What age group is SeaKeepers suitable for? 

SeaKeepers is suitable for primary school students. The resources are divided into a “SeaKeepers Junior” pack, which has simple presentations and activities, which we recommend for children up to 2^nd class. “SeaKeepers Senior” is loosely aimed towards middle classes, but can be used for 3^rd – 6^th class. The resources can be used as a starting point for class projects, and can be adapted to suit your class’s individual level. You can choose to complete the project in English or Irish.

How do we take part? 

Eligibility: The SeaKeepers Project is available to schools currently working on, or previously awarded, the Global Citizenship: Marine Environment theme.  

• Teachers must select 10 students at random from their class to complete the Species Identification Survey, this can be done by picking the first/last ten students on the roll or picking names out of a hat. Teachers should make note of which students they have selected, as the same ten students will need to complete the repeat survey later in the year.
• The selected students should be individually shown the Species Identification Survey, which has photos of several different animals and plants. The students must identify the species as best they can, without any help or guidance. Younger students may respond verbally, while older students can write their answers on the sheet. Students can answer in English or Irish, depending on which language you wish to complete the project in (but all the students should respond in the same language).
• All selected students should answer individually without help and out of earshot of other students and before any lessons are taught with regard to these species. The aim of this survey is to get baseline information about students’ general knowledge of Irish marine biodiversity, it is expected that they will score very low in the initial species identification survey.
• Teachers must record the students’ answers in the Data Collection Sheet, along with the other requested details and email to marine@greenschoolsireland.org by Friday 21^st November to receive access to the resources. Resources will be sent to teachers after the deadline.
• Teachers should aim to complete all six species lessons by Friday 1^st May, 2026. The same ten students should be re-surveyed once all the lessons have been completed, and the repeat survey results must be submitted by Friday 8th May, 2026. Further information on the repeat survey will be sent to teachers closer to the time. All participating classes will receive a certificate and one lucky class will then be selected to receive a beach exploration workshop in June provided by Green-Schools staff!