DPSM Awards

On this page you will find information about the work we have completed as a school towards achieving our third SFI Plaque of STEM award.

Step 1: Science

Living Things

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants discussed and identified some common trees and then went on an autumn nature walk to observe these trees and the seasonal changes they were undergoing. They collected leaves, fruits and seeds on their nature walk and explored and examined these in greater detail when they returned to the classroom. They observed the leaves they had collected and decided which tree they came from by comparing them to pictures of different leaves on the whiteboard. They then used some of the leaves they had collected to make leaf lanterns.

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants also carried out an experiment to find out how plants drink. Each group got two cups, poured some water into their cups and coloured the water red using food colouring. Each group put a white flower into one cup and celery into the other cup. We marked the water level on each cup with a marker also. We checked the flowers and celery each day and we saw the leaves of the flowers and celery begin to turn red and the water level in each cup begin to go down. We learned that water travels up the stem of the plant into the leaves and flowers. We recorded the steps involved in our experiment as well as the results of our experiment for display in the classroom.

As part of Science Week 2019 in Mr. Forde's 5th and 6th class, we looked at the impact of deforestation on the Amazon Rainforest. We were then able to discuss the importance of trees and plants to slowing the effects of global warming worldwide.

We investigated the conditions needed by plants to grow. We planted cress seeds in cups and observed how........

Plants need rich soil for nutrients
Plants need water for germination
Plants need air (carbon dioxide) for photosynthesis
Plants need sunlight for photosynthesis - we were even able to see how lack of sunlight would change the colour of a leaf

Cress Seeds planted in rich nutrients with sunlight, water and air will grow quickly in the right temperatures.

In Mr. Forde's class we were also able to see how water moves through the plant by observing how water with food coloring in it travels up through the stem of a celery stick all the way to its leaves.

Ms Feeney's class learned about the importance of washing hands before eating. Firstly the children listened to the story 'Wash your hands Rufus! This story was all about a monster called Rufus who learns that washing hands with soap and water kills germs. Next the class used some bread to investigate what would happen if we didn't bother washing our hands. Three slices of bread were put into sealed plastic bags. One slice was inserted untouched and one sliced was inserted with unwashed hands which was named the 'dirty hands' bread by the boys and girls. Finally a third slice was inserted by hands which were washed in soap and water. The children then made predictions as to what might happen to the three slices of bread. After a couple of days the children noticed mould beginning to form on the 'dirty hands' bread and after ten days, a significant amount of mould had grown while the other two slices of bread remained unchanged. The children learned that it is indeed very important to wash our hands before eating. The boys and girls then showcased the experiment to Ms Murphy's Junior Infants who listened intently and with curiosity and gave them a big bualadh bos for their efforts.

In Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th Class, we planted seeds to investigate how seeds need light, water, soil and air to live. We set up 5 different stations. Group 1 planted their seeds normally using all of soil, water, air and light. Group 2 did the same minus light (kept in a press). Group 3 planted theirs without soil. Group 4 planted theirs and gave the seeds no water. Group 5 planted theirs and put it in a freezer bag to deny the seed air. Our results were interesting but accurate to our predictions. Group 1, their seeds grew perfectly while the others all didn't grow properly as those seeds did not get the required elements to grow.

In Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th Class, at the beginning of the year, we were exploring and learning about the human body and human life. Together we all found this fascinating. One of the experiments we undertook was to explore finger prints. Our class turned into CSI Rathcormac as we tested to see how our finger prints would turn out and see if we could match finger prints in a game. Overall we loved this experiment ... we can now use of knowledge of taking finger prints to investigate if anyone takes something from our classroom without asking!!!

In Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th class, as part of our investigations into the human body and how we live, we did an experiment on our lung capacity. It was simple, take a deep breath and blow into a balloon. That way we can see how much air our lungs can hold. Mr. O'Sullivan won....

Energy and Forces

Light

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants identified and named different colours, sorted objects into different sets according to colour and observed colours in the local environment by going on a colour hunt around the school. They worked with their buddies from 5th Class to became aware of different shades of colour by completing colour tables and by using white paint to achieve different shades of colours in art activities and they also experimented with shadows.

