KEYWORDS!!
When we start learning more about a new subject we find that certain words seem to crop up a lot. These are words that are often used by teachers or are found in our textbooks. We call these words 'KEYWORDS', because by understanding them we then have a 'key' to unlocking the new ideas and concepts that we need to know.
There are some common keywords that we see in nearly every subject. For example, do you know the difference between 'compare' and 'contrast' or between 'explain' and 'describe'?
This useful link below helps us to understand the difference between these key terms...
https://www.studyclix.ie/Blog/Show/Compare,-Contrast,-List,-Suggest-%E2%80%93-understand-the-question-words-used-in-exams
Every subject also has its own key terms. And remember, a word may have a completely different meaning depending on what subject it is being used in. A 'bank' in Geography is different from a 'bank' in business studies for example..
Below are useful links to help understand the different key words in various subjects. Handy to know and memorise!
http://geographyhelp.co.uk/keywords/keywords1.php
http://www.alperton.brent.sch.uk/assets/Forms-Documents/PDFs/Key-Words/History-Key-Words.pdf
http://thephysicsteacher.ie/Literacy%20and%20Numeracy/JC%20Keywords%20Posters.pdf
http://www.allinfo.org.uk/revision-gcse/glossarye.htm
http://studymaths.co.uk/glossary.php
http://www.elsp.ie/subjectsS/JC/examLanguage/Exam%20Language%20Topic%20-%20Science.pdf
Friday, 21 October 2016
Wednesday, 11 May 2016
Always on the move…
What's under your feet? Well, depending upon where you are
now, it could be dirt, rock, or grass. But what's really under your feet? If
you were to dig straight down, what would you find? And how far could you dig?
Could you really dig a hole all the way down to Australia?
First Year Geography
students are often surprised when they learn just what exactly our planet is
composed of. Our planet is made up of a
number of layers .We live on the solid outer crust of the Earth, containing our
continents, seas and oceans, which is about 8-30 km deep.
Under the
crust lies the Mantle; this is mainly composed of a very hot substance called
magma. Below the mantle is the Core. This is our planet’s deepest, hottest
layer.
The Core is made
up of two parts; The ‘Outer Core’ and ‘Inner Core’.
The
Outer Core is about 25500 Km and is made up of liquid metals such as uranium
and platinum. Its temperature can be as hot as 5000 Degrees Celsius. Compare
that with today’s temperature!
The Inner
Core is about 100km thick and is like a solid ball of Iron.
The Earth’s
Crust is cracked in many places. At some of these cracks magma spills out.
Magma that comes out on the Earth’s surface is called lava. If a lot of lava
erupts at once a volcano can form. Sometimes a lot of lava spills out and cools
down to form new crust made out of igneous rocks.
The plate
crack or ‘Boundary’ between Europe and America is under the Atlantic Ocean. It
gets wider by about the width of a finger every year. You can see it on Google
Earth. This means we are actually moving away from America!
In other
parts of the world, plates sometimes collide or slip under each other, and melt
when they come into contact with the magma in the mantle.
All this
movement by plates happens very, very slowly over time but it does mean that
the continents and oceans of the Earth are constantly changing position because
the plates underneath then are shifting. We call this ‘Continental Drift’.
If you look
closely at a map of the Earth you will see it like a large jigsaw; in fact
Africa and South America were once stuck together many years ago! We know this because
many of the rocks in both continents are similar.
Finally, have
a look at this amazing video clip to see how the plates and continents have
caused our continents to drift over time. Ireland was actually once on the Equator;
imagine where we will be in millions of years’ time!
Tuesday, 13 October 2015
How Green does our Garden Grow!
St Mary's has always prided itself as a school committed to protecting our environment. Five Green Flags are proof of that!
This year some of our Sixth Years undertook a gardening project to continue to promote these objectives.
The project involved reconverting a piece of unused ground into a vibrant, living herb and flower garden. Our student gardeners like to be as organic as possible, so converting school rubbish into fertilizer was also very important.
Not only does gardening allow us help the environment, it also helps students develop skills in areas such as Biology,Mathematics and Geography. This is because when students garden they have to use mathematical skills for measuring, planting and weighing materials Geographical skills are used to analyse soil types and temperature, We use biology skills to appreciate and record the best conditions in which plants will thrive and grow.
