Ideas for Teaching

Suggested approaches to the topic of schools in geography:

Maps, pictures and aerial photographs are some of the key resource materials used. Children are introduced to a range of old and modern school buildings in this site. The teacher can reproduce these for teaching purposes. Children can also take pictures of their own school building, its surroundings and compare this to other school designs.
 

Activities to introduce the topic of schools in geography:

• Introduction to schools as buildings:
What are buildings? What kinds of buildings are there? Identification of residential, public and commercial buildings through a picture sorting task. Make a wall display with examples of each taken from newspapers and magazines or from estate agent's brochures.

• Odd one out:
A) Give children a selection of 3 buildings and they work in groups to identify the odd one out
B) Give children some word lists based on an the architectural features of a school building. Some of these can be taken from section 2 of the unit. Example sandstone, mortar, granite. Children must explain why certain words are the odd one out (two are stones, the other is used to bind them)

• Brainstorming:
Examination of a picture of a school. Children list all the external features which they notice. As children encounter more through the Ask About Ireland unit or through lessons they can add them to the picture. ( traffic barriers, plaques, rood tiles, skylight, entrance, recessed windows or pipes)

• Ordering:
Give children a list of points to consider in relation to priorities for school design-a variety of hard surface and soft surface play area, ramps for wheelchairs, bicycle ramps, a compost heap, play items for infants, large classroom space, a library, a computer room, a canteen for children to have lunch in, a quiet room where children can go if they need to be in a quieter area for a little while etc. Children are asked to order the top 4 or 5 first individually then in pairs and finally in a group of 4. They will need sheets to record their ideas. Class discussion follows about school design and design of other buildings.

• Ordering in two lists
Placing pictures which have a sunny aspect in one group (south facing) those in the shade in another