by Julie Anne de Brún
The current circumstances might limit us from going on external school tours this year, but by using the technologies and the digital skills we have accrued quickly over the past year, we can easily promote inclusive, fun learning opportunities and collaborative investigations with our students. There are multiple platforms available from your classroom that can allow your class to explore museums, art galleries, cities and sites through virtual tours, or even go on a lunar mission…all from the safety of their classroom! The opportunities are endless.
Recreating a School Tour Virtually with Cross-Curricular
Learning Opportunities
Owing to the current circumstances, we will be having a Lá Spraoi (Fun Activity Day) in school this year in lieu of a Turas Scoile (School Tour). There are numerous opportunities to develop a virtual school tour into a multi-modal learning experience that will capture the imagination and creativity of your students and deepen their understanding and engagement of the theme across all subjects.
As we have been focusing on the theme of Space Exploration and Space Travel in my class the past few weeks, our virtual school tour this year was a trip to Mars….which is not something the students would ever get to experience on a real life school tour so the excitement was palpable!
In the weeks leading up to the virtual school tour to Mars, the space theme was used to engage the children in cross-curricular activities. In English, we explored the book The Darkest Dark by Chris Hadfield, the former astronaut who completed a number of missions on the ISS. We also read Míp as Gaeilge and we then wrote factual and fictional stories in both languages which the children uploaded to their digital portfolio on Seesaw.
*For more information on creating ePortfolios on Seesaw for primary school students, check out the courses section of the Wriggle Connect platform.
Owing to the current circumstances, we will be having a Lá Spraoi (Fun Activity Day) in school this year in lieu of a Turas Scoile (School Tour). There are numerous opportunities to develop a virtual school tour into a multi-modal learning experience that will capture the imagination and creativity of your students and deepen their understanding and engagement of the theme across all subjects.
As we have been focusing on the theme of Space Exploration and Space Travel in my class the past few weeks, our virtual school tour this year was a trip to Mars….which is not something the students would ever get to experience on a real life school tour so the excitement was palpable!
In the weeks leading up to the virtual school tour to Mars, the space theme was used to engage the children in cross-curricular activities. In English, we explored the book The Darkest Dark by Chris Hadfield, the former astronaut who completed a number of missions on the ISS. We also read Míp as Gaeilge and we then wrote factual and fictional stories in both languages which the children uploaded to their digital portfolio on Seesaw.
*For more information on creating ePortfolios on Seesaw for primary school students, check out the courses section of the Wriggle Connect platform.
Want to get FREE Teacher Training for staff
on the Wriggle Connect platform?
on the Wriggle Connect platform?
The theme was further explored using NASA STEM
engagement projects and watching about Slime in Space. This last
experiment with two astronauts on the International Space Station demonstrates
how slime reacts to microgravity and encourages children to copy those same
demonstrations and experiments back here on Earth. It makes for an intriguing
15-minute virtual field trip and all of our STEM projects were captured using
the camera on iPad and made into presentations using Flipgrid and iMovie which
were presented to the class and added to the students’ ePortfolios.
The culmination of all of this exploration was an exciting virtual journey to the red planet. With Access Mars you can see the actual surface of Mars, recorded by NASA’s Curiosity Rover. Made with Google, this is a WebVR Experiment worth engaging with. Following our ‘re-entry to earth’, the children then constructed their own model of Nasa’s Curiosity Rover on Mars using recyclable materials.
The culmination of all of this exploration was an exciting virtual journey to the red planet. With Access Mars you can see the actual surface of Mars, recorded by NASA’s Curiosity Rover. Made with Google, this is a WebVR Experiment worth engaging with. Following our ‘re-entry to earth’, the children then constructed their own model of Nasa’s Curiosity Rover on Mars using recyclable materials.
Want to get FREE Teacher Training for staffon the Wriggle Connect platform?
Further Virtual Tours Available for Thematic Exploration
There are lot of other virtual tours available on age-appropriate websites with suggested follow-up and exploration activities and ideas to enable your class to go on a ‘virtual’ Turas Scoile/ School Tour they won’t forget. Here are a list of just a few of them:
There are lot of other virtual tours available on age-appropriate websites with suggested follow-up and exploration activities and ideas to enable your class to go on a ‘virtual’ Turas Scoile/ School Tour they won’t forget. Here are a list of just a few of them:
Visit Áras an Uachtaráin
There is a lovely Children's Section on the official Áras an Uachtaráin website where children can take a virtual tour of some rooms in the Áras. They can also click on each of the guides shown below to learn more about the President, where he lives and about the Phoenix Park. After the tour, there is a quiz for students to take to see what they can remember. Tá leagán ann as Gaeilge freisin - Turas Fíorúail chuig Áras an Uachtaráin.
There is a lovely Children's Section on the official Áras an Uachtaráin website where children can take a virtual tour of some rooms in the Áras. They can also click on each of the guides shown below to learn more about the President, where he lives and about the Phoenix Park. After the tour, there is a quiz for students to take to see what they can remember. Tá leagán ann as Gaeilge freisin - Turas Fíorúail chuig Áras an Uachtaráin.
Want to get FREE Teacher Training for staffon the Wriggle Connect platform?
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About the Author
Julie Anne de Brún
Julie Anne is a primary school teacher in Scoil Mhuire, Maigh Cuilinn, Co na Gaillimhe. She has a Post Grad in Special Educational Needs Teaching, a Masters in ICT in Education and is passionate about promoting the Irish language through music, art, STEAM and workshops, and is currently promoting the use of Gaeilge in education and creating resources to support Cianmhúinteoireacht agus Cianfhoghlaim/ online teaching and learning.
As a Wriggle Connect Ambassador, Julie Anne is creating the 'Seesaw' Learning Pathway on the new Wriggle Connect Family Platform for Student and Parents. Watch out for this brand new platform coming soon!!!
As a Wriggle Connect Ambassador, Julie Anne is creating the 'Seesaw' Learning Pathway on the new Wriggle Connect Family Platform for Student and Parents. Watch out for this brand new platform coming soon!!!
To learn more about the courses available to teachers on the Wriggle Connect platform, click on the 'Courses' section if you have a Wriggle Connect account, or sign up for a FREE 14 day sample course on the Wriggle Connect platform today!