Check out the photos below which show the progress of garden over the past weeks. More to follow in spring when our plants begin to bloom!
At first our gardeners had a lot of digging and clearing up to do!
But things progressed nicely!!
Soon we were able to purchase equipment for our garden such as tools, fertilizer, protection and recording equipment.
By mid October we planted Daffodils and Crocuses. We had also prepared our seed beds to plant herbs in spring. We put in compost heaps to recycle household rubbish and weeds. We also prepared our window boxes to display some of our plants around the school when they come up. Here's hoping our efforts will prove 'fruitful' in Spring!!
Tuesday, 8 September 2015
Welcome back everybody!
A warm welcome to all our returning students and to those new students joining us at St Mary's.
We'll sure you'll have as much enjoyment and success during your secondary education as last year's Sixth Years did!
The Learning Support Department provides the extra help and support students might require, delivered by our Resource and Learning Support Teachers, with SNA support when necessary.
Feel free to use the resources on our blog here and over on twitter at Mr Burke@stmarysls
We will also be available to answer any questions from prospective new students and their parents and guardians during our Open Night on Tuesday September 8th. Looking forward to seeing you then!
A warm welcome to all our returning students and to those new students joining us at St Mary's.
We'll sure you'll have as much enjoyment and success during your secondary education as last year's Sixth Years did!
The Learning Support Department provides the extra help and support students might require, delivered by our Resource and Learning Support Teachers, with SNA support when necessary.
Feel free to use the resources on our blog here and over on twitter at Mr Burke@stmarysls
We will also be available to answer any questions from prospective new students and their parents and guardians during our Open Night on Tuesday September 8th. Looking forward to seeing you then!
Friday, 6 February 2015
Why
did the chicken cross the road?
It
was the next step after coming down from the trees.
Evolution
Fifth Year biology students are currently studying one of
the most interesting-and indeed one of the most controversial topics in
Science- The Theory of Evolution.
The Theory of Evolution is most associated with the
famous English scientist Charles Darwin, who described it in his famous book of
1859: “On The Origin of Species”
You can read about Darwin’s life and discoveries here:
The theory states that there is a large genetic variation
within every population of organisms. Population size stays constant as the
organisms produce many offspring.
This then means that there is a lot of competition between the organisms for
resources within their environment. Only the organisms best equipped to get
these resources will survive in the long run...this is known famously as “Survival of the Fittest”
The better adapted organisms...e.g. the strongest and
fittest animals will survive longer then, as they will secure more and better
resources. The theory of Evolution states that these organisms or animals will
outbreed the weaker organisms in the population. Therefore, they will produce
more offspring who will share their parents’ stronger genetic makeup and
characteristics. This means then that each new generation of organisms will
become better adapted to their surrounding environment. This is also often
referred to as the principle of “Natural
Selection”
Darwin developed his ideas on Evolution after travelling
around different parts of the world. On a voyage to the continent of South
America, his observations led him to the hypothesis or theory that species
change slowly over time or Evolve-
to be better suited to their surroundings or Environment.
While travelling through the South American Grasslands or
‘Pampas’ he noticed a species of hare- (The Patagonian Hare) which was far
better suited to its environment than the rabbit. He concluded that over time
the Patagonian Hare had evolved differently to make better use of the resources
such as the plants it ate for nutrition in its environment. (Indeed, the native
Irish Hare is slightly different to Hares found elsewhere in Europe.)
Darwin believed further proof of his theory was to be
found on the Galapagos Islands of the coast of South America. He noticed that
tortoise species had long or short necks depending on how high the vegetation
was on each of the islands. On islands where the plants the tortoise ate had
high branches or stems, the tortoises had long necks, whereas the opposite applied
on islands where the plants were not as tall; here the tortoises had smaller
necks. An Adaption is a trait or
characteristic that helps organisms (plants and animals) become more suited to
their environments. Fitness is how
successful an organism can keep reproducing.
The Theory of Evolution argues that Variations can exist within a species’ population. Some individuals
within the species are better adapted so they can survive and reproduce. Extinctions occur when previous
adaptions are no longer suitable for the species to survive in their environment. Can you think of any
species or organisms that have become extinct?
