Scoil Mhuire Green School Committee
Green-Schools, known internationally as Eco-Schools, is an international environmental education programme, environmental management system and award scheme that promotes and acknowledges long-term, whole school action for the environment. Unlike a once-off project, it is a long-term programme that introduces participants (students, teachers, parents and the wider community) to the concept of an environmental management system.
Scoil Mhuire established it's Green School Committee in 2006 and to date have successfully attained and maintained three green flags, one for 'Litter and Waste', a second for 'Energy' and a third for 'Water'. The school is currently working on its fourth flag which is on the theme of 'Travel'.
Scoil Mhuire established it's Green School Committee in 2006 and to date have successfully attained and maintained three green flags, one for 'Litter and Waste', a second for 'Energy' and a third for 'Water'. The school is currently working on its fourth flag which is on the theme of 'Travel'.
Green School Committee 2014-2015
Travel Theme
Siobhán Payne – Principal / Fourth Flag Co-Ordinator
Kasey Gormally - 2nd class
Dylan Rooney - 3rd class
Gary Smith 4th Class
Jake Lambe – 4th Class
Caoimhe Prunty – 5th Class
Liam Hamill – 5th Class
Niall Smith - 5th class
Matthew McBride – 6th Class
Siobhán Payne – Principal / Fourth Flag Co-Ordinator
Kasey Gormally - 2nd class
Dylan Rooney - 3rd class
Gary Smith 4th Class
Jake Lambe – 4th Class
Caoimhe Prunty – 5th Class
Liam Hamill – 5th Class
Niall Smith - 5th class
Matthew McBride – 6th Class
Work to Date
- Election of New Theme Green School Committee
- Travel to School Survey – October 2014 & April 2015
- Walkability Audit
- New larger Green School Notice Board
- Mapping Exercise to establish distance, location and residential clusters of travelling pupils and families
- Visit by RSA to all classrooms
- Launch of WOW Day
- Cycling safety course for fourth and fifth classes
- Ordering and distribution of high-vis vests for all pupils
- Relaunch of WOW day for new academic year
- Third travel Survey – October 2015
Travel Survey October 2015 Results
Survey Comparisons October 2014, April 2015 & October 2015
October 2015 Class Analysis
Relaunch of WOW Day New Academic Year 2015 - 2016
A total of 72 pupils out of 98 took part in our first WOW Day of this year on the first Wednesday of October. We think this was just great! The winning class of our first WOW DAY Top Walkers was Ms Fitzpatrick’s room with 24 out of 28 pupils taking part. As part of our re-launch of our WOW day for the new Academic Year 2015-2016 the Green Schools' Committee contacted the RSA and ordered High-Vis vests and bibs for all our school pupils.
Walkability Audit
Walkability Audit - Main Findings
Date: Tuesday, November 11th 2014
Route Audited: Smithborough Village to Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney
We calculated the time taken to walk from the centre of Smithborough Village to the gates our Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney:
Journey Time on foot: 10-11 minutes
We compiled a Traffic Tally for the time taken to complete the walk to the village and back to our school. Below is the type of traffic we saw and the numbers recorded on our Tally sheet:
Date: Tuesday, November 11th 2014
Route Audited: Smithborough Village to Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney
We calculated the time taken to walk from the centre of Smithborough Village to the gates our Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney:
Journey Time on foot: 10-11 minutes
We compiled a Traffic Tally for the time taken to complete the walk to the village and back to our school. Below is the type of traffic we saw and the numbers recorded on our Tally sheet:
Cycling Safely Course
A Visit from the Inland Fisheries Board
School Visit by The Inland Fisheries Board
On the 1st April 2014 the Inland Fisheries Board visited our school. They came to teach us about water and the fish that live in Irish waters. They also came as part of our work for our third Green Flag on water.
Firstly, all the tanks were brought into the hall and filled with water. Junior Infants, Senior Infants, 1st
and 2nd class then took it in turn to go out to the hall to look at the aquatic life. While this was happening 3rd,4th, 5th and 6th class went into Ms Fitzpatrick’s room where a woman called Eilish showed us a slideshow on the IWB.
The first thing she did was explain her job to us. It sounded very interesting. She works with the Inland Fisheries Board and monitors and counts how many fish we have in our rivers and lakes. She showed us pictures of some of the devices used to count the fish.
Following this, Eilish showed us some photographs of different fish that live in our local rivers. We were not very good at identifying them so she gave us some good tips on remembering some of the most common fish – perch have black stripes on their body and yellow fins and the roach has red eyes. We
also talked about the different properties of fish such as their gills, scales and fins.
Next Eilish taught us about the lifecycle of the salmon and the eel. We found the salmon lifecycle very interesting. Here is a diagram to explain what we learned about:
Firstly, all the tanks were brought into the hall and filled with water. Junior Infants, Senior Infants, 1st
and 2nd class then took it in turn to go out to the hall to look at the aquatic life. While this was happening 3rd,4th, 5th and 6th class went into Ms Fitzpatrick’s room where a woman called Eilish showed us a slideshow on the IWB.
