St. Peter's Primary Bray Blog

Discover Primary Science

2^nd Class Lesson

Brief Summary of our STEM Experiment:

• Stimulus/Rationale:

Recently, 2^nd class wanted to investigate different methods of transport for Santa Claus. This was stimulated by a question I posed to the class, ‘If the reindeer went on strike on Christmas Eve how would Santa Claus travel to deliver presents to all the boys and girls?’ We brainstormed some alternatives coming up with rockets, flying cars, jet-pack’s, wings etc. however a quick and feasible alternative we agreed would be a parachute.

• Task:

Design and build a parachute for Santa Claus. The aim is to keep him and the sack of toys safe in their parachute when landing.

Breakdown of STEM in the lesson:

Step 1: Science

Strand: Materials

Strand Unit: Properties and characteristics of materials

Children were investigating the characteristics of materials and how they influence the force of movement of their designed parachute. They explored the durability, and transparency of the materials being used (tissue paper, cling film, tin-foil).

Investigating if;

1. The materials were strong enough to hold Santa Claus in the egg-stand.
2. They could withstand and catch air in them to slow down the force of movement when being dropped from a height to ensure Santa Claus landed safely.

Step 2: Technology

• Children used an iPhone to video record the group of 4 children who were dropping their 4 parachutes at one time. This video was then put into slow-motion to observe what group/parachute had reached the ground slowly and safely to ensure Santa Claus had safely landed without any difficulty.

This was essential in the investigation process as children were enabled to see the way different designs and different materials impacted the parachute. They were enabled to observe and differentiate between the parachutes that were strong and safe and those that were not.

• They also used the stopwatch app on an iPhone to measure the time taken for the parachute to reach the ground from the height at which it was dropped.

Step 3: Engineering

Children engaged in engineering through designing a plan to make a parachute and the actual construction of their parachutes.

Using materials provided the children were asked to ensure they were creating fair designs – that their parachute material was the same size for each material used (cutting the tin foil, tissue paper and cling film to the same size).

Children had to make sure that the length of each string being used was the same so that the egg-stand where Santa Claus was would not topple over. That they had created a sturdy structure for him to sit comfortably throughout the time he would be in the parachute.

Step 4: Maths

Children were using their maths knowledge to implement skills needed to measure length and time.

• Children had to measure the length of strings used to connect the parachute to the egg stand. They needed to ensure the length of all 4 strings was the same length. They also used their skills in measurement to measure the length and width of the square/rectangular piece of material used as the parachute (tin-foil, tissue paper and cling film) to ensure they were all the same size and that the investigation was a fair test.
• Children used the stopwatch app on an iPhone to measure the length of time taken for the parachute to hit the ground from the height at which it was dropped. They needed to observe and identify what parachute was the safest by looking at the different times it took each parachute to fall.

Step 5: Reporting:

POE Investigation Sheet

Children were required to fill out a POE – Predict, Observe, Explain sheet throughout the experiment noting their predictions, observations and explanations of how each material performed as a parachute.

Children had to discuss within their groups what parachute/material was the most appropriate material Santa could use to build his parachute. Their result was then presented to the class by the spokesperson in their group.

Our questions were –Which liquid will cause our candy cane to disappear the fastest?

To conduct our experiment, we needed: 3 plastic cups, 3 candy canes, vinegar, warm water and cold water.

We labelled our 3 clear cups and then filled the cups with warm water, cold water and vinegar.

Then, we made predictions. We thought the vinegar would make the candy cane disappear because it was smelly!

We voted to put the “hook” side of the candy cane down so that more of the candy was in the liquid.

We put one candy cane in each cup and watched to see what would happen.

Within 2 minutes all three candy canes were starting to turn the water pink or red. It was definitely magic!

We observed the three cups and compared the reactions. Within 25 minutes, we had our results and we could determine if our predictions were correct or correct.

The cup with the warm water was the first liquid to make the candy cane completely disappear and dissolve.

The vinegar cup was the first liquid to remove all the red from the candy cane.

The cold water removed the colour and disappeared but more slowly than other two liquids.

Next, we recorded our observations and results. We learned lots of new vocabulary words such as dissolve, prediction, result.

After our experiment……we found the quickest way to make a candy cane disappear is to eat it!!!