Darwin examined other species, such as a bird called the
Finch. Check the link below to read an article on how scientists who
re-examined the Finch again recently explain why they can see new examples of evolution.
Darwin’s Theory was hugely controversial when he published
it. Many people took Bible accounts of creation very literally, and thought his
work was scandalous at the time.
When Darwin first told one of his friends about the idea
he was working on he said it was like ‘confessing a murder’!
This was because many people were extremely angry with
him because they believed that god had created all species of plants and
animals and that they always stayed the same.
Darwin’s ideas also meant that
human beings were not special creatures; they had evolved too just like every
other animal had. Darwin concluded in 1871 in another book “The Descent of Man”
that humans had evolved from the Ape; this really annoyed and upset many
people.
Read about reaction to his theories by clicking on the
links below:
Darwin went on to win many awards and prizes for his work.
His ideas are central to modern biology and science. Even though there are people
who still dislike his theories, it cannot be denied that he is still considered
to be one of the most important scientists of our times.
Play the Evolution game here and see if you can help a
species survive by adapting to their environment!
Thursday, 5 February 2015
Rome –The
Eternal City
“All roads lead to
Rome”
First Year
students are currently studying about Rome in History class.
Rome is one
of the most famous Ancient Civilisations.
It is
believed that the foundations for Rome were laid at around 753 BC.
This means
that Rome was one of the first cities to be built in human history. While
people in Ireland at that time (The Celts) were living in huts and forts (Duns,
Raths) the Romans were beginning to live in streets and houses.
Also, while
many other people around the world at that time were swapping goods (bartering)
the Romans were using money.
So, one of
the main reasons why we study Rome as an important Ancient Civilisation is
because many of the ordinary everyday things we take for granted were first
used or invented by the Romans long before Christ was even born. The people of
Rome were so successful that up until nearly 500AD their civilisation covered most
of Europe-The Roman Empire.
(The Romans
took over or conquered most of Europe, including Britain. But they never took
over Ireland- referring to it as the ‘Wintry’ Island or Hibernia!)
We have many
sources that tell us about life in Ancient Rome.
About 250
years ago, the village of Pompeii was excavated by archaeologists
Pompeii was
near Rome, and had been built by the Ancient Romans. In 79AD a volcano called Vesuvius
erupted and completely covered Pompeii in ash. When it was eventually excavated,
archaeologists found perfectly preserved Roman artefacts that tell us about the
lives Romans led.
Have a look
at the links below to see some Roman artefacts.
We can thank
the Romans for inventing and developing so many things that we take for granted
nowadays.
Things such as:
Houses (called a Domus or Villa by the Romans), Streets, Roads, Stadiums (like the Coliseum in Rome where activities such as Gladiator and animal fighting took place), Running Water, Baths, Sewers,
Concrete, Medicine, Central Heating and Arches. Even a lot of our modern
calendar was developed by the Romans.
The language
used by the Romans was called Latin, and even today many words in languages
like English and French come from word first used in Latin by the Romans.
Click on
these links to examine Roman inventions in detail
For centuries
the Romans were pagans and prayed to many different Gods. Jupiter was
considered the main God; but depending on what help an ancient Roman needed he
could pray to the God of Love (Venus), the God of War (Mars) or even the God of
Wine (Bacchus)
For a list of
Roman Gods and Goddesses see this link below:
Christianity
started becoming a major religion not long after the crucifixion of Christ. The Romans treated Christians very cruelly at first. Christians were often
tortured, crucified or even thrown to the lions in the Coliseum. But around
325AD the Emperor Constantine adopted Christianity as the official Roman
religion, and so Christianity spread all across Europe throughout the Roman
Empire.
The Romans
had a very successful army, which was why they controlled most of Europe for
centuries. The link below shows how the Roman Empire grew through the centuries:
To see how
the Roman Army worked and what type of life its soldiers had, click here:
Life in Rome
could be very pleasant if you were a free person, especially a member of the ‘Patrician’ upper classes. Working
people such as tradesmen were referred to as the ‘Plebeians’’. Many of the tougher or manual jobs however, were done
by slaves who often had a very tough existence.
For more details
on the Roman social classes have a read here:
Rome at first
was ruled by Kings. Then Romans began to introduce some democracy, where free
citizens could vote for the people who made decisions. But eventually Rome
moved to a system where one man, or an Emperor, was in complete charge. Some of
these Emperors were impressive rulers; others though could be very strange!