The first thing she did was explain her job to us. It sounded very interesting. She works with the Inland Fisheries Board and monitors and counts how many fish we have in our rivers and lakes. She showed us pictures of some of the devices used to count the fish.
Following this, Eilish showed us some photographs of different fish that live in our local rivers. We were not very good at identifying them so she gave us some good tips on remembering some of the most common fish – perch have black stripes on their body and yellow fins and the roach has red eyes. We
also talked about the different properties of fish such as their gills, scales and fins.
Next Eilish taught us about the lifecycle of the salmon and the eel. We found the salmon lifecycle very interesting. Here is a diagram to explain what we learned about:
Eilish then showed us pictures of different insects that live in clean and dirty water. The crayfish lives in very clean water while the leech lives in dirty, polluted water. This is one of the ways in which Eilish and her colleagues can test if rivers are clean or dirty.
We also saw photographs of Ireland’s biggest shark. It is called the Baskin shark. This shark swims with its mouth open to catch its prey and filter the water. We then learned about a type of mussel which was introduced to Ireland a few years ago called the zebra mussel. Since then it has drastically increased in number and is now endangering marine life.
After all this learning, we went out to the hall. There were different fish in tanks including perch, roach and crayfish. There were also magnifying glasses so we could look at different bugs and
insects that live in water. There were bugs underneath microscopes for us to examine as well. We got to feel a pike’s teeth. They were really sharp!
We really enjoyed our talk with Eilish and her friends and loved learning about water and fish found in our local rivers and lakes. We hope this work helps us to get our third Green flag.
Contributed by Rang 5 & 6
We also saw photographs of Ireland’s biggest shark. It is called the Baskin shark. This shark swims with its mouth open to catch its prey and filter the water. We then learned about a type of mussel which was introduced to Ireland a few years ago called the zebra mussel. Since then it has drastically increased in number and is now endangering marine life.
After all this learning, we went out to the hall. There were different fish in tanks including perch, roach and crayfish. There were also magnifying glasses so we could look at different bugs and
insects that live in water. There were bugs underneath microscopes for us to examine as well. We got to feel a pike’s teeth. They were really sharp!
We really enjoyed our talk with Eilish and her friends and loved learning about water and fish found in our local rivers and lakes. We hope this work helps us to get our third Green flag.
Contributed by Rang 5 & 6
At a Glance ~ some of our work on the Water Theme
Environmental Review
One of the first things we did in working towards our third green flag was to do an environmental review. The Green-School committee met and discussed undertaking an environmental review. The aim of the review was to identify the initial situation within the school regarding the theme of water.
All of the children in the school were involved in doing the review, with the bulk of the work being done by the children on the Green-School’s committee.
- Firstly we were surprised by our lack of knowledge with regard to where the school water comes from and also where the waste water goes.
- We monitored and recorded the amount of water being used in the school by reading the water meter located on the footpath outside the school wall.
- We looked at where water was being used in the school. We counted and recorded the number of toilets and sinks in Scoil Mhuire. There are 15 toilets and 21 sinks in the school. There is also one tap outside in the boiler house.
- We also investigated and recorded the types of taps in the school. There are 11 push taps and 19 twist taps.
- On a map of the school we drew where each toilet and sink were located.
-We checked to see if any taps were being left on when not in use. We found that the push taps were fine but often the twist taps were not being turned off fully when we were finished using them resulting in water often dripping needlessly.
- We investigated if any of the taps were leaking. We found that a washer needed to be replaced on the tap in the kitchen as it was losing approximately 50ml water every minute.
- It was noticed that the children did not know where the school water comes from or where the waste water goes after the toilet is flushed or the water goes down the plug hole of the sink.
- The kettle and the Burco boiler were both filled and switched on at 10 o clock each morning. There was no need for both these appliances as the teachers did not use this amount of water during the day. This was also wasting electricity.
We conducted leak tests on each of the toilets by adding food colouring in the cisterns.
-We checked how much water each cistern held and found that all toilets in the school held 9 litres. If every child in the school flushes the toilet once every day this is 720 litres of water going down the toilet.
- We counted how long each push tap in the children’s toilets stayed on for. We found that they stayed on for an average of 8 seconds and the average amount of water coming out of each tap was litres.
- We observed that the school uses lots of water for watering outdoor plants and in the school garden. We have no way of harvesting rain water for use in the garden so a water butt would be a great investment for our school.
- We examined previous water bills. Using these bills 5th and 6th class worked out how much water we used in the 2011 / 2012 school year (the two bi-annual bills ran from 30/09/11 to 30/09/12). We used a total of 235 cubic metres (235,000 litres) of water in this time. This cost a total of €545.45. When we divided this by 85, this worked out at 2764.7 litres per child per year and a cost of €6.42 each per year. We will keep records of our 2012 / 2013 bills and compare these to our 2011 / 2012 figures.
- We started reading our water meter regularly. 5th and 6th class worked out how much water we use on an average school day (records from Monday 15th October to 22nd October 2012 were used). For 5 days we took a water meter reading at 9.00am and again at 3.05pm . We then added the number of units used and divided by 5 to work out the average used per day. On average we use 1037.8 litres of water per day (5189 ÷ 5). The same will be done as we near the Greenschool application deadline so as results can be compared.
