Teachers' Resources

Once the cross is woven, it is blessed with holy water by a priest. It is then hung on the front doors of homes and left in place all year, to be burned and replaced with a newly-woven cross on the next St Brigid’s Day.

How to make a St. Brigid’s Cross
You will need:

• bowl
• 28 long reads or straws (if not available why not try pipe cleaners).

Instructions:

• Position two straws to make a plus sign, putting the horizontal straw on the top. Fold the upper section of the vertical straw on top of its other half. Rotate the weave counter-clockwise 90 degrees. Repeat to fold the now-vertical straw.
• Rotate 90 degrees counter-clockwise. Add another straw by placing it to the right of the folded vertical straw and beneath the folded horizontal straw. Fold it and rotate it again.
• Keep repeating the process without letting the straws bunch up on top of each other. Rest the straws side by side.
• Tie each arm 4 inches from the centre of the St. Brigid’s cross after all the straws have been added. Trim the ends of the straw.

Skellig Michael is also an internationally renowned site for breeding seabirds with its steep rock slopes and cliffs providing nesting places for a variety of seabirds. It is this combination of cultural and natural history which imbues the island with a strong sense of beauty and spirituality. When inscribing the site on the World Heritage List in 1996 UNESCO described Skellig Michael as a unique example of early religious settlement which illustrates, as no other site can, the extremes of Christian monasticism.

Things To do
1.    Explain the difference between fresh water and sea water. And try some of these experiments.
How do we know that there is salt in the sea water?
You will need:

• bowl
• 480 ml ocean or sea water (You can make your own by mixing 10 ml of salt with 480ml of water)

Directions:

• Pour the water into a pan.
• Place the pan in a warm, dry place.
• Allow water to evaporate—this usually takes a few days.
• Make observations.

2.    Is it easier to float in the ocean or in fresh water?

You will need:

• 1 uncooked egg
• 1 jar filled with fresh water
• 1 jar filled with sea water

Directions:

• Put the egg in the jar of fresh water.
• Observe what happens.
• Put the egg in the jar of ocean

It also the ecosystems that wetlands provide, the associated threats and measures to ensure wetland protection for the future.

Things To do
1.    A nature ramble to the local park to collect different types of leaves and see if the children can match them to the Leaf Hunt worksheet below or if this not possible bring in some leaves and see if the children can match them.
2.    Repeat this exercise in all four seasons and explain the differences in the colours and shapes
3.    Take part in National Tree Week and plant a tree in the school grounds.

Download the resources below to explore the history, science and geography relating to Kilkenny’s water.

This website documents a project in which six County Sligo schools explored and documented the heritage sites of the county. It has lots of resources that can be used by other schools in Sligo.

Things to do
1.    Visit a local forest - you can find a list of forests and trails in your area here.
2.    Here you can download information and worksheets about trees. These worksheets are suitable for primary school children and are a fun way for children to learn about trees and the environment. Learn more about trees here.

Skills and concepts development:
Children should be able to:

1. Time and Chronology:

• Describe events as before/after/, later/earlier
• Use a simple timeline
• Use dates such as 1681

2. Change and continuity:

• Recognise how the castle has changed at different periods
• Identify features that have remained the same

3. Cause and effect:

• Recognise the link between the site of the castle and the need for the lord and soldiers to defend themselves in the early centuries of the castle.
• The importance of displaying a coat of arms for a family.
• Recognising how people’s needs change and the impact that has on a building, for example the moat being filled in and the change in the design of the windows.

4. Using evidence:

• Visiting and examining the building

5. Empathy:

• Imagine and discuss the feelings of the servants working in the castle.

Methodologies:
Among the methods which may be used are:

• Story lesson about the Butler family
• Comparing a modern photo of the entrance to Kilkenny Castle with an 18th century
• painting
• Exploring the environment, using the trail
• Integration with other subjects: geography (limestone), art (designing coats of arms), maths (shape)

Sources Used:

• John Bradley, Kilkenny, historic town atlas no. 10 (Dublin, 2000)
• John Bradley, Discover Kilkenny (Dublin, 2000)
• Katherine Lanigan and Gerald Taylor (eds) Kilkenny, its architecture and history (Kilkenny, 1977)
• William Neely, Kilkenny, an urban history, 1391-1843 (Belfast, 1989)
• William Carrigan The History and antiquities of the diocese of Ossory (Dublin, 1905)
• David Edwards, The Ormond lordship in County Kilkenny 1515-1642 (Dublin, 2003)
• Oral testimony of Castle Park constable, Liam Burke (3/08/2007)

The guide is organised in four parts. Part 1 explains why you and your school should take on a whole-school approach to climate action. Part 2 outlines how your school can plan, put into practice, and evaluate your own strategies and visions for reducing climate change. Part 3 provides six guidelines that suggest how to concretely include climate action in your school governance, teaching and learning, campus and facility management, and partnerships with the community. The guidelines are accompanied by examples showing how schools around the world are taking action. At the end of the guide, in Part 4, you will find a table to help you monitor action in the thematic areas along the six guidelines.