In celebration of Science Week 2019 we decided to carry out another STEM activity! We love designing and making and wasted no time in deciding what STEM activity to try this time. We have been learning about World War 2 this month and last week we watched some footage of the D – Day parachute landings in Normandy in 1944. We wanted to learn some more about how the parachutes that the soldiers used worked and what they were made from.

We looked at various video clips and found out that the parachutes were often made from silk and nylon. We were surprised as we thought silk was a soft material that wouldn’t have the strength to be used in a parachute.

We then listed materials that we knew were strong, things like rubber, rope and leather.  This led us to ask ‘how does a parachute work?’ Parachutes need to be able to catch air inside them to make them work so some of these options seemed a little too heavy. We learned about air resistance and how it slows things down that are moving fast through the air. Parachutes need to make sure that enough air resistance will be created to work successfully.

We completed our STEM booklet and then carried out our design and make activity. We needed to test the effectiveness of different materials acting as parachutes – we tested felt, tissue, rubber and plastic.

Each group received the same amount of materials and time to complete the activity in. We only had one variable – the material – to ensure we completed a fair test.

We received:

• one piece of material
• 1 metre of Sellotape
• 2 metres of string
• 4 pairs of scissors
• a weight (a Lego toy soldier)

We had 20 minutes to make our parachutes!

Our results were interesting. We concluded that the parachute made from rubber took the longest to reach the ground. This was followed closely by the parachute made from felt. Both of these designs were dome – shaped and so could catch more air. We think that the shape and amount of material used really affected the success of the parachutes. We also think the weight of the material used is extremely important.

Another successful STEM activity completed and lots of design and make and Maths skills practised!

Earlier this month we decided it could be interesting to learn more about the force and nature of hurricanes as the news was covering a lot on Hurricane/Storm Lorenzo.

We decided undertaking a STEM challenge might be a fun way to do this!

Firstly, we needed to carry out some research! We looked online for some footage of hurricanes and also read some helpful articles that advised people what to do in the event of a hurricane landing near them.

We learned that hurricane winds can travel up to 200 miles per hour and that hurricanes form in the sea. They also tend to have heavy rain. The centre of the hurricane is called ‘the eye’ and it has no clouds, wind or rain – we thought this was very interesting! We wondered if you got into the eye, would you be able to stop it? Hurricanes are ranked on a scale from 1 – 5 depending on how serious they are (5 is the most dangerous kind).

You should always stay inside during a hurricane and should also try to get to high ground.

After looking at some articles and videos on RTÉ news we found out that Hurricane Lorenzo actually turned into a tropical storm before passing over Ireland and that hurricanes don’t really reach us – thankfully!

Since all of our research was complete, the next stage was planning!

We were given our STEM challenge – ‘Imagine you are an engineer and have been given the responsibility of designing a hurricane – proof building. Since flooding can occur you need to make sure your building is high off the ground and due to strong winds, your roof needs to be wind resistant’. We were excited to start and discussed what the job of an engineer entails! We had 10 minutes to plan our own individual designs and 10 minutes to plan in our group. We were surprised that we all had such different ideas!

Then it was time to get cracking on actually building our hurricane – proof structures! We had the following materials and 30 minutes on the clock;

• 2 pairs of scissors
• 1 piece of A3 card
• 20 art straws (paper)
• 30 Cotton buds
• 1 ball of plasticine
• 1 metre of Sellotape
• 1 glue stick

We discussed what would help us in the challenge and everyone agreed that teamwork and cooperation would be really important if we were to complete the challenge successfully. We also talked about the challenge being a ‘fair test’. We said that this meant that each group had equal time, equal resources and equal teacher input.

Check out some photos of us at work!

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After our building time was up, it was time for some testing to take place!

We used a hair dryer and 100ml of water to test our hurricane structures. We agreed that the hair dryer needed to be placed 1 metre away from the structures and that we would use it for 1 minute. We poured in the water and each time we used the hair dryer, we put it on the highest setting.