- We worked out how much water is used overnight by taking water meter readings at home-time and again first thing in the morning. On average we use 185 litres of water per night. We know that the majority of this is used by our cleaner Monica and some is used by teachers after school for washing dishes, cleaning, etc. We just need to make sure that we are turning off all taps tightly and that no taps
are left dripping overnight.
- Each teacher washes their own cups, plates, etc both after break and lunch. Often the tap is left running while this is happening. This is wasting too much water so it is felt that a rota needs to be set up among the teachers. It has been suggested that all dishes from both breaks should be left until after school. The sink should then be filled and the teachers take it in turn to wash the dishes hence saving many litres of water.
One of the first things we did in working towards our third green flag was to do an environmental review. The Green-School committee met and discussed undertaking an environmental review. The aim of the review was to identify the initial situation within the school regarding the theme of water.
All of the children in the school were involved in doing the review, with the bulk of the work being done by the children on the Green-School’s committee.
- Firstly we were surprised by our lack of knowledge with regard to where the school water comes from and also where the waste water goes.
- We monitored and recorded the amount of water being used in the school by reading the water meter located on the footpath outside the school wall.
- We looked at where water was being used in the school. We counted and recorded the number of toilets and sinks in Scoil Mhuire. There are 15 toilets and 21 sinks in the school. There is also one tap outside in the boiler house.
- We also investigated and recorded the types of taps in the school. There are 11 push taps and 19 twist taps.
- On a map of the school we drew where each toilet and sink were located.
-We checked to see if any taps were being left on when not in use. We found that the push taps were fine but often the twist taps were not being turned off fully when we were finished using them resulting in water often dripping needlessly.
- We investigated if any of the taps were leaking. We found that a washer needed to be replaced on the tap in the kitchen as it was losing approximately 50ml water every minute.
- It was noticed that the children did not know where the school water comes from or where the waste water goes after the toilet is flushed or the water goes down the plug hole of the sink.
- The kettle and the Burco boiler were both filled and switched on at 10 o clock each morning. There was no need for both these appliances as the teachers did not use this amount of water during the day. This was also wasting electricity.
We conducted leak tests on each of the toilets by adding food colouring in the cisterns.
-We checked how much water each cistern held and found that all toilets in the school held 9 litres. If every child in the school flushes the toilet once every day this is 720 litres of water going down the toilet.
- We counted how long each push tap in the children’s toilets stayed on for. We found that they stayed on for an average of 8 seconds and the average amount of water coming out of each tap was litres.
- We observed that the school uses lots of water for watering outdoor plants and in the school garden. We have no way of harvesting rain water for use in the garden so a water butt would be a great investment for our school.
- We examined previous water bills. Using these bills 5th and 6th class worked out how much water we used in the 2011 / 2012 school year (the two bi-annual bills ran from 30/09/11 to 30/09/12). We used a total of 235 cubic metres (235,000 litres) of water in this time. This cost a total of €545.45. When we divided this by 85, this worked out at 2764.7 litres per child per year and a cost of €6.42 each per year. We will keep records of our 2012 / 2013 bills and compare these to our 2011 / 2012 figures.
- We started reading our water meter regularly. 5th and 6th class worked out how much water we use on an average school day (records from Monday 15th October to 22nd October 2012 were used). For 5 days we took a water meter reading at 9.00am and again at 3.05pm . We then added the number of units used and divided by 5 to work out the average used per day. On average we use 1037.8 litres of water per day (5189 ÷ 5). The same will be done as we near the Greenschool application deadline so as results can be compared.
- We worked out how much water is used overnight by taking water meter readings at home-time and again first thing in the morning. On average we use 185 litres of water per night. We know that the majority of this is used by our cleaner Monica and some is used by teachers after school for washing dishes, cleaning, etc. We just need to make sure that we are turning off all taps tightly and that no taps
are left dripping overnight.
- Each teacher washes their own cups, plates, etc both after break and lunch. Often the tap is left running while this is happening. This is wasting too much water so it is felt that a rota needs to be set up among the teachers. It has been suggested that all dishes from both breaks should be left until after school. The sink should then be filled and the teachers take it in turn to wash the dishes hence saving many litres of water.
Here are some graphs showing our investigation results
| cost_of_water_per_pupil_per_year.docx |
| cost_of_water_per_year_chart.docx |
| water_usage_per_child_per_year_chart.docx |
| water_usage_per_year_chart.docx |
Gordon Green's visit to Scoil Mhuire
On the 19th February Gordon Green, an author of two published books for children, came to Scoil Mhuire to talk to us firstly about water and secondly about the writing process.
To begin, Gordon told us some very interesting facts about water. Water is all around us but it is also part of us! Did you know that:
- 60% of an adult’s body is made up of water
- 75% of a child’s body is composed of water
- 80% of a baby’s body is water
- Our brain is made up of 85% water
- The percentage of water in an apple is 84%
- 92% of a strawberry is made up of water ·
- 98% of a lettuce leaf is composed of water
Gordon told us that without water we would not be able to live but there is very little water on the surface of the Earth that can actually be used by humans (about 1%). Because of this we must not waste water and must learn to conserve it.
