On Friday 11th October, 5th class visited a wind farm in the Ballyhoura Mountains . All the children were really excited to see how wind energy is generated and used as a renewable source of energy in our country. This means that the power of the wind can be used in place of other energy sources such as coal and oil.

We spoke to some engineers and technicians on the site and they explained how wind power is created by a machine called a wind turbine. Wind turbines are tall towers topped with blades. The blades are connected to a shaft, or rod. When wind causes the blades to spin, they turn the shaft. The turning shaft provides power to a machine called a generator, which produces the electricity.

All the children got the opportunity to go inside the turbines and some of us tried on the safety gear used on the site. We learned that there are plans to construct off shore wind farms in the future. These will be much bigger than the ones presently on land but will produce a huge amount of renewable energy for Ireland!

We were delighted to welcome an Energy Workshop from the Lifetime Lab to coincide with Space Week on the 7th of October 2019. Our 4th, 5th and 6th classes engaged in the energy workshops which covered the topics of energy sources, climate change, CO2 and what we as individuals can do to reduce the amount of energy we use. The classes completed some fun curriculum linked energy experiments, for example, did you know you can make a battery out of a lemon? Towards the end of the workshop, the children played Guzzler’s Energy Challenge, where the aim of the game was to collect as many energy points as possible – and avoid the dreaded Sin Bin! Each of the classes had a great morning of learning and fun.