting ready for their Science Exhibition!
On Tuesday 19th November there was great excitement and fun for our
Whole School Science Corridor Exhibition. The children in every class showcased their experiments and we all got to walk around the corridors and observe the fantastic science investigations that were being exhibited by the other classes. We even invited the children from 2nd classes in the Junior school to come and visit!
The children showcased experiments from the Curious Minds Programme which is part of Science Foundation Ireland’s Education and Public Engagement Programme, and it aims to increase interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) among students, teachers and members of the public. The SFI Curious Minds programme supports and encourages the innate curiosity of children through a hands-on, inquiry-based approach to STEM learning.
Children exhibited the following experiments throughout the day and the sense of wonder, awe and excitement was very real!!!!
· Starch is everywhere
· Rainbow Spinner
· Strange Sounds
· Creeping Colours
· Paper Helicopters
· Creepy Reflections and Floating Fish
· String Telephone
· Rocket Launch
· Make a Lava Lamp
· Making Oobleck
· Design and make an electric quiz
· Solar Energy
· Messy volcanoes
· Air pressure
· Tornado in a Bottle
Well Done to everyone who took part in our Whole School Science Corridor Exhibition 2024!! A huge thanks to Ms. Greene and her Science Committee for all the preparation they did for this great event!