Following this, Gordon showed us a few pictures of the water cycle. It was very interesting. The water cycle contains four stages: evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection. Gordon explained each
of these to us. He also told us that the water that is on the Earth now is the same water as was on the Earth when the dinosaurs roamed around. This water keeps going around and around again in this process called the water cycle.
Gordon then showed us his book called ‘The Drip.’ It was about a drop of water called Drippy that came out of the tap and began its journey on the water cycle. It travelled through the air as water vapour and fell as rain onto a busy city. It had many adventures before it arrived back into the tap. He showed us a video of the book which was narrated by his children. It was very entertaining and we really enjoyed it.
Gordon also read his other children’s book, Buzz Off!, to us. It was a very funny book that everyone loved. Gordon talked us through the different stages of writing a book and we were amazed at how many people were involved in the process and how long it took for an author to get a book published. It is a difficult job! He showed us some of the first drafts of his books and reminded us how important it is to edit your writing over and over again until you are happy with it.
Finally Gordon showed us how to draw the cartoon fly from his book Buzz Off! He explained how to draw it step by step and each of us tried following these steps to draw our own fly. We could then add on our own details to make our flies different and unique. They all looked brilliant when finished.
We really enjoyed the day and learned how important water is. We really have to look after the water that is available to us and not waste it. We also learned lots about the writing process that we can use in our creative writing classes.
We hope Gordon Green publishes many more books in the future for us to read.
To begin, Gordon told us some very interesting facts about water. Water is all around us but it is also part of us! Did you know that:
- 60% of an adult’s body is made up of water
- 75% of a child’s body is composed of water
- 80% of a baby’s body is water
- Our brain is made up of 85% water
- The percentage of water in an apple is 84%
- 92% of a strawberry is made up of water ·
- 98% of a lettuce leaf is composed of water
Gordon told us that without water we would not be able to live but there is very little water on the surface of the Earth that can actually be used by humans (about 1%). Because of this we must not waste water and must learn to conserve it.
Following this, Gordon showed us a few pictures of the water cycle. It was very interesting. The water cycle contains four stages: evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection. Gordon explained each
of these to us. He also told us that the water that is on the Earth now is the same water as was on the Earth when the dinosaurs roamed around. This water keeps going around and around again in this process called the water cycle.
Gordon then showed us his book called ‘The Drip.’ It was about a drop of water called Drippy that came out of the tap and began its journey on the water cycle. It travelled through the air as water vapour and fell as rain onto a busy city. It had many adventures before it arrived back into the tap. He showed us a video of the book which was narrated by his children. It was very entertaining and we really enjoyed it.
Gordon also read his other children’s book, Buzz Off!, to us. It was a very funny book that everyone loved. Gordon talked us through the different stages of writing a book and we were amazed at how many people were involved in the process and how long it took for an author to get a book published. It is a difficult job! He showed us some of the first drafts of his books and reminded us how important it is to edit your writing over and over again until you are happy with it.
Finally Gordon showed us how to draw the cartoon fly from his book Buzz Off! He explained how to draw it step by step and each of us tried following these steps to draw our own fly. We could then add on our own details to make our flies different and unique. They all looked brilliant when finished.
We really enjoyed the day and learned how important water is. We really have to look after the water that is available to us and not waste it. We also learned lots about the writing process that we can use in our creative writing classes.
We hope Gordon Green publishes many more books in the future for us to read.
Water Slogans
A competition was held in the school to pick the new water slogan for our third Green Flag. The Green schools' Committee invited every child in the school to write a new slogan about water. There was a great response to the competition and Miss Fitzpatrick and Miss Payne had the difficult task of narrowing the entries down to the final 6. They were as follows:
|
We all need water,
Yes we do, Keep it clean, For me and You. (Class effort – Junior and Senior Infants) |
Puddles splash!
Waves crash! Rivers run, Water is fun. (By Chloe Gillick, Junior Infants) |
Please put on your thinking
cap, Don’t waste water, Turn off the tap! (By Lorcan Kerins Power, 2nd class) |
|
Don’t fill the kettle,
Turn off the tap, Save the water and Put Scoil Mhuire on the map. (By Fintan Duffy, 1st class) |
Rain, rain,
Water water, Save, save. Drip, drip, Waste, waste, No, no! (By Lisa Murtagh, 5th class) |
Turn off the tap,
Reduce the flush, All hands on deck, For the third big push. Is féidir linn!!! (By Úna Boylan, 5th class) |
The final 6 slogans were given to Stephen Kelly, who works in the water treatment plant in Magherarney and is employed in the Water Section of Monaghan County Council. He had the very tough job of picking the final winner.
Our new water slogan in Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney is:
Our new water slogan in Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney is:
Turn off the tap,
Reduce the flush,
All hands on deck,
For the third
big push.
Is féidir linn!!!
(By Úna Boylan, 5th class)
Congratulations to Úna Boylan in 5th class on composing the winning slogan.
Reduce the flush,
All hands on deck,
For the third
big push.
Is féidir linn!!!
