Thanks to Claire McDonald from The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) who visited our school in February. Every class in the school had the opportunity to participate in a sustainable energy workshop with Claire. During these workshops the children learnt about different sources of energy and the importance of conserving energy in our school and homes while helping to protect our environment in the process. Some of the ways we can do this are listed below.
- move to renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and wave power.
- if you are cold put on an extra layer of clothing before turning on the heat.
- cycle or walk to school.
- turn off lights that are not needed.
- only boil as much water as you need to use.
- switch off electrical equipment if it is not in use.
- use locally sourced fruit and vegetables rather than wasting energy by shipping these from far away.
- plant native Irish trees.
We also performed some fun experiments to see the effect of energy. These included:
- a dressing race
- making a balloon rocket (the movement comes from the energy of the balloon forcing air out)
- using potatoes and lemons to power a light-bulb.
- transfer of energy from a small ball to a big ball.
- releasing the energy in a vitamin c tablet to create an exploding canister
