: Spring Bulbs

Hi Bulb Buddies,

I want to say a big thank you to all of the participating schools who worked hard planting bulbs for the project. Together we planted over 18 thousand bulbs across the UK and from the photos I’ve seen, it looks as though everyone had great fun doing it! 

All schools taking part in the project will be collecting weather data from 4 November until 28 March. They will be uploading these records regularly to the Amgueddfa Cymru website, along with comments and weather observations. We'll be learning a lot together over the school year. 

Resources are available on the website that explore different aspects of the project, including ideas for additional experiments and guides to making short videos for the Bulbcast competition!  

I'll be sure to share more photos and comments from schools to the Blog in the coming weeks. 

Keep up the good work Bulb Buddies,

Professor Plant

Annwyl Cyfeillion y Gwanwyn,

Dyma un o fy hoff adegau o'r flwyddyn! Bydd ysgolion ledled y DU yn gadael y dosbarth i blannu bylbiau fel rhan o Ymchwiliad Bylbiau'r Gwanwyn i Ysgolion. Anfonwyd bwlb crocws a chennin Pedr ar gyfer pob disgybl yn y dosbarth rhestredig i'w blannu ar 21 Hydref (neu'r dyddiad agosaf posib). Edrychaf ymlaen at rannu eu lluniau gwych hefo chi. Rydym yn cynnal Cystadleuaeth Ffotograffiaeth Diwrnod Plannu bob blwyddyn, felly gwyliwch y Blog Bylbiau hwn i weld y delweddau buddugol a dilyn @Professor_Plant ar X/Twitter i weld yr holl luniau gwych yn cael eu rhannu!

Mae gennym lawer o adnoddau digidol ar y wefan. Mae rhai yn benodol i'r ymchwiliad ond mae'n bosib addasu rhai ar gyfer eich ysgol hyd yn oed os nad ydy'ch yn cymryd rhan eleni. Dyma'r adnoddau sef yn addas at gam hwn o'r ymchwiliad:

Cam 1: Paratoi i plannu (dechrau mis Hydref)

Cam 2: Diwrnod plannu

Cam 3: Gweithgareddau ymarferol dewisol i wneud a'r tywydd a garddio

Cystadleuath Bylbcast

Hwn yr ail flwyddyn i ni gynnal y gystadleuaeth Bylbcast. Mae hon yn dasg hwyliog a chreadigol y gall dosbarthiadau gweithio ar drwy gydol yr ymchwiliad. Gofynnir i'n wyddonwyr ifanc gynllunio, recordio a chyflwyni fideo byr yn archwilio eu hoff rannau o'r ymchwiliad. Mae adnoddau i gefnogi'r dasg hon ar gael fan yma, a bydd yr enillwyr eu cyhoeddi cyn diwedd y flwyddyn academaidd. Alla i ddim aros i weld beth mae'r meddyliau creadigol eleni  yn cynhyrchu. Tybed faint o ysgolion fydd yn sôn am ddiwrnod plannu yn eu ceisiadau?

Anfonwyd adnodd newydd i'r ysgolion sy'n cymryd rhan eleni, calendr hwyliog sydd wedi'i gynllunio'n arbennig i helpu'r dosbarth i gofnodi eu data tywydd a blodau. Mae hyn yn cynnwys dyddiadau pwysig ar gyfer yr ymchwiliad a strwythur arfaethedig ar gyfer trefnu'r casgliad data. Gall athrawon ddewis i rannu eu dosbarth yn bum grŵp, sydd i gyd yn cymryd eu tro i ddogfennu a uwchlwytho data'r tywydd. Y gobaith yw y bydd hyn yn helpu i berchnogi'r ymchwiliad i'r plant. 

Edrychaf ymlaen at rannu datblygiadau ddiweddaraf yr ymchwiliad hefo chi. Rwy'n gobeithio eich bod yn dathlu'r Diwrnod Plannu, wrth i ysgolion ledled y DU ymuno â'i gilydd i blannu dros 18,000 o fylbiau yn y weithred gyfunol hon ar gyfer natur. Gwaith Gwych Cyfeillion y Gwanwyn! 

Athro'r Ardd

Mae'r flwyddyn academaidd newydd wedi dechrau'n dda. Mae'r Athro'r Ardd a'i gynorthwywyr hapus wedi pacio a dosbarthu 175 o becynnau adnoddau i ysgolion ledled y DU.

Mae'r pecynnau hyn yn cynnwys popeth sydd ei angen ar ysgolion i gymryd rhan yn yr ymchwiliad eleni:

- Pot a bylbiau ar gyfer pob plentyn sy'n cymryd rhan

- Mesur glaw a thermomedr i gofnodi data tywydd

- Calendr i gadw cofnodion tywydd a blodau

- Talebau i brynu compost heb-fawn

- Cynllun Tymor hefo dyddiadau allweddol ar gyfer y project

- Pot gwahanol i gymharu defnydd

- Bylbiau dirgel i ddysgu am wahanol blanhigion 

Ar 21 Hydref (neu'r dyddiad agosaf posib) mae ysgolion yn cael y dasg o blannu eu cennin Pedr  a bylbiau crocws. Dyma'r cam cyntaf y bydd ysgolion yn ei gymryd ar gyfer natur fel rhan o'r project.  Dilynwch y blog hwn a'@Professor_Plant ar X/Twitter i weld y lluniau sy'n cael eu rhannu wrth i ni ddathlu'r plannu torfol hwn.  Bydd @Professor_Plant hefyd yn rhannu diweddariadau rheolaidd gan ysgolion, a gallwn ddathlu gyda nhw pan fydd eu planhigion yn dechrau blodeuo!