(By Úna Boylan, 5th class)
Congratulations to Úna Boylan in 5th class on composing the winning slogan.
Water Awareness Questionnaire
Green School Committee 2012-2013
Siobhán Payne-Principal
Valerie Groarke- Deputy Principal
Kathleen Fitzpatrick-Class Teacher & Green School Co=Ordinator
Laura Morgan-SNA
Monica Murtagh-Cleaner
Eleanor McElroy-Parent
Jackie Murray-Parent
Paddy McBride-Parent
Noeleen Arthurs-Parent
Joanne Behan-Parent
Jake Lambe-Rang 1
Caoimhe Prunty-Rang 2
Matthew McBride - Rang 3
Úna Boylan - Rang 4
Kyle McAree- Rang 4
Aoife Murray- Rang 5
Patrick Toal-Rang 5
Hazel Behan - Rang 5
Dónal Leonard -Rang 6
Chloe McBride-Rang 6
Valerie Groarke- Deputy Principal
Kathleen Fitzpatrick-Class Teacher & Green School Co=Ordinator
Laura Morgan-SNA
Monica Murtagh-Cleaner
Eleanor McElroy-Parent
Jackie Murray-Parent
Paddy McBride-Parent
Noeleen Arthurs-Parent
Joanne Behan-Parent
Jake Lambe-Rang 1
Caoimhe Prunty-Rang 2
Matthew McBride - Rang 3
Úna Boylan - Rang 4
Kyle McAree- Rang 4
Aoife Murray- Rang 5
Patrick Toal-Rang 5
Hazel Behan - Rang 5
Dónal Leonard -Rang 6
Chloe McBride-Rang 6
Our Day of Action - Ballybay Wetlands Centre
On Thursday 20th June 2013, 3rd, 4th and 5th class went to Ballybay Wetlands Centre for our Greenschool’s ‘Water Day of Action.’ We arrived at 10am and were greeted by our lovely tutors, Gail and Audrey. Firstly we went into a room in the Wetlands Centre. It was very modern as it had solar panels on the roof. Rain water was also collected on the roof and ran through a pipe into a rain water pond.
Audrey started to tell us about what water is made of (H2O) and different places to find water such as river, lakes, streams, ponds, oceans, seas, wells, under the ground and in the air. She also asked us why we need water. We were happy as we knew the answers to all these questions and she was also impressed with us. Audrey then asked us where our water comes from and some children were able to tell Audrey that they had private wells at home or that they were part of a group water scheme. She then explained what happens to our waste water if we live in the country side or in the town. A lot of people in the countryside have their own septic tank but in the town the waste water is sent to a treatment plant to be treated before being returned to the lakes and rivers. It was very interesting.
We then learned about water pollution and different things that can pollute our water if we are not careful e.g.chemicals, litter, oil, waste, sediment, fertiliser, etc. Audrey put acontainer of clean water on the table and gave out jars to some people. Eachjar had a different pollutant in it. She then read us a story about Oscar the Otter’s river journey. He lived in clean water but one day he decided to go for a swim up the river. Along the way he swam into water which had been polluted by various things. As Audrey read out the story the children with the jars hadto go up to the top of the room and pour the contents of their jar into the container of clean water. By the end of the story the water was very dirty and smelly!!
The next experiment Audrey did taught us about underground water. We revised the different layers in the soil – topsoil, subsoil and bedrock. We then had to guess which type of bedrock we thought
stored the most water – bedrock made up of small rocks, medium rocks or large rocks. The large rocks stored the most water as there were more gaps between them to hold water. Wells that are dug into bedrock made up of large rocks gives us lots of water and can supply many houses.
After this we had a small break and then we went on a nature walk outside. The first plant we saw had a funny name – the Dead Red Nettle!! This plant attracts bees and is important for pollination.
We saw a tree which is native to North America called the Aspen tree. This tree can live for up to 80,000 years because the roots grow and spread out very far from the tree .If the tree dies or is destroyed by fire, new shoots spring up out of the ground and grow again.
We noticed ivy clinging onto the aspen tree and onto other trees. We thought this damaged the trees but it doesn’t! It actually is very good as lots of insects and bugs live in the ivy and it gives a home to them.
Another plant we saw was cow parsley but it has lots of other names too such as the umbrella plant or lady’s lace. Again this plant is important for bees it has lots of pollen in it.
We were told about a tree native to Ireland called the Elder tree. It has compound leaves which means that each leaf is made up of a number of different leaflets. Elderberries grow on this tree and we can
make elderberry juice or elderberry wine with these. We cannot make furniture from this tree as it is a soft wood. Beside it, however, grew an ash tree. Again it had compound leaves but it is a hard wood so furniture can be made using this wood. Hurley sticks (camán) are also made from the wood of the ash
tree.
Along the path we also saw hazel trees, oak trees, spruce trees, hawthorn trees and many more. We got to pick some of the leaves and take them home with us. While walking along the boardwalk we saw a
beautiful yellow plant called the ragged robin. We had to be careful not to pick this plant though as it is very, very rare.
