Award of Science and Maths Excellence

Rang a 5 had a lot of fun exploring the energy and forces strand.  

    
    
   
Classes involved: Rang a 5 Ms Joyce

Senior infants explored the effects of washing their hands with an experiment. First they used a fresh piece of bread and put it into a bag. After they all handled a piece of bread and then put it in a bag and finally they washed their hands and handled another piece of bread. The results can be seen on the three pieces of bread.  

 
  

Classes involved: Senior Infants – Ms Brown / Ms Cotter

Rang a 3/4 had great fun investigating energy and forces by making hovercrafts.

Classes involved: Rang a 3/4 Ms Grealish

Making pizzas – Rang a 3 were examining the effects of heat on different foods by making pizzas. They had lots of fun and the pizzas were delicious !

Rang a 1 decided it would be fun to raise some frogs in our classroom. We set up a big fish tank and we were lucky enough to get some tadpoles. We have been watching them grow over the last few weeks. All of them have their back legs now and one of them had to be released today as he had turned into a proper frog and needs flies to eat! We learned that they are really fast swimmers and it is really interesting to watch them change.

    
    

Rang a 1 took their digital camera and went around the school in search of some signs of Spring. They found buds growing on trees, daffodils and crocuses growing in the school garden and a bird building its nest.

Classes involved: Rang a 1 Ms O Toole

It was the perfect but chilly day to measure our front yard.

      

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s Rang a 1

Science experiment on the effect of heat on a slice of bread – We explored  touch taste and smell.

  

Classes involved: Senior Infants – Ms Brown / Ms Cotter

We had great fun programming the tiniest robots we have ever seen. They use colour codes to accept commands and follow lines. Art and programming in one!

 

  

 

During science week we were very lucky to have a visit from Learnit’s Lego Workshop. 5th and 6th class took part in a machines and mechanisms workshop and the children thoroughly enjoyed it.

Classes involved: 5th & 6th – Mr O Flaherty’s, Ms Sweeney’s & Ms Joyce’s

We planted seeds in a bag to observe their growth. We used wet cotton wool in the bottom of the bag along with the seeds and then we stuck them to the window to get sunlight. We will be observing and measuring their progress as the weeks go by. We also put a seed (with water) in darkness to see what would happen and we put another seed in sunlight (without water).

After two weeks we removed the seeds from the bag to observe their growth. Results are below:

  

Classes involved: Rang a 1 – Ms O Toole

We had fun making our human data graphs. We lined up according to our eye colour.

Classes involved: Rang a 1 – Ms O Toole

We have a really fun device for working with the iPad in our classroom. We used it for solving tangrams during our math station time but it can also be used for word work and even for art! It’s a great device and we loved using it.

Classes involved: Rang a 1 – Ms O Toole

We have decided to try to compost with tiger worms. We set up our composting bins and added the worms. We had to let them settle in before we added the food. They need a dry, warm place to stay alive and eat all our leftovers.

   
   
Classes involved: Rang a 1 – Ms O Toole

 

We made a wormery so that we could see the different paths made by worms. We used different layers and then gathered worms in the yard. We had to look in some dark places for the worms because they don’t like the light.

Classes involved: Rang a 1 – Ms O Toole

We made our very own kaleidoscope using mirrored paper some transparencies and sharpie markers. They turned out very well and we had lots of fun testing them out.

Classes involved: Rang a 1 Ms O Toole

Rang a 4 have been very busy getting seeds sown for the school garden.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Classes involved: Ms McKiernan’s

Rang a 2/3 created 3D shapes using lollipop sticks and play dough. They identified the edges, vertices and faces of the shapes. 

   
     

Classes involved: Ms Ní Dhonnacha

Rang a 2/3 experimented with different mixtures to see which mixture made the best bubbles.

   
  

Classes involved: Ms Ní Dhonnacha

Rang a 2/3 predicted what items around the class would float and what items would sink. They then tested their items. 

   
   

Classes involved: Ms Ní Dhonnacha

Today we got to show the rest of the school and the parents some of the experiments we have been doing in class.