The boys and girls in Ms.Feeney's Senior Infants class learned about shadows. They listened to a story about 'Misty' a cat who is afraid of her shadow. The children enjoyed some free play with torches and examined what happens when a torch is moved closer/away from toy animals. The children then worked in pairs to trace the outline of shadows.

In Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th class we were investigate how light travels and what exactly light in. We investigated how light travels through water, how light bends and how light reflects. While doing this, we also experimented with magnifying glasses, what are their purpose and how did they work also.

Heat

Ms. Murphy's junior infants decided to find the warmest place in their classroom. They picked 3 locations in their classroom (the windowsill above the radiator, their tent and the shelf in the cupboard) and they placed an ice cube in each place. They watched carefully to see which ice cube melted quickest. The ice cube on the windowsill above the radiator melted the quickest so they knew this was the hottest place in their classroom.The ice cube in their tent melted the slowest so they knew this was the coolest place in their classroom.

Ms. Murphy's junior infants also worked in groups to investigate if wearing a coat would make a snowman warmer, colder or if it would make no difference at all to the snowman. Each group had 2 bottles of frozen water for their snowmen. Using fabric each group wrapped one of their 'snowmen' up in a coat. They used fabric and elastic bands for the coats. Each group left their other 'snowman' without a coat. After an hour they took the coats off the snowmen and compared them with the snowmen who had not been wearing coats. They found that the snowmen wearing coats had melted more quickly than the snowmen without coats. These results showed that wearing a coat would make a snowman warmer causing him to melt more quickly.

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants investigated the effect of heating and cooling on chocolate by making Rice Krispie buns.

Materials

Constructing Parachutes
Miss Mc Grath's 4th Class had great fun investigating materials and learning how they can be used in construction. The class were set a challenge. They had to design and create a pararchute, using an appropriate material, that would land a lego figure safely to the ground. We began our leaning by exploring the characteristics of parachutes and what makes them work successfully. We learned that the material used must be durable but lightweight and must create air resistence as it falls. We explored the shape of parachutes and thought about whether a rectangular or dome shaped parachute would be most effective. Then the children began to design and test materials for their parachute before coming up with their final design. The children worked so hard, all the time trying to improve their construction before the final test. Needless to say, the children loved testing their parachutes from the balcony outside their classroom. After our experiment, we reviewed our designs and thought about what we might improve next time around!

Constructing Marble Runs - In conjunction with Engineer's Week, Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th class used a variety of materials to construct marble runs. The objective as to create a design that would allow a marble to travel safely from the top of the deign to the bottom without falling off. Extra credit was awarded to the most creative design.

Environmental Awareness and Care

Our School Garden

Earlier this year, the boys and girls in Ms Mc Grath's 4th Class were very lucky to be given the opportunity to harvest the vegetables that had grown in our school garden. This was an excellent opportunity for us to link science and the environment and to discuss topics such as plant life, ecosystems, pollination, conservation and sustainability. Together we listed all the positive reasons for having a school garden and decided that it is so important that we each take an individual responsibility to care for and nuture our natural environment both within the school and in our local community!

Space Week

During Space Week Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants learned about the Earth, the sun, the moon and the stars and also about night and day. They watched videos made by astronaut Chris Hadfield about sleeping, eating and brushing teeth on the International Space Station. They also created pictures of themselves as astronauts in space and designed their own rockets too!

In Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th Class, for Space week, we did research projects. In groups we were given a planet to research and find out facts.

Science Week

Plants need rich soil for nutrients
Plants need water for germination
Plants need air (carbon dioxide) for photosynthesis
Plants need sunlight for photosynthesis - we were even able to see how lack of sunlight would change the colour of a leaf

Cress Seeds planted in rich nutrients with sunlight, water and air will grow quickly in the right temperatures.

Green Schools (Biodiversity)

Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th Class - Forestry Workshop: Dave Brooks (Green Schools Travel and Core Officer) visited our school on Tuesday January 7th to carry out workshops with the 5th Class pupils as part of our work towards achieving our Biodiversity flag. Investigating forests was the theme of the workshops. The workshops began in the classroom where the children learned about biodiversity, how different trees grow and how to find out the age of a tree. The children had the opportunity to examine different seeds and wood samples also. They had lots of fun learning about trees through games and drama activities. The workshops then moved outside, and the children observed trees in the local area. They also used their pens to calculate the age of trees and planted 5 native species of trees in the school grounds. The children helped Dave to plant oak, hazel, hawthorn, elder and rowan trees. They also planted an acorn each to take home with them. The children really enjoyed the day and had great fun learning more about biodiversity and trees.