Audrey then brought us into a hut where there were different containers of water with lots of bugs and insects swimming around in them. We used magnifying glasses to look at them up close. We then had to use a sheet with pictures to identify some of the bugs such as tadpoles, fresh water hog louse and leeches. Audrey explained that scientists can tell how clean or dirty the water is by looking at the
different bugs that live in it. Bugs such as stone fly and may fly are very sensitive to pollution and will not live in dirty water. If scientists find these bugs in the water they know that it is clean. If beetles or shrimp are found in the water sample, this is a sign that the water is not too clean as these bugs can tolerate a little pollution. If leeches, hog louse or worms are in the water then scientists know that the water is polluted.
We then went for a walk on a floating bridge called a pontoon. It was good fun as it moved underneath us as we walked. We sat on the pontoon and drew the plants that we saw growing in the
water such as lily pads, rushes and reeds. We also drew a swan as there was a swan sitting on a nest and another swan looking for food close by.
When we got back to the centre we ate our lunch and got back on the bus. We really had a great day in the Wetlands centre and learned so much about water. We hope this will help us towards getting our
third green flag for Scoil Mhuire.
Audrey started to tell us about what water is made of (H2O) and different places to find water such as river, lakes, streams, ponds, oceans, seas, wells, under the ground and in the air. She also asked us why we need water. We were happy as we knew the answers to all these questions and she was also impressed with us. Audrey then asked us where our water comes from and some children were able to tell Audrey that they had private wells at home or that they were part of a group water scheme. She then explained what happens to our waste water if we live in the country side or in the town. A lot of people in the countryside have their own septic tank but in the town the waste water is sent to a treatment plant to be treated before being returned to the lakes and rivers. It was very interesting.
We then learned about water pollution and different things that can pollute our water if we are not careful e.g.chemicals, litter, oil, waste, sediment, fertiliser, etc. Audrey put acontainer of clean water on the table and gave out jars to some people. Eachjar had a different pollutant in it. She then read us a story about Oscar the Otter’s river journey. He lived in clean water but one day he decided to go for a swim up the river. Along the way he swam into water which had been polluted by various things. As Audrey read out the story the children with the jars hadto go up to the top of the room and pour the contents of their jar into the container of clean water. By the end of the story the water was very dirty and smelly!!
The next experiment Audrey did taught us about underground water. We revised the different layers in the soil – topsoil, subsoil and bedrock. We then had to guess which type of bedrock we thought
stored the most water – bedrock made up of small rocks, medium rocks or large rocks. The large rocks stored the most water as there were more gaps between them to hold water. Wells that are dug into bedrock made up of large rocks gives us lots of water and can supply many houses.
After this we had a small break and then we went on a nature walk outside. The first plant we saw had a funny name – the Dead Red Nettle!! This plant attracts bees and is important for pollination.
We saw a tree which is native to North America called the Aspen tree. This tree can live for up to 80,000 years because the roots grow and spread out very far from the tree .If the tree dies or is destroyed by fire, new shoots spring up out of the ground and grow again.
We noticed ivy clinging onto the aspen tree and onto other trees. We thought this damaged the trees but it doesn’t! It actually is very good as lots of insects and bugs live in the ivy and it gives a home to them.
Another plant we saw was cow parsley but it has lots of other names too such as the umbrella plant or lady’s lace. Again this plant is important for bees it has lots of pollen in it.
We were told about a tree native to Ireland called the Elder tree. It has compound leaves which means that each leaf is made up of a number of different leaflets. Elderberries grow on this tree and we can
make elderberry juice or elderberry wine with these. We cannot make furniture from this tree as it is a soft wood. Beside it, however, grew an ash tree. Again it had compound leaves but it is a hard wood so furniture can be made using this wood. Hurley sticks (camán) are also made from the wood of the ash
tree.
Along the path we also saw hazel trees, oak trees, spruce trees, hawthorn trees and many more. We got to pick some of the leaves and take them home with us. While walking along the boardwalk we saw a
beautiful yellow plant called the ragged robin. We had to be careful not to pick this plant though as it is very, very rare.
Audrey then brought us into a hut where there were different containers of water with lots of bugs and insects swimming around in them. We used magnifying glasses to look at them up close. We then had to use a sheet with pictures to identify some of the bugs such as tadpoles, fresh water hog louse and leeches. Audrey explained that scientists can tell how clean or dirty the water is by looking at the
different bugs that live in it. Bugs such as stone fly and may fly are very sensitive to pollution and will not live in dirty water. If scientists find these bugs in the water they know that it is clean. If beetles or shrimp are found in the water sample, this is a sign that the water is not too clean as these bugs can tolerate a little pollution. If leeches, hog louse or worms are in the water then scientists know that the water is polluted.
We then went for a walk on a floating bridge called a pontoon. It was good fun as it moved underneath us as we walked. We sat on the pontoon and drew the plants that we saw growing in the
water such as lily pads, rushes and reeds. We also drew a swan as there was a swan sitting on a nest and another swan looking for food close by.
When we got back to the centre we ate our lunch and got back on the bus. We really had a great day in the Wetlands centre and learned so much about water. We hope this will help us towards getting our
third green flag for Scoil Mhuire.