We concentrated on the following experiments:

• Static electricity – We used some balloons to generate some static electricity by rubbing our hair and a wooly jumper. We checked to see how many rice krispies we could pick up with the balloons and also if we could move a ping pong ball across the table. We discovered that straight hair generates more static than curly hair.
• Current electricity & conductivity  – We used the makey makey and a computer to test conductivity of objects. We tested some plastic spoons, bananas, metal spoons and a rubber. We discovered that only the bananas and metal spoons were conductive.
• Friction – We were exploring friction using a lego rubber band car and our own version of a rubber band car. We discovered that the lego rubber band car had rubber wheels which helped it to create friction which helped it to move. Our own version of the car had cardboard wheels and needed some friction for it to move. It would not move very far at all. We also made hovercrafts with a cd and a balloon and we discovered that the cd would not travel very far on the table until we decreased the friction by using a balloon to lift the hovercraft slightly off the table.
• Exploring sound – We explored sound using tuning forks with water to show that sound is made from vibrations. We also made rice dance on top of a speaker and discovered that some songs were better at making the rice dance.
• Exploring colour – We made some primary colour mixing bottles using oil and water. We had to get special oil based food colouring to colour the oil and we used water based food colouring to colour the water. We then explored different colour combinations and predicted what colours they would make when we shook the bottles. We also made a colour spinner which turned white when it was spun very quickly.
• Exploring light – We looked at different objects in water and showed how we could make an arrow change direction without touching it.

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s

There is great excitement in Rang a 1 with the arrival of 5 caterpillars to our room. They are munching away and growing at an extraordinary rate. They will soon transform into painted lady butterflies and we will get to watch the whole process.  

  

   

 

Rang a 4 did an experiment on refraction. they made an arrow change direction without touching it !! 

  

     

What was happening ?

Our eyes are using light to see various objects all the time, but when this light travels through different mediums (such as water & air) it changes direction slightly. Light refracts (or bends) when it passes from water to air. The straw looks bent because you are seeing the bottom part through the water and air but the top part through the air only. 

Classes involved: Ms Grealish

Senior Infants were learning all about magnetism and were using magnets to make their cars move. 

  

  

Classes involved: Ms Brown’s / Ms Cotter’s 

While looking at the works of both Vincent Van Gogh and Andy Warhol we decided to create some art of our own using apps on the iPad. We made some self portraits in the style of Van Gogh and some pop art portraits in the style of Warhol.

 

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s.

 

Mr O Flaherty’s class and Mr Kavanagh’s class took part in a Maths puzzles and problem solving workshop.

Each class was given 7 different puzzles to solve in groups. Each group had to take a strategic approach to solving the puzzle. This took place over the course of 6 – 7 weeks. At the end of the course of workshops the children showcased their problem solving skills in the Halla Mór and each group explained how to solve the puzzles and explained the strategies they used.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Classes involved: Mr O Flaherty’s & Mr Kavanagh’s.

D’fhoghlaim muid an rann ‘Micilín muc’ agus rinne muid scannán lenar bpictiuirí féin.

Clicéal anseo chun é a fheiceáil.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bxe94nZYACaqb3JiRm91MkIwbGM&authuser=0

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s.

We made a movie about our favourite facts that we have learnt this year. We used green screen technology to put some wild animals And other backgrounds into our movie – just like they do in the real movies.

  

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s.

Some of the children brought home a digital camera to find signs of Spring around their home. They took some great photos.

 

 

Classes involved: Ms O Toole’s.

All our Junior Infant, Senior Infant & First classes (6 classes in total) took part in a workshop based around energy. We learned all about Guzzler and how he likes to guzzle energy. We learned how we can conserve energy in the classroom and at home. It was lots of fun. We also now appoint a consumption captain every week to keep an eye on our energy consumption in the classroom. Their job is to make sure no lights are left on when they are not needed, the whiteboard is switched off when not in use and the tap is not left running when people leave the bathroom. 

Classes involved: Ms Bohan’s, Ms Pierce’s, Ms Hester’s, Ms Brown’s / Ms Cotter’s, Ms Hogan’s & Ms O Toole’s.