Our results were as follows for the first test:

Group 1:  structure remained standing and did not fall

Group 2: structure remained standing and did not fall

Group 3: structure remained standing but fell with 15 seconds to go

Group 4:  structure remained standing and did not fall

We decided we should try again for another minute. These were our results:

Group 1:  structure remained standing and did not fall

Group 2: structure remained standing and fell with 25 seconds to go

Group 3: structure had already fallen in first test*

Group 4:  structure remained standing and did not fall

We discussed our results and concluded that the 2 structures that did not fall at all, had stronger bases and walls wrapped around the whole structure with no gaps. The roofs could also withstand gusts from the hair dryer, as they were bound well together with Sellotape and plasticine.

We really enjoyed taking part in the STEM challenge!

STEM for Fun with the junior classes started a couple of weeks ago. Here Junior Infants, Senior Infants and 1st Class were brought to the hall each week to work with teachers and parents to engage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths games and challenges.

This is a way for the children to engage in STEM skills in a fun and less formal way. We have been running STEM for Fun in the school for the last 4 year now and is always a favourite with pupils.

Throughout the year each class will get a 5 week block of STEM for Fun with thanks to our HSCL, School Completion, teachers and parents. Check out some of our pictures below (where the adults seem to be having just as much fun as the children!)

Enrolment for 2020-2021 will take place on Thursday (10th of October) and Friday (11th October) between 9am and 2pm in the school office.

Even children who have a sibling in the school MUST fill in an enrolment form.

Applications will only be accepted with:

• Completed application form (available below)
• Child’s birth certificate
• Proof of address (utility bill/bank statement
• You can view our admissions/enrolment form and admissions and participation policy by clicking the links below
•  Enrolment form 2019 2020 Admissions & Participation Policy 2019

You can find directions to our school here. The office is located just inside the main front door.

On Tuesday evening, our 6th class graduated from St. Peter’s after a very successful year (and particularly, a very successful afternoon where they became only the second class to beat the teachers in the annual soccer match!)

This class have been very special to all of us in the school and we wish them all the best for the future. Student of the Year was Nathan Douglas for his school spirit, hard-working nature and friendship to all. Sportsperson of the Year was Leon Reynolds, not just for his ability, but for his encouragement of others and leadership on and off the pitch/track. Jamie Ryan was also recognised for his stellar performance during the Teachers vs Students match and Maddy Farrell and Nathan Douglas were acknowledged for having perfect attendance all year.

Huge thanks to the staff of the school, who attended and helped out with the day and to the Parents’ Association, who organised the refreshments after the ceremony. Also, a huge thanks to Greg from Signal Arts, who created the outstanding mural representing the members of 6th class. It’s very special to us that Jodie is also included in the mural, and the setting of it this year was her garden, at the request of the class.

Congratulations and best of luck to the class of 2019!

Count On Me from St Peter’s, Bray on Vimeo.

In St. Peter’s, we use Class Dojo to communicate with parents, to share your child’s work and to encourage your child to work hard and to be a good classmate. I’ll be in touch with the code that you need to set up your child’s account ahead of their first day.

This year, 5th and 6th classes have been taking part in the Junior Entrepreneur programme. Over the course of the last few months, both classes have set up mini-companies, invested in their companies, sold their products and shared out the profits at the end of the process. Check out our videos of the process below:

On Monday, 5th and 6th classes travelled to the RDS to the showcase. We had an amazing day out and really enjoyed seeing other schools and their products.

5th and 6th class are at the @JEP_ie showcase in the RDS today. We’re very proud of our stands! pic.twitter.com/KJfn4oMIep

— St. Peter’s Primary (@StPetersBray) May 20, 2019

Welcome to our submission for the Discover Primary Science and Maths award for 2019. This is our 14^th year taking part in the Awards! Once again this year we are applying for the Plaque of STEM Excellence. This award is given to schools that carry out extensive work in science, technology, engineering and maths, all of which are very important in St. Peter’s.

This is the 5th year that we have had Junior and Senior Infants taking part in the award! It is great to see the young scientists have so much fun learning about Science and Maths. This year, we have had an even bigger focus on STEM across the school, with a whole school approach helping us achieve even more in this area. You can read all about it and see the evidence below. It has been great to see the improvements we can make towards helping our school incorporating STEM as a way of thinking, rather than as a stand alone subject.

All of the pupils are seeing and understanding that STEM is about the skills required to learn science, technology and mathematics, and how engineering and design processses and principles are used to achieve an outcome. As students of STEM, we need to identify a problem. We then create possible solutions to the problems, which we then go and test.

