Explore the World of
Science with Peigí!
Follow Peigí on her Adventures
Celebrate fairness and inclusion in science with this storybook. Each of the four stories provide a creative and age-appropriate way for teachers and parents to introduce young children to science and to the many people who do it. Readers will follow Peigí the Cocker Spaniel and her friends as they travel to space, learn to recycle, race a train, and grow a sunflower.
Order a copy today for just €10 or download one for free.
Sept 2021 | 4-8 years | ISBN 978-1-910963-48-7
Read Along with
Peigí & Friends
You can read along with Peigí in both English agus as Gaeilge.
Every Irish primary school
has received a free copy
Thanks to our funder, Science Foundation Ireland, there is no charge for the book. You will only be charged for post and packaging.
Teaching & Learning
with Peigí Adventures
Peigí’s Adventures in Science is specially written for junior primary school classes. The book has four stories, each focusing on one science topic and blends an area of diversity/inclusion into the narrative.
Support Your Teaching
The first story, Blast Off, Peigí!, gently explores issues of gender (in)equality/(dis)ability in tandem with space and materials. Clean Up, Peigí! touches on the concept of race and caring for our local environment. The third story, Catch Up, Peigí!, blends time, speed and forces with (dis)ability. In the final story, Grow Up, Peigí!, plants and animals are explored alongside age.
Blast Off
We devised four flexible lesson plans which draw upon the key themes within the book. The lessons are designed to help pupils think about their surroundings in a way which is both scientific and empathetic.
Clean Up
The Clean Up, Peigí! lesson encourages pupils to reflect on the daily waste we produce and demonstrates ways we can manage our waste responsibly. Pupils learn about sorting, recycling and reusing trash in an arts and crafts activity. In this lesson, special attention is given to the issue of access to clean space and the impact that a clean environment has on our wellbeing.
Catch Up
The Catch Up, Peigí! lesson encourages pupils to reflect on the way they travel and consider how other people move around. This lesson sees students use their imagination to act out a trip with their classmates, complete a maths-oriented activity and engage in class discussions.
Grow Up
This Grow Up, Peigí! lesson encourages pupils to develop an appreciation of the interrelationships between all living things. It also highlights the role of older people in society and the experiences they can share. The lesson plan suggests that the entire class becomes involved in growing plants from seed (as well as the importance of water) and facilitates a discussion on the countless living things in our gardens.
Peigi learns to grow sunflowers.
Why Did We Write This Book?
Peigí’s Adventures in Science represents an innovative collaboration between two UCD staff members, Dr Shane Bergin, a physicist and Dr Declan Fahie a teacher educator and former primary school teacher. The four stories offer an age-appropriate introduction to social justice and science themes. Designed specifically for junior classes, issues of fairness and equity, in tandem with science topics like space, travel, environmental awareness and growing things, are explored gently through the medium of story. The central character, Peigí the cocker spaniel, is the common thread throughout the four stories and her adventures provide the young reader with engagement and excitement while highlighting both the everyday nature of science and the importance of treating others with care and consideration.
Funding for Peigí’s Adventures in Science is from the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Discover Programme.
Our Team
Author Shane Bergin
Shane is a physicist and an assistant professor in science education at the School of Education, University College Dublin.
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Author Declan Fahie
Declan is an assistant professor and Director of School Placement at the School of Education, University College Dublin.
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Illustration Steve McCarthy
Steve is an award-winning Irish children’s book Illustrator based in London.
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Design Facilitator Robert Farrelly
Robert is the founder and director of Dublin based design agency Post Studio.
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Education Resource Deeba Javadpour
Deeba Javadpour is an undergraduate at University College Dublin studying Mathematics and Education.
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