Our new learning theme is Under the Sea.  We will be learning about the underwater habitat, marine life, underwater exploration and how we can look after this habitat.  We will be linking our Aistear areas to this theme.  If your child would like to bring in books/plastic figures/pictures or items which they feel they would like to use in the Aistear areas for this theme that would be brilliant.  We will post pictures of our underwater adventures.

We have been learning about fairytales.  We have been reading fairytales, acting out fairytales and even creating our own ones! We have been particularly interested in castles! We have researched different types of castles and know what moats, arrow slits and drawbridges are.  We decided to make junk model castles in the creation station.  I think you'll agree that they are very impressive!

We have been out and about investigating signs of Spring.  We found blossom, buds, seedlings and even a birds nest! We planted seeds and we will be watching very carefully to see what happens to them.  You can help build on our learning at home by talking to us about signs of Spring.

We had a brilliant seachtain na gaeilge.  We performed in a ceolchoirm and we danced our socks off at the ceili! We made an extra effort to use our irish phrases around the school and at home too.

We have made models of Polar Regions.  We used books, videos and pictures to help us decide what to include in our models.  We included animals which we think would like to live in a Polar Region. Ms Emerson is so impressed with how carefully we worked and how we used resources such as books to help us complete our models.  Have a look at our slideshow...

We have been packing our suitcase for a trip to the South Pole.
So far we have packed:
​

• A sleeping bag
• A lantern
• Two torches
• A radio
• Some maps
• A book about the South Pole
• A compass
• A "onesie" to keep us warm

Can you think of anything else we might need?

We had a very interesting visit from Caitriona who has recently returned from a trip to the South Pole! Caitriona showed us a presentation about her time in the South Pole and she showed us lots of pictures of what she saw there! We were particularly impressed with the pictures of the whales!  We also got to see what Caitriona had packed for her trip to the South Pole.
​We asked lots of very interesting questions and Caitriona helped us to answer some of the questions we have about Polar Regions.  Caitriona thought we were brilliant investigators! Thank you Caitriona for visiting us!!

We have developed new play areas to compliment our theme "Polar Regions".  We have a malleable area (playdough), a role-play area, a small worlds area, a creative area, a construction area and a sand and water area (we have actually filled this with "snow"!).  The children have been adding to the areas as they see fit, and have been really enjoying working with each other in these new areas!

We have started learning about Polar Regions.  We have come up with some questions about this topic.  
We wonder:
Where do penguins live? In the North or South Pole?
Do all penguins eat fish? What if they don't like fish?!
Can polar bears swim?
Can polar bears run fast?
Can penguins fly?
Do people live in the South Pole?

We will use lots of different resources including stories, videos, visitors, and pictures to help us investigate these questions! If you find a picture, book or any resource which shows us the answer please encourage your child to share it in school.  

We have been reading a brilliant book called "The Great Explorer" by Chris Judge. In this book, a very brave boy gets ready to set of on an expedition.  We  had a chat about what we would pack if we were visiting the South Pole.  We decided we would all bring in one item to pack for our trip to the South Pole.  Check back at the end of the week to see what we have packed! A big thank you to Ryan for sharing this book with us!