Kiltealy NS partook in the School Incubator Project under the guidance of Nore Valley Park. An incubator was delivered to the school with seven eggs. An educational talk was presented to the students about the development and life-cycle of a chick. Farmer Brian told the children how to care for the chicks at all stages of their development. The care included; using your quiet voice when around the chicks, not to knock or bang on the incubator and not to scare the chicks.
Third & Fourth Class were given special instructions of how to care for the chicks as they would be staying in their classroom for four weeks!
We were worried about our eggs during the Beast from the East, but they were visited many times to insure they were warm enough to incubate, thanks to our diligent school staff.
After two weeks Farmer Brian came back to visit and check on our eggs. He brought our eggs out into a dark room and held them under a bright light. This process is called candling. The light shows how the chick is developing. Unfortunately two of the eggs died in the early stages of development. Farmer Brian told the children that this was a normal part of life. Five out of seven chicks were developing normally.
After 21 days the chicks began to hatch. There was much excitement in 3rd and 4th class when 4 out of the 5 remaining chicks hatched. Unfortunately one of the chicks did not hatch.
Emma, JJ, Flapjack and LeeChick).
Once the chick hatched we left it in the incubator for a few hours to rest and dry out. After this time, when it was strong enough it was placed into the brood box which had a heat pad in it to keep it warm.
After a few days we fed the chicks and gave them water.
All of the classrooms got involved and visited the newly born chicks. They were so adorable that the children decided to name them all.
Junior & Senior Infants
First & Second Class
Third & Fourth Class
Fifth & Sixth Class
This project generated much excitement and opportunities for learning in our school. Many people from the local community even called in to meet our chicks also.
