Science

Science is taught as part of SESE (Social, Environmental and Scientific Education) and is integrated with geography and history. We enjoy doing experiments with the children and sometimes we participate in science workshops such as the “Discover Science” programme in the Discovery Park in Castlecomer.

Space Adventures in the Junior Room!

Date posted: 22nd May 2023 | Category Blog, English, History, Junior Classroom, Mathematics, Our Work on Display, Science, Visual Arts |

Over the last few weeks the pupils in Junior & Senior Infants learned all about the topic of Space! First we played at the Space Station in Aistear.

Playing with a rocket in Small World
Exploring moon rocks at the Space Station

Creating space related things in Junk Art

Playing with Moon Sand

In Art we made Spaceships with aliens in them!

In SESE we learned about all the things we see in the sky at night, the journey of the first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong and what happens during the day and also at night.

Senior Infants have been learning to spell lots of new words with “Magic e” at the end.

In Maths Senior Infants were also learning to tell the time and played games on this topic as well as figuring out the difference between numbers.

Finally we had a very special delivery to our classroom of caterpillars! As it is the time of year for butterflies to emerge we learned all about their life cycle, created colourful butterflies in art and we are watching our caterpillars carefully and seeing them grow bigger every day.

Date posted: 22nd May 2023 | Category Blog, English, History, Junior Classroom, Mathematics, Our Work on Display, Science, Visual Arts |

A Busy Spring in the Senior Room!

Date posted: 25th April 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, Easter, English, Geography, Irish, Local Visits, Our Work on Display, Religious Education, Science, Senior Classroom, Visual Arts |

During spring, the Senior Classroom have been busy with many seasonal and school activities. Have a look at some of the photos of what we have been up to!

In Art, the children engaged in some still life drawing of Snowdrops using oil pastels. The class also explored the art technique of shading using chalk pastels to produce a still life image of a fruit bowl.

From the 13th -16th of March, the school ran wellness week to promote wellness across a variety of areas such as heathy eating, exercise, expressing our individuality, taking time to do actives we enjoy and appreciating nature. The children enjoyed a range of things across the week such as no homework, fruit kebabs & smoothies, a nature walk in the discovery park, extra play time at lunch and a non-uniform day.   

We also celebrated St. Patrick’s Day and drew some cartoon Leprechauns.

The children also wrote some creative St. Patrick’s Day short stories using the prompts ‘I’m lucky because…’, ‘At the end of the rainbow I found…’ and ‘If I found a pot of gold, I would…’.

To mark Mother’s Day, we made some fabulous paper flower bouquets for the important female figures in our lives.

In March, we explored the genre of report writing in English. The children researched and wrote some fantastic reports about the things they are interested in.

Persuasive writing was also taught in English during Spring. The children wrote some very interesting and persuasive arguments about topics they are passionate about.

In Gaeilge, we learnt the Seanfhocail ‘Tír gan teanga, tír gan anam’. We spoke about the Irish language, its importance and how it can be promoted.

In SESE, Mrs. Joyce explored some fantastic topics with the senior room.

The children spent two weeks learning all about soil, soil profiles, characteristics of different soil types and what ideal soil conditions are for growth. We did two experiments, one looking at the drainage of different soils the children brought in and another to separate the soil into its constituent parts. We found some soils had much better drainage than others. We also saw a lot more grit and gravel in some samples over others. We certainly know why the Farming Forecast on Sundays gives us all that information on soil temperatures and soil saturation!

The senior room also learned all about how the movement of electrons in a circuit creates electricity. They built their own circuits and tried to create an electrical circuit using potatoes. Unfortunately the potatoes were not up to the job!

The children learnt all about France. Each pupil was assigned an area to explore and research in more detail. They presented their information in the form of a mini-project.

In Art, we learnt about famous artist and their work. The children then picked a famous painting and reimaged it as a modern piece of art.  

Finally, in RE we learnt all about the Easter story and in English we wrote some acrostic poems.

Check out our Funky Easter Bunnies. Look how great they look!

Date posted: 25th April 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, Easter, English, Geography, Irish, Local Visits, Our Work on Display, Religious Education, Science, Senior Classroom, Visual Arts |

Spring and Easter in the Middle Room!

Date posted: 1st April 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, Easter, English, Geography, History, Middle Classroom, Religious Education, Science, Visual Arts |

It’s hard to believe we are all on Easter holidays for 2 weeks. It has been so busy in 1st, 2nd and 3rd class over the past number of weeks! The children have focused on the topic of Spring through literacy activities…We wrote about this season and the new life we see all around us!

We read and decorated the poem “Daffodils” by William Wordsworth…

The children researched a variety of topics for projects and presented them to the class. They did such a wonderful job and put a lot of effort into them! Here are some of the projects on display:)

We learned about St. Patrick and made rainbows using our handprints…

We also wrote about what we would do if we found a pot of gold!

