This Bealtaine, we want to celebrate nature with you!
We know that May is an especially busy time for schools, with standardised tests, school trips and sports days so rather than hosting a Biodiversity Week towards the end of the month, we want to make things more flexible for schools. You can choose a day, a week or the entire month to get outside with your class and investigate the wildlife around you.
We have selected 7 plants and animals to focus on. There are lots of options for taking part and you can dip in and out as much as you like!
The basics:
Go outside!
Search for these 7 species:
- Hawthorn Tree
- 7 Spotted Ladybird
- Cleavers
- Swallow
- Bee
- Lichen
- Mammal (any!)
Photograph them and send us your pictures. You can email us at bioevents@eeu.antaisce.org or tag us on social media @greenschoolsirl
Explore More:
Find out more about each of these plants and animals, learn where to find them and get ideas for more activities.
Become a citizen scientist! Share what you found with the Irish Biodiversity Data Centre.
Invite your families, friends and community members to take part! What species can you find at home?
Live Events:
Since mammals can be hard to spot, we will give you some tips on what to look out for! We will have a weekly 20 minute webinar on Thursdays at 11.30. Learn about 2 different Irish Mammals in each.
- Thursday, May 14th at 11.30. Otter and Fox
- Thursday, 21st at 11.30. Hare and Pine Marten
- Thursday, 28th at 11.30. Bats and Old Irish Goats
Arts and Crafts Videos:
Try these Draw with Rob videos and learn how to draw a Hawthorn Tree, its flowers, leaves and fruits and how to draw a Ladybird and each step of its lifecycle!
You can also make your own Origami Bee. Follow along with Allison!
Quizzes:
We also have lots of interactive quizzes for each class age. You can try them out with your class in English or Irish!
Photo Competition!
Don’t forget to send us your pictures of any of our 7 species that you spot. We will be picking our favourites each week to be featured on our social media. Anyone who sends us a picture will be entered into a weekly draw to win a bug spotting kit! We will also pick one overall winner who will be sent our Wildlife Trail Camera for the rest of the school year! This will allow you to spot the wildlife that comes into your school at night!
Email bioevents@eeu.antaisce.org or tag us on social media! @greenschoolsirl