Yet again, a huge amount of work has gone into this application. Every single class in the whole school has taken part in this application, so a big well done to all the pupils and teachers! For the seventh year in a row, we are using our blog to submit our award and to link back to our activities that have taken part during the year. Our SFI Award application code this year is 2019/DSM/213.

Step 1: Science

For this step, we carried out six hands-on Science investigations under the four different strands in classes throughout the school. We also tried to include Maths in these investigations where possible, linking in with Step 4.

• Energy and Forces: 1st Class had fun learning all about static hot air balloons.  Read all about their experiment here.
• Living Things: 3rd Class investigated if their brain and their reaction times were affected by eating chocolate! You can read about the fun they had testing this out here.
• Environmental Awareness and Care: 5th Class wanted to find out about how effective the sun is as a renewable source of energy. They continued the chocolate theme, and designed and made their own solar ovens to melt some chocolate. You can read all about this here.
• Materials and Change: Junior Infants and Senior Infants investigated how they could protect Humpty Dumpty when he falls. You can find out how they got on here. 2nd Class were  experimenting with different materials to make earmuffs for them so that they could work in peace and quiet! You can read about this here. 4th Class also looked at materials and change, focusing on melting some chocolate, which all can be seen here.

Mr. Foley’s class went on a visit to Sealife here in Bray, which is a SFI Discover Centre. You can read all about the great time they had here.

6th Class took part in Science Blast 2019, and had great fun at the Science event held in the RDS in March.  You can read all about this and see some pictures from the day here.

Step 2: Technology

In the second step, we had to ensure that technology was used by our pupils. As a previous winner of the Junior Spider Awards, technology has become a part of every-day life in St. Peter’s. We were also awarded the Digital School of Distinction award, which showcased the effort and time we put in incorporating technology into our daily school lives.

Ms. Wemyss and her class have been using Bee-bots a lot this year. They have loved getting to play with them and programming them so that the bee-bot goes where they want on the mats. They even designed their own routes and tracks for the bee-bots to travel around. They have had loads of fun with them, and you can read about this all here.

Ms. Kane and her class used different materials for their designs and used tinfoil as a conductor of the solar energy to melt their chocolate. You can read about their STEM investigation here.

On top of all this, throughout all the other classes in the school pupils of every age have also used cameras, laptops, animoto, and this blog, as well as apps such as vine and twitter, to showcase the work that they have been doing during the course of the year. As you can see from our submission this year, we have continued to implement technology in our day-to-day teaching and learning, with Maths and Science at the forefront of this. You can check out all of our tweets from the year @stpetersbray!

Step 3: Engineering

For the third step of our application for the DPSM Plaque of STEM Excellence, we have had a big focus on the Design and Make element of Science. Our staff have worked previously in conjunction with St. Patrick’s College regarding professional development in STEM. A big part of this focused on the Design and Make process, and helped us make sure STEM was an integral part of our engineering activities. An example of how we look to incorporate STEM into our lessons can be seen here, where 2nd Class made their own noise cancelling headphones!

We also took part in Engineers Week 2019. Here you can read about 5th Class and 2nd Class working collaboratively, when they worked together in small groups to try to build a structure that was strong and tall.

Step 4: Maths

Throughout our Science investigations, all classes looked to incorporate Maths as much as possible. For example, 3rd Class had to calculate the reaction times of each person, and then find out the difference between the two times in their experiment and graph their results. You can read about this experiment here.

Another example of Maths being used in our experiments can be see here where 4th Class used mathematical skills in their experiment. They used a digital thermometer and a probe thermometer to measure and monitor the temperature as the chocolate began to melt. They also used stopwatches to accurately measure the time it took the different chocolates to melt.

Step 5: STEM Showcase

6^th Class took part in Science Blast 2019 this year on March 6th. This was our first year taking part in this Science Fair, having previously taken part in the BT Young Scientist Exhibition in the RDS each year.

This year they investigated the science of the playground. As always, they put a lot of effort into their submission, and presented it brilliantly on the day. You can read about their work here.

We hoped you enjoyed reading our submission for the SFI Discover  Primary Science and Maths Award!