Recent Green School News
WATER WORKSHOP
On the 27th February, a girl called Catriona came to our school to talk about water as part of our third Green flag. The workshop was organised by Monaghan County Council.First, second, third and fourth class went to the first workshop while fifth and sixth class went to the second workshop.
Firstly, Catriona asked us about the water cycle. She explained the four steps in the water cycle to us. These are: evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection. This was very interesting.
Next Catriona taught us about the four different steps that water treatment plants use to clean water. They were aeration, coagulation, sedimentation and filtration. These were very long words to remember and understand so she gave us a demonstration so as we could see each of the steps clearly.
Aeration: Each group got a bottle of dirty water and each member of the group had to shake the bottle for 5 seconds each. When we opened the lid we heard it fizz like a coke bottle.
Coagulation: Next, Catriona added a little white powder called alum to each bottle. This made all the dirt in the bottle stick together. For this to work properly though we had to leave our bottles in the corner of the room for 20 minutes.
Sedimentation: The alum settled and much of the dirt in the bottle stuck together and floated on the water or sank to the bottom.
Filtration: We put the dirty water through a bottle which contained sand, pebbles and stones. There was a coffee filter attached to the bottom of the bottle. The water dripped into a cup and was a pale brown colour. We could not drink it as it was still full of germs but all the pieces of dirt had been removed.
We also played a game where we had different cards with pictures or numbers on each one. In groups we had to try to guess how many litres of water different household appliances or activities used. It was very difficult but good fun. We were shocked to hear that a power shower used 125 litres of water every 5 minutes while a bath uses 80 litres of water.
Catriona then proceeded to talk about ‘wetlands’. Wetlands are mostly found in bogs, marshes, valleys and fields. Did you know there are 586 wetlands in Monaghan? This is the biggest number of wetlands in any county in Ireland because Monaghan has lots of drumlins.
Shortly after this, Catriona gave each group a basin containing water and bugs from a stream beside her house. Catriona had made this stream herself and had collected the water that morning. We used a magnifying glass to look at all the different types of bugs. We then had to try to draw some of them. Catriona went around each group telling us the names of the different bugs. There were leeches, hair worms, caddis fly and fresh water shrimp in our basin. Catriona told us that these bugs live in polluted water.
Lastly Catriona showed us a picture of a raft spider. This is Ireland’s biggest spider. It walks on water with the help of surface tension. The spider feels movement under the water and this is how it catches its prey. Unfortunately people litter in rivers and lakes. Farmers can also be careless when spreading slurry and the slurry can get washed into the rivers and lakes. These are examples of pollution. If a raft spider is on polluted water he cannot stay on top of the water and so he can’t get food. To show the effect of pollution on surface tension we tried an experiment. Catriona gave each group a glass of water, a paperclip and a small piece of kitchen roll. We put the paperclip on the kitchen roll and carefully lowered it into the water. The kitchen paper became wet and sank but the paper clip floated on top of the water due to surface tension. Catriona then put washing up liquid in the water to act as pollution. The paper clip sank to the bottom straight away. This shows the effect pollution can have on creatures.
We then said thank you to Catriona. We had a great day and learned lots about water.
On the 27th February, a girl called Catriona came to our school to talk about water as part of our third Green flag. The workshop was organised by Monaghan County Council.First, second, third and fourth class went to the first workshop while fifth and sixth class went to the second workshop.
Firstly, Catriona asked us about the water cycle. She explained the four steps in the water cycle to us. These are: evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection. This was very interesting.
Next Catriona taught us about the four different steps that water treatment plants use to clean water. They were aeration, coagulation, sedimentation and filtration. These were very long words to remember and understand so she gave us a demonstration so as we could see each of the steps clearly.
Aeration: Each group got a bottle of dirty water and each member of the group had to shake the bottle for 5 seconds each. When we opened the lid we heard it fizz like a coke bottle.
Coagulation: Next, Catriona added a little white powder called alum to each bottle. This made all the dirt in the bottle stick together. For this to work properly though we had to leave our bottles in the corner of the room for 20 minutes.
Sedimentation: The alum settled and much of the dirt in the bottle stuck together and floated on the water or sank to the bottom.
Filtration: We put the dirty water through a bottle which contained sand, pebbles and stones. There was a coffee filter attached to the bottom of the bottle. The water dripped into a cup and was a pale brown colour. We could not drink it as it was still full of germs but all the pieces of dirt had been removed.
We also played a game where we had different cards with pictures or numbers on each one. In groups we had to try to guess how many litres of water different household appliances or activities used. It was very difficult but good fun. We were shocked to hear that a power shower used 125 litres of water every 5 minutes while a bath uses 80 litres of water.
Catriona then proceeded to talk about ‘wetlands’. Wetlands are mostly found in bogs, marshes, valleys and fields. Did you know there are 586 wetlands in Monaghan? This is the biggest number of wetlands in any county in Ireland because Monaghan has lots of drumlins.
Shortly after this, Catriona gave each group a basin containing water and bugs from a stream beside her house. Catriona had made this stream herself and had collected the water that morning. We used a magnifying glass to look at all the different types of bugs. We then had to try to draw some of them. Catriona went around each group telling us the names of the different bugs. There were leeches, hair worms, caddis fly and fresh water shrimp in our basin. Catriona told us that these bugs live in polluted water.