Planting

Ms. Hartnett's Junior Infants planted daffodils.

Step 2: Technology

STEM with Johnson and Johnson

On Friday the 7th of February 4th class began learning about 3D programming. We met the wonderful team at Johnson & Johnson and learned all about what they do. We then split into two groups. One group learned how to use the 3D programming on the laptops while the other group learned how the 3D printer worked.

Junior Infants

Ms. Hartnett's Junior Infant's were introduced to early computing and programming using the Bee Bots. We had great fun programming the Bee Bot to turn the right way by following the directions we gave him.

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants used a Lego app on the iPads during Engineer's Week to work on their maths and design skills.

Step 3: Engineering

Visit from an Engineer

Engineer Paul O'Farrell visited Rang a Trí (Ms. Cronin and Ms. Bermingham) to tell them about his work as an engineer.The children really enjoyed his visit and learned lots about engineering from his presentation.

Engineers Week (2nd - 6th March 2020)

In Mr. Forde's 5th/6th, the class undertook a series of engineering challenges over the course of Engineer's Week. The most common of the engineering projects were the boats made from recycled materials (some sank), the cardboard chair and the spaghetti bridge. Although not all were successful, just like in real-life engineering, the children were able to talk about some changes they could make to their designs for next time. It was certainly a worthwhile week of STEM.

Well done to everyone in Miss Keating's Rang V who created outstanding projects as part of Engineers Week 2020! Take a look at some of their wonderful creations, which they showcased in school at the end of the week. The pupils put huge efforts into their constructions and they should be very proud of themselves! Maith sibh!

Everyone in 6th spent time working on their chosen experiments and STEM projects. We were lucky enough to showcase them to other classes.

Engineer's Week - Mr. O'Sullivan's 5th Class. Well done to everyone who completed a project at home and brought it in for our Engineer's Show and Tell.

Ms. Murphy's Junior Infants had a great week for Engineers Week/STEM Week. We had 4 stations and each group tried a different station each day. Our stations were: 1. Design a way for the Gingerbread Man to cross the river. 2. Design a way for Rapunzel to escape from the tower. 3. Construction station. 4. Working on Maths and designing Lego trains on the iPads. You can see some of our wonderful work below. We definitely have lots of budding engineers in Junior Infants!

Step 4: Maths

Length - 5th/6th class

The boys and girls in Mr. Forde's class put their Maths skills to use when they undertook a short Maths trail around the school to estimate and measure length. The children were asked to estimate the length and perimeter of some common objects they pass everyday in the school before being asked to measure them in pairs. It became clear to the boys and girls that our rulers were simply not up to the job of measuring some of the larger objects accurately and this allowed us to talk about the instruments that would be better suited to such jobs (i.e. measuring tape, metre stick, trundle wheel).

Mr. O'Sullivan 5th Class - Weight, Baking!! For weight we decided to put our learning to the test and bake some rice crispie buns. We each weighed out certain parts of the ingredients and even converted them to decimals and fractions of a kg. While we enjoyed the baking, we most certainly enjoyed the end product even more!!

Using directional language.....

Ms. Hartnett's Junior Infants used their knowledge of directional language and counting to program the Bee Bots.

Step 5: STEM Show and Tell

Show and Tell with our Buddies from 5th class

Ms. Hartnett's Junior Infants enjoyed showing their STEM projects to their Buddies from 5th class.

The boys and girls in 6th class have recently been taking the scientific and technology skills they learned last year from Johnson & Johnson and teaching them to those in 5th class. The 5th class have learned a huge amount about coding in recent weeks using the 'Dash' and Dot' robots kindly donated from Johnson & Johnson last year. Full credit to all the children who have kept up their hard work in STEM activities since last year and it is great to see that STEM is alive and well in Scoil Bhríde!

3D modelling with 3rd Class.

As part of engineers week, 4th class paired up with Ms Cronin's 3rd class to share with them all what we have been learning with Johnson and Johnson. They had great fun and were wonderful teachers.