KS1/lower KS2 topic/science/history/geography

[drspouse]

I'm doing a very short sciency activity with the DCs some days and they are enjoying it. We have done things in the past from Okido and we are doing yeast, mouldy bread, all kinds of microbes just now.

DS really liked his geography topic at school last term (came home asking to taste the food from the country they were doing).
Both DH and I have a science background and would struggle to make up hands on stuff for other areas.
Any ideas for really hands on stuff (we don't really want worksheets to fill in - just fun things to do and look at)?
We have a few Usborne books and other history/geography type books but it's not our strength!
We do Sunday School at home and use the Scripture Union stuff and that seems about the right level - a story and a craft type thing.

Have you looked on Twinkl? They are offering free sign ups during lockdown. They have cross curricular topics with a range of different activities to carry out.
www.twinkl.co.uk

You can teach a lot of science and technology knowledge but skills are easy.

So today we have gone through the design process of designing a mask to protect from COVID.

We looked up the features of a mask, came up with a design brief, and now we are listing a spec of essential features. We have researched the size of the virus etc.

Tomorrow we will look at materials.

So what might start out to be a simple craft project turns out to be a lesson in the design process, with lots of science thrown in

We have also looked at rusting and used the 'fair test' approach to finding out what will rust the iron nail. Lots of questions about experiments being fair, reliable and reproducible with numbers of variables.

The new curriculum requires children to be able to speak like scientists, engineers etc so teaching them the skills and vocabulary is equally as important as doing the experiment.

Sorry, ignore the title.
We have plenty of science activities; we need other topic type areas.

I don't think my two (Y3 SEN and Y1 with poor literacy) would cope with advanced concepts, they are mainly at the "wow" stage.

@Soontobe60 I have had a look at Twinkl but when I look at history/geography type subjects it all seems to be worksheets, colouring, and word search type activities. So, lovely to support a good lesson from a qualified teacher, but deathly dull for my two if it's me that knows nothing about the subject and starting from scratch.

There are loads of easy geography things you can do.

For example, look in your fridge/freezer/cupboards and think about where all your food comes from. You can talk about anything that’s unexpected (your pasta probably isn’t Italian, for example). You can also make a map (just use an online map as a starting point, or even google maps) of where everything has come from. To take it further you can choose individual items and look into how they are produced and how that fits into the place they come from. You can think about the physical geography of some of this - why are some things grown in certain places?

You can do lots in your local area. On your daily exercise walk you can look at what’s in the local area and make maps of the things you find on your route. You can investigate where the local stream comes from and goes to, and any interesting features on the way (using google maps at home). You can look at how rivers get bigger as they get towards the sea and things like that. There are lots of websites that can help with identifying fluvial features. Obviously a lot will depend on what your local area is like - everyone probably has some fluvial stuff to look at, but you might have glacial features, or coastal, or all sorts of other things.

Or you can look at the soil in your garden: what colour is it; if you dig a hole, is it the same all the way down; what consistency is it; how might that affect what grows in the garden, or his land can be used, etc etc. You can look up things to help with this online.

Oh that sounds perfect!
Before all this kicked off we were supposed to be going skiing and I was going to a European city for a work meeting so I bought a map of Europe.

We often go for a walk on a canal - we don't see any locks but I do remember a Do You Know episode about locks - DH could be enthused about that.

A canal is great. Bring in some history too and think about where it came from, what it was used for, how thats changed over time.

The important thing for geography (and history) is really just getting kids to be curious about the environments around them, and to start thinking about why they are the way they are, how they might be connected to all sorts of other places and people, and how things might change over time (and with different use). But the key thing is to cultivate curiosity so they want to ask how things are and why that might be.

Ancient Egyptians:
Write in hieroglyphics
Make a pharaoh mask
Make a mummy and a sarcophagus
Online virtual tour of a pyramid

Lovely ideas!
We are doing just about OK with literacy and numeracy but they are both much more likely to tell me what they've been doing at school if it's topic based.

I agree, look locally. We have been on lots of 'hunts'. A rock hunt -pick up different kinds of stones/rocks and bring home and talk about how they might have been made, local history - plaques and monuments - war memorials - perspective for art - tree lined streets, lamp posts getting smaller. Old shops and buildings, compare new and old architecture etc.

Drawing's not popular especially with DS (v poor motor coordination, he will draw a teddy or a tree and then refuse to do any more) but hunts are VERY popular.

Hi, we are trying to cover off the topics they would have been doing this term in school - my eldest Greek Mythology, youngest the Artic. Twinkl has some really good lesson packs, activity sheets and reading/comprehension packs. They have material for different ability levels. They also have how to draw lessons/packs etc - for art we have been doing Picasso and there are some good slide packs and activities you can use (you can pick any famous artist). Hope this helps.

I don't have any hope at all of engaging my two with Powerpoint or comprehension sheets I'm afraid! Needs to be hands on and zero prep.

Weather is a great hands on topic for geography - make a rain measuring thing (my brain has turned to mush and I can’t remember the right word) out of an empty plastic bottle. Investigate extreme weather in different countries - tornados, hurricanes, monsoons etc.

Volcanos also good for hands-on.

History - I think Egyptians is a potentially good one as you could link it to the story of Moses and the plagues/Exodus. Hands on - create a collage of the Nile, or make a pyramid, draw some hieroglyphics and stain paper to make it look like parchment. You could weave with paper to make a basket to put in the bulrushes to link it to your Bible study.

What about the Victorians? You could look at the toys they used to play with, the food they used to eat, the clothes they wore. Make a Punch and Judy set and puppets for a craft, and then put on a show. Have a Victorian picnic. See if you can find some cheap slates and some chalk to practice writing like at school.

Right after we finish Microbes (we're going to have a yeast race, and either do sourdough or make yoghurt) I think we're going to do European Countries which may just be "where do the packets come from and what shall we make for tea" but it's more interesting than workbooks!
Then possibly Victorians as we can go and spot houses and chimneys and see about some slates (DS did the Victorians at his rather unsuccessful school but he has remembered some of it).

We have been listening to the History Storytime podcast. Lots of good episodes about history with songs etc for our two (Y3 and Y1). Quite funny too.