Archaeology in the Classroom

In History we talked about 'Old and New' buildings and objects, things which last a long time and ones which soon rot away.

'How do we know it happened?': Evidence.

We know about the past through looking at evidence.

The children in Miss Costello's class asked their grandparents what it was like when they were growing up. They brought things to show the class (horse shoes, photographs, music records, toys, clothes, heirlooms etc.).
We set up a class museum/display and discussed the items:

What things were used for?

Do we still use them?

What are they made of and how were they made?

If you have any old items (artefacts) that you can bring to school could you please bring them to Miss Costells prefab? Thank you!

When I Was a Baby: History in Room 5

We asked at home about the day each of us was born. We found out about the day, date, time and place of our births. We even brought some baby toys, baby clothes and even a gold bracelet from when we were babies.

Traffic Survey

Many residential areas suffer from nuisance caused traffic travelling at speeds which are not only unfriendly to the residential environment, but are also dangerous and the cause of accidents.

Second class have completed traffic surveys, at different time of the day ad in different locations around the school, to see how many types of vehicles and how frequently they travel past our school.
We are recording the results in tables, charts and graphs.

This is part of our ongoing investigation into the local area, which falls within the geography lessons but has links to maths and literacy.

Different Types of Homes

There are many different types of homes. This is a lovely website for you to learn more about different types of homes http://www.askaboutireland.ie/show_narrative_page.do?page_id=4237

This is a photo of a tatched cottage that we saw on our school nature walk.

Miss Gilligans and Miss Cunninghams first classes went on a nature walk. We saw many different types of houses - Detactached, Semi-detached, terraced and even a tatched house. It was very exciting. We were lucky to meet some builders and they told us all about the house that they were building. We really enjoyed our walk!

This is a detached house:

Artefacts

In Mrs Canney's second class, the children are learning about artefacts. We can learn a good deal about a society or culture by looking at the things or objects that people used in the past.

When we talk about man-made objects from the past, we call them artefacts.

The tactile, hands-on experience will suit children across the ability range and can leave a lasting impression.

Teaching History: Artefacts are primary sources of evidence for the past and can give a whole range of information: for example, about everyday life, materials available, technological skills, people's values, trade and communication, change and continuity over time.
They offer opportunites to develop investigative skills: for example, identification, detailed observation, classification, interpretation, recording and communicating.

Social, environmental and scientific education

Social, environmental and scientific education (SESE) provides opportuntities fo rthe child to explore, investigate and develop and understanding of the natural, human, social and cultural dimensions of local and wider environments, to learn and practise a wide range of skills, and to acquire open, critical and responsible attitudes. SESE enables the child to live as an informed and caring member of local and wider communities.