Spark enthusiasm and ignite an appreciation for science, engineering, technology and maths during Science Week 2020. Science Week 2020 will take place from November 8th to 15th.
The core theme for Science Week 2020 is ‘Science Week - Choosing our Future’ focusing on how science can improve our lives in the future, and in the present. The subject matter is broad and will incorporate topics such as the future of work, the future of health and wellbeing and how we will all live in a world where we have had to mitigate and adapt to the challenges facing society. Climate change has not gone away, and now society has had to unite and face the coronavirus disease, COVID-19.
- Science Foundation Ireland
- Post-Primary
- Primary
During Science Week use the below Science Foundation Ireland Science Week resources for lessons and discussion in your community or in your classroom.
Science Foundation Ireland, developed this toolkit in collaboration with Genuity Science, Pam O’Leary, Cork Educate Together Secondary School, SFI Centre for Research Training in Genomics Data Science, ADAPT the SFI Research Centre for Digital Media Technology, Huawei, The INTEGRITY Project at Trinity College Dublin.
This toolkit will introduce and provide information on four topic areas (Ethics and AI, Genomics, Future Cities and Vaccines) and ask groups to discuss, consider and debate the impact of these technologies on our future.
Students explore the relationship between trees and climate, looking at how trees can tell us about past climate, the role of trees in climate change mitigation, the carbon capture potential of trees and the role of trees in the Government Climate Action Plan. This activity ties in with many of the learning outcomes from the Junior Cycle Science Specification or could also be a Transition Year activity.
The key to balance is the centre of gravity. This is what determines how you balance. By shifting your body weight, or your mass, around, you are also shifting the centre of that mass, and your body must compensate quickly.
This lesson is a series of demonstrations to emphasize the relationship between the centre of gravity and balance. Then the students will work in groups to attempt to define for themselves what “centre of gravity” means and how to locate it.
During Science Week use the below Science Foundation Ireland Science Week resources for lessons and discussion in your community or in your classroom.
Booklet with a framework for inquiry and three investigations.
1. Exercise and your heart
2. Investigating Lungs
3. Design your School Grounds for Wellbeing
Strand: Living Things, Environmental Awareness and Care
Strand Unit: Human Life, Environmental awareness, Caring for the environment
Booklet with a framework for inquiry and three investigations.
1. What do Plants need to Grow?
2. Mapping our School/Local Area
3. Tree Survey
Strand: Living Things, Environmental Awareness and Care
Strand Unit: Environmental Awareness, Caring for my Locality, Caring for the Environment
Booklet with a framework for inquiry and three investigations.
1. Acorn Floatation Test
2. Conditions for Planting Acorns
3. Investigating Fruit
Strand: Living Things, Environmental Awareness and Care, Data
Strand Unit: Plants and Animals, Caring for my Locality, Representing and interpreting data
PDST Primary STEM Recommendations
The PDST Primary STEM has collated a number of resources each year for schools to use during Science Week. The 2020 collection is development. See the 2019 collection below.
Scoilnet's Dedicated Science Area
Scoilnets' dedicated science area offers a wide range of classroom-based science resources that teachers can use with their classes during science week. Here is a snippet of some of the popular resources shared by teachers and organisations.
Strength in Science
These lesson kits were developed through collaboration between researchers, science teachers, PE teachers, fitness instructors, and Junior Cycle students.
Your Heart
Highlighted classroom based resources from Irish Heart Foundation, Science in Action, and CÚRAM to support you in learning/teaching about the heart.
Sustainability
Scoilnet has developed five lessons inspired by DevelopmentEducation.ie covering energy sources, climate change, food production, and more.
Engineer - Tim Joyce
Engineer Tim Joyce visits the Ardnacrusha power station to explore the biggest hydroelectric project in the world when it opened in 1929.
View All Post-Primary Science Collections
JellyLab
The JellyLab online resource was developed by UCD Research Scientists. Living Things:
Plants and Animals
STEM ar Scoil
The PDST Primary STEM team are holding a series called STEM ar Scoil. Resources mentioned feature in this themepage.
Rocket Theme
The theme of rockets could be used to support the energy and forces strand of the SESE science curriculum.
View all Primary Science Themepages
Science Videos
Science on Stage Ireland coordinates and promotes Irish participation at the European Science on Stage festivals and shares the teaching ideas generated at these festivals through the use of video and resource booklets.
View all Science On Stage Videos
