Junior Infants, Senior Infants, 4th, 5th and 6th Classes set off on the bus to explore the natural habitat along ‘The Land of the Giants’ around Clare Lake.. Before we set off, we discussed water safety and the children discussed how we stay safe around a body of water. Even with the damp weather the children were very excited.

We found some minibeasts, lots of natural vegetation and birds! We saw ducks, geese and dogs out for their walk! We found lots of snails. We saw bees and flies particularly near the water’s edge. We found Marsh Marigolds, Daisies, Daffodils, Dandelions, Bullrushes, Yellow Iris, Ivy and many trees including Fir, Birch, Ash and Scots Pine.

The children worked in groups and had fun filling out their Eco Safari journals. The whole experience was again very enjoyable and educational, the children are all great ‘Guardians of the Land’. Please take a minute to view a short video of our Eco Safari below, thanks.

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Junior Infants, Senior Infants, 1st and 6th Classes went on a very successful Eco Safari last week here in Gortskehy. Before we set off, we discussed road safety and the children put on their hi-vis vests. The excitement was palpable. We then explored the natural hedgerows that exist close by our school.

The children were very enthusiastic and interested, we brought magnifying glasses and collection jars to help with our search. We found lots of minibeasts, natural vegetation and even a fossil! The children worked in groups and had fun filling out their Eco Safari journals. The whole experience was so enjoyable and very educational. We are looking forward already to our next Eco Safari. Please take the time to view the video of our safari.

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Here is a video of our space balloon flight which was launched on Thursday, June 22nd, 2017 from Frank and Mary Clarke’s farm. It reached an altitude of 28km. There are five layers to our atmosphere – Troposphere (up to 20km high), Stratosphere (20-50km), Mesosphere (50-85km), Thermosphere (85-600km), Exosphere (600-10,000km). Our balloon reached the Stratosphere.

Around 20km high ice-crystals are visible and the temperature drops to -51°C. In the Stratosphere the temperature actually increased with altitude to -40°C  as ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun is absorbed by the ozone layer. Had our balloon reached the top of the stratosphere the temperature would have risen to about -15°C  before falling sharply again in the Mesosphere. It landed 125km away between Castlepollard and Athboy on the farm of Eamon and Margureite Kelly.

Thanks to Frank and Mary Clarke, our sponsors CMS Distribution and DeCare Dental and chase car drivers Mary Lydon, Jan Wilkins and Angela Walshe.

The video of the flight is 360° so view it fullscreen to pan around. Control the 360 degree fullscreen video on your phone or tablet by moving your device.  To view it on a VR headset visit https://youtu.be/XPfoCtv5NSA or search for “Gortskehy in Space” using your VR YouTube app.

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Video: Space balloon flight https://t.co/G0CPxSR6Ss via @gortskehy. So proud of my old N. S. Congrats to all involved.

— Andy Tierney (@Jamesatierney) July 14, 2017

CMS expansion now reaches space! Courtesy of sponsorship of the @gortskehy #space balloon flight. We have video > https://t.co/u3lWRMhBpm pic.twitter.com/CeWIUJcBGL

— CMS Distribution (@CMSDistribution) July 25, 2017

3D prediction of the flight path.

Some of the towns the balloon flew over.

This intrepid school from Hollymount lauched a space balloon! https://t.co/BuFA61KSbq @AllThingsMayo @gortskehy pic.twitter.com/88kCl4EPuF

— Mayo.ie (@MayoDotIE) July 15, 2017

Random access memory (RAM) is a form of computer memory. We had to change the RAM because one of the fizzbooks was very slow. So we decided to increase the RAM from 1gb to 2gb.  It runs much better now.

Removing the computer cover.

The inside of the computer.

The new stick of ram.

Installing the new stick of ram.

Memory upgraded from 1gb to 2gb.

Here is a video of our trip to the RDS for the 2012 BT Young Scientist Exhibition.  We were the only primary school from Mayo selected to perform an experiment at the exhibition.  We discovered that every liquid you see will probably be either acidic or basic.  Water is neutral.  Scientists use something called the pH scale to measure how acidic or basic a liquid is.  Our experiment investigates the qualities of acids and bases in liquids.  Furthermore, how acidic or basic our soils are determines what we can grow in our gardens.   We built and programmed a robot to help with our experiment.  It uses colour and ultrasonic sensors.  Watch the video to find out more!

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Well done to @Gortskehy who flew primary schools' flag for Mayo at BT Young Scientist Exhibition. http://t.co/Sm7mA9NV

— Mayo People & Places (@Mayo2Day) January 26, 2012