Lastly Catriona showed us a picture of a raft spider. This is Ireland’s biggest spider. It walks on water with the help of surface tension. The spider feels movement under the water and this is how it catches its prey. Unfortunately people litter in rivers and lakes. Farmers can also be careless when spreading slurry and the slurry can get washed into the rivers and lakes. These are examples of pollution. If a raft spider is on polluted water he cannot stay on top of the water and so he can’t get food. To show the effect of pollution on surface tension we tried an experiment. Catriona gave each group a glass of water, a paperclip and a small piece of kitchen roll. We put the paperclip on the kitchen roll and carefully lowered it into the water. The kitchen paper became wet and sank but the paper clip floated on top of the water due to surface tension. Catriona then put washing up liquid in the water to act as pollution. The paper clip sank to the bottom straight away. This shows the effect pollution can have on creatures.
We then said thank you to Catriona. We had a great day and learned lots about water.
National Spring Clean
During the month of April An Taisce held their 15th National Spring Clean campaign. This event is Ireland’s largest anti-litter initiative and its main aim is to make our country a cleaner, greener and more beautiful place to live.
With this in mind and also as part of our Greenschools activities the children in Scoil Mhuire eagerly grabbed their litter pickers and bags and headed off to their designated areas.
The infants along with 1st and 2nd class made sure that inside the school grounds were litter-free and clean. They did a great job and everyone was happy with the results. 3rd and
4thclass tidied up our beautiful Seomra Glas area and then walked from the school up to St Mary’s Church. They did not leave one piece of litter behind and had great fun as they cleaned. 5th and 6th class weeded the flowers pots outside the school and picked up any litter outside the school walls. They then walked along the main road into Smithborough
and bagged any litter in sight. They were surprised at the amount of rubbish bags they filled but were delighted to have helped make Smithborough ‘cleaner and greener.’
After lunch 3rd to 6th class then went out to the school pitch. The Native Woodland Trust had recently run a project called ‘Trees for Schools.’ Sponsored by the Irish Independent and KPMG this trust gave 30 trees to every participating school in order to create a woodland within their school grounds and also to help the children become more green aware.
Scoil Mhuire applied for small trees and was given a selection of trees such as Willow, Rowan, Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Spindle and Hazel. Trees are important because they absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and release oxygen which we all need to stay healthy. With the help of the school caretaker the children planted them along the fence at the back of the school. They then filled watering cans from our recently installed water butt to give the new trees a drink. The pupils in Scoil Mhuire will ensure to take plenty of care of
them and hopefully they will grow into beautiful strong trees.
With this in mind and also as part of our Greenschools activities the children in Scoil Mhuire eagerly grabbed their litter pickers and bags and headed off to their designated areas.
The infants along with 1st and 2nd class made sure that inside the school grounds were litter-free and clean. They did a great job and everyone was happy with the results. 3rd and
4thclass tidied up our beautiful Seomra Glas area and then walked from the school up to St Mary’s Church. They did not leave one piece of litter behind and had great fun as they cleaned. 5th and 6th class weeded the flowers pots outside the school and picked up any litter outside the school walls. They then walked along the main road into Smithborough
and bagged any litter in sight. They were surprised at the amount of rubbish bags they filled but were delighted to have helped make Smithborough ‘cleaner and greener.’
After lunch 3rd to 6th class then went out to the school pitch. The Native Woodland Trust had recently run a project called ‘Trees for Schools.’ Sponsored by the Irish Independent and KPMG this trust gave 30 trees to every participating school in order to create a woodland within their school grounds and also to help the children become more green aware.
Scoil Mhuire applied for small trees and was given a selection of trees such as Willow, Rowan, Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Spindle and Hazel. Trees are important because they absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and release oxygen which we all need to stay healthy. With the help of the school caretaker the children planted them along the fence at the back of the school. They then filled watering cans from our recently installed water butt to give the new trees a drink. The pupils in Scoil Mhuire will ensure to take plenty of care of
them and hopefully they will grow into beautiful strong trees.
National Spring Clean 2013
Planting Trees-The National Woodlands Trust
September 2013 Green School Action
Here in Scoil Mhuire, Magherarney we have done much over the past number of years to enhance our out-door environment and develop a sense of shared responsibility in caring for our school environment. With that in mind the Green School committee organises 'Termly Tidy Ups' to involve all the children from third to sixth class in caring for our local environment. In September we often have much to do to tidy up from the long summer break. Here are some photos from our 'Afternoon Wield Your Broom' Green School work.
The Water Cycle
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We are very busy this year working towards our third Green Flag on the theme of 'Water'. Fundamental to all our studies on water is an understanding of the water cycle. Click on the clip below to see a great 3D animation of the water cycle.
For our younger pupils in infants check out a recent visit by author Gordon Green, by clicking on the link to the right, who tells the story of the water cycle in a very fun way in his book called 'The Drip'. |
Click here for link to visit by author Gordon Green to Scoil Mhuire, Machaire Áirne. |