To mark Mothering Sunday, we made bookmarks and decorations for the very important female people in our lives…

We went to the Discovery Park during “Wellness Week” and had so much fun!

We looked at the life and works of Pablo Picasso and recreated our own Picasso inspired art…

We learned about Easter and wrote Acrostic poems and made Easter wreaths….

Ms. McGrath created fantastic little figures with the class to show that our bodies can express feelings too…Don’t these look great?

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter from 1st, 2nd and 3rd class pupils!

Date posted: 1st April 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, Easter, English, Geography, History, Middle Classroom, Religious Education, Science, Visual Arts |

A Great Start to the New Year in the Senior Room!

Date posted: 21st February 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, English, Fundraising Activities, Geography, History, Hurling, Our Work on Display, Physical Education, Religious Education, Science, Senior Classroom, SPHE, Visual Arts |

The boys and girls in 4th, 5th & 6th have begun the year by looking back on all that they have achieved and done in 2022. We also discussed our hopes and wishes for the year ahead.

In English, we read some of Aesop’s Fables. We then wrote our own fables which included an important moral or lesson.

We looked at the writing genre of recount writing and the children wrote some fantastic diary entries.

The class has begun reading the novel ‘Holes’ by Louis Sachar. We drew predictions of what we anticipate happening in the story based on the title, front cover and blurb.

In History, we learnt about Aboriginal people of Australia. Art is very important part of Aboriginal culture. Inspired by their artwork and it’s role in storytelling, the class created their own Aboriginal Dot Paintings.

Look at how great they turned out!

In SPHE, the children explored the topic of Healthy Living. The children designed a healthy meal based on their knowledge of the food pyramid and importance of eating a balanced diet.

In SESE, the children explored the topic of Forces with Mrs. Joyce. They carried out many different experiments and investigations. The children looked at the influence of gravity and how it allows a hammer attached to a ruler by sting, to hang without falling.

They also carried out a ‘Paper Helicopter Investigation’ to discover how the shape and design of the paper helicopter affects the way it falls to the ground.

On the 1st of February, we celebrated St. Brigid’s Day.

In Religious Education, we learned about the life and work of St. Brigid. After, we designed and decorated her cloak using various pieces of fabric.

In PE, the children explored and practiced the skills needed for hurling/camogie.

The children enjoyed learning about the life and work of American artist, James Dine and created their own art in response to all they had learnt.

To celebrate St. Valentines day, we created some beautiful cards for our loved ones…

We also spoke and wrote about love…

To raise money for Heart Children Ireland, we dressed up in red for the day! Thank you to everyone for their support of this great cause!

Finally, the whole school enjoyed the Pancake Party on Tuesday, 21st of February. A massive thank you to Mrs. Dooley, Mrs. Power and the 6th class boys who prepared and served the pancakes to everyone.

Well done to all the boys and girls on a great start to 2023!

Date posted: 21st February 2023 | Category Blog, Class Work, English, Fundraising Activities, Geography, History, Hurling, Our Work on Display, Physical Education, Religious Education, Science, Senior Classroom, SPHE, Visual Arts |

Happy Christmas Everybody!

Date posted: 22nd December 2022 | Category Blog, Christmas, Drama, English, Geography, Irish, Middle Classroom, Religious Education, Science, Visual Arts |

It is hard to believe that Christmas is here! We have had such a busy few weeks in 1st, 2nd and 3rd class! November and December have been filled with lots of fun activities and learning…

In English, we read a poem called “Walk into my Parlour” and discussed nouns, adjectives and verbs which we are learning about at the moment…

In Visual Arts, we created “Snakes in the Grass” using circular pieces of paper..

In Gaeilge and English, we looked at the topic of Winter/An Geimhreadh and learned vocabulary based on this theme…

We wrote acrostic poems….

We made beautiful snow scenes…

As soon as December approached, we learned about Advent and how it is a time for preparation…

Ms McGrath did some mindful painting with the whole class…The Dancing Santas turned out so well!

The children made some lovely decorations for their Christmas trees!

On 15th December, the children performed the Nativity play “Hosanna Rock!” for all the parents and members of the school community. They did such a wonderful job and we were very proud of all their efforts!

We also had a visit from Santa, who took time out of his busy schedule! We sang “Jingle Bells!” and each got a selection box…

We enjoyed some Christmas baking with Mrs. Dooley…Thank you Mrs. Dooley for these fabulous treats…

We made some lovely Christmas cards for our friends and family…

We read a poem called “The Christmas Party” by Adeline White and drew pictures to represent the various things mentioned in the poem…

We had a Christmas Jumper day on Friday, 16th December…Don’t the boys and girls look so festive?!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the boys and girls in 1st, 2nd and 3rd class!

Date posted: 22nd December 2022 | Category Blog, Christmas, Drama, English, Geography, Irish, Middle Classroom, Religious Education, Science, Visual Arts |