Yr adnoddau cyntaf sydd eu hangen ar ysgolion sy'n cymryd rhan yw:

- Bylbiau'r Gwanwyn i Ysgolion: Canllaw i athrawon

- Cam 1: Paratoi i plannu (dechrau mis Hydref)

- Cam 2: Diwrnod plannu

Gall pob ysgol ddilyn y prosiect a gallant ddefnyddio'r taflenni gwaith ar y wefan.

Rwy'n edrych ymlaen at rannu'r gwaith y mae ein Gwyddonwyr Gwych yn ei wneud gyda chi.

Athro'r Ardd

The Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation has died down until September, when we will be welcoming our new schools and introducing them to the project.

But there’s lots of fun that can be had over the summer! Explore our website to find activity sheets and games that you can play at home. The origami booklet and Kahoot quizzes are my favourites!

There’s more to explore on the Amgueddfa Cymru Learn pages and the Edina Trust website. 

Why not have a go at some of our Kahoot quizzes now? Just click the links below to explore!

Quiz 1: When will our daffodils flower 2024? 

Compare weather data for 2023-24 from across the UK and against previous years to predict when daffodils will flower. What do plants need to grow? Which country was the warmest / coldest? Which country had the least rain? 

Quiz 2: Bulb Project Quiz 2023-24 Level 1 

Study bar graphs to deduce which were the wettest and warmest countries. Answer questions about plants. Discover which countries had the most and least rainfall. Discover which countries had the highest and lowest temperatures. 

Quiz 3: Bulb Project Quiz 2023-24 Level 2 

Study bar graphs to deduce national trends in temperature and rainfall. Study units carefully to calculate average monthly rainfall records for Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Work out the monthly temperatures for Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Answer general knowledge questions. 

Quiz 4: Compare weather records from different years 

Study line and bar chats to look for trends in the weather data. Order countries from warmest to coolest. See which years had the most and least rainfall. Deduce which years had the most hours of sunshine. 

Quiz 5: UK Flower Data 2024 

Study line and bar charts to look for trends in the flower data. Answer questions about average weather readings. Sort years from earliest to latest flowering dates. Study bar charts to see whether plants flowered earlier or later than expected. 

Quiz 6: Wales Weather Data 

Study line and bar charts to look for trends in the weather data. Study line graphs to pick out high and low monthly average temperatures. Study line graphs to answer true or false questions about monthly rainfall. Study Bar charts to order years from warmest to coolest.

Quiz 7: Wales Flower Data 

Study bar and line graphs to determine whether our data shows patterns for the flowering dates of spring bulbs. Use tables to deduce which years saw plants flower earliest. Study combination charts to deduce trends in the data. Compare findings from different charts to see if there are patterns that explain anomalies in the data. 

Have fun Bulb Buddies,

Professor Plant

Super Scientists: A Fantastic Visit from St Mary's Church in Wales Primary!

On 2 July, the National Museum Cardiff had the pleasure of hosting the amazing students from St Mary's Church in Wales Primary School in Brynmawr. Their visit was a well-deserved prize for their exceptional contribution to the Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation 2023-2024.

Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation

As part of this exciting project, the diligent students recorded daily weather data from 1 November to 31 March and consistently uploaded this information to our museum website. They also planted and nurtured bulbs, meticulously recording the heights and flowering dates of their plants. This valuable data is a crucial part of our long-term study into how climate change affects the flowering dates of spring bulbs.

Celebrating Super Scientists

The Learning team at National Museum Cardiff was thrilled to celebrate the hard work of these Super Scientists. To show our appreciation, we organized a series of engaging activities that we knew they would love. This included piloting our new Endangered Species workshop and exploring the diverse wildlife in our Urban Meadow.

Endangered Species Workshop

We were excited to introduce our new Endangered Species workshop, where we delved into the fascinating world of extinct animals, like the dodo, and the important lessons their stories teach us. We also explored the galleries in search of other species currently facing extinction, and discussed the various threats they encounter. Through mind mapping, we identified issues and brainstormed solutions, empowering the students with knowledge about individual actions they can take to help. One key takeaway? Sharing what they've learned with others!

Urban Meadow Workshop

Armed with sketchbooks and pencils, the students ventured outside to the Museum's Urban Meadow. They were delighted to observe a variety of fascinating creatures, including green woodpeckers, stripy bumblebees, hoverflies, bright red ladybirds, busy black ants, and fluorescent soldier bugs. The meadow was alive with daisies, clover, poppies, tall grasses, and a stunning array of colourful wildflowers. Back in the Clore Discovery Centre, the students enhanced their scientific sketches and botanical illustrations, taking a closer look at the collections and adding intricate details to their artwork.

A Day to Remember

What a lovely and productive day it was! We extend our heartfelt thanks to St Mary's Church in Wales Primary for their dedication and enthusiasm.

Keep exploring and discovering, Super Scientists!

Professor Plant