Read about Roman rulers and emperors here:
Entertainment
in Ancient Rome was provided by theatres, spectacular events at the Coliseum
and chariot racing at the Circus Maximus. You can learn more about how the Ancient
Romans amused themselves by reading this site:
Like all
Empires, the Roman Empire eventually disappeared. But Rome, the world’s first
city or metropolis, created an Empire that lasted for over a thousand years.
Today Rome is the capital of Italy. And even though Roman Ancient Civilisation
may be long gone; it is still certainly worth studying today, as we owe so much
of our modern way of life to the skills and talents of the Ancient Romans.
.
“All right... all right... but apart from better
sanitation and medicine and education and irrigation and public health and
roads and a freshwater system and baths and public order... what have the Romans
done for us?”
“Life of Brian” Monty Python
Monday, 2 February 2015
The Reformation
Second Years are currently
learning about one of the most important historical events to affect Ireland,
Europe, and indeed the whole world.
It is called The Reformation, and
it happened in Germany about 500 years ago.
500 years ago everybody in Europe
was a Christian. After Jesus died, the Christian Church moved its headquarters
to Rome in Italy.
As students know from Religion
class, the head of the Church is the Pope, who lives in the Vatican in Rome.
Jesus had chosen the Apostle
Peter as the first Pope. Every time a new Pope died, a new Pope was then
elected.
However, as time went by some Christians
got annoyed with the Pope and the church. They felt that the Popes were living
lives of luxury, far removed from the poor lifestyle that Jesus had.
Some complained about Simony;
the selling of prayers by the church for sums of money.
Others gave out about Nepotism:
500 years ago many of the best jobs or positions were in the church. Nepotism
is when jobs are given to friends and family without giving others a chance to
apply for the job.
Absenteeism was
also a problem; sometimes Priests couldn't be bothered to turn up to say Mass.
Pluralism too
upset many; this was when people in the church were claiming money for doing
two or more jobs. (A useful way to remember these abuses is 'SNAP')
Around this time people were
reading more thanks to the invention of the Printing Press. They
were now reading leaflets that were being passed around containing information
about the problems in the church.
One man who was very annoyed
about all this was a German monk called Martin Luther. In 1517 he listed 95 grievances
against the Church and nailed them to the door of a church in Wittenburg in
Germany.
The Pope was very cross and
excommunicated him. (Cut him off from the Church) However, many people agreed
with his criticisms and joined his protest against the Catholic Church. As they
were ‘Protesting’ they set
up their own churches. They became known as Protestants.
Protestants believed in Jesus
Christ but did not accept the authority of the Pope. Protestants also disagreed
with the Pope and other Protestants about other issues, such as which
sacraments were important. People who stayed loyal to the Pope were known as
Catholics.
Now, there were Catholic Christians and Protestant Christians. Even though the Catholic
Church had a ‘Counter Reformation’ to try and stop the abuses in their Church,
the Protestant movement spread from Germany to Scandinavia and then to Ireland
and Britain.
Ireland at that time was ruled by
Britain. At first, Henry the Eight, the King hated the idea of Protestantism.
But when the Pope refused him a divorce, Henry split from the Pope and set up
his own Protestant Church, the Anglican Church. (In England it was called the
Church of England; in Ireland it was called the Church of Ireland).
Most Irish people stayed Catholic
however while most of Britain became Protestant. This was to cause trouble for
centuries as the British felt they could never really trust the Catholic Irish.
In Europe, France, Spain and
Italy stayed Catholic, but most of Germany and Scandinavia went Protestant.
Many wars broke out over Europe because of the differences in religion.
The British later feared that the
Catholic Irish would join with Catholic France and Spain to attack Britain. So
they ‘Planted’ parts of Ireland (especially Ulster) with people from
Britain who were Protestant. These people or Planters were to keep Ireland safe
from Catholic invasion. But the Plantations led to fighting and violence
between Catholics and Protestants for centuries, right up to the recent
‘Troubles’.
The Reformation, like the
Renaissance changed Europe, Ireland and the World completely. It was a
fascinating time, and its effects are still felt today.
You can study more about the
Reformation using these resources below:
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