Irish and Key Skills In addition to their specific content and knowledge, the subjects and short courses of the junior cycle provide students with opportunities to develop a range of key skills. This course offers opportunities to support all key skills, but some are particularly significant. The eight key skills are set out in detail in Key Skills of Junior Cycle. The examples below identify some of the elements that are related to learning activities in Irish. Key skill Key skill element Student learning activity Being creative Learning creatively As language users, students will have opportunities to use the language creatively and to develop their creativity in both oral language and in writing. Creativity will be enhanced through experiencing literary narratives. Being literate Expressing ideas clearly and accurately Exploring and creating a variety of texts, including multi-modal texts As students engage with a wide range of texts (including multi-modal texts) they will develop a more critical awareness of how language works. This will enable them to make informed language choices which reflect the language accuracy and richness of students in both spoken and written Irish and in cross-curricular subjects. Students will use a wide range of comprehension strategies to engage with printed and digital texts. Students will plan, draft and write in a range of genres demonstrating an understanding of a target group, style and various uses of language registers. Being numerate Seeing patterns, trends and relationships Students will undertake language learning activities such as gathering information from surveys and questionnaires in class. Students will use innovative digital technology to find, gather and interpret information, and communicate that information through description or presentation. They will engage with quantifying concepts and elements of numeracy or functional measuring. They will recognise language patterns in texts. Communicating Using language Students will be able to communicate positively in a personal and interpersonal manner with peers and with other users in the language community. Managing information and thinking Reflecting on and evaluating my learnin Students will consider and evaluate feedback received through self-assessment or through peer assessment (from other students) and feedback from teachers to find ways of being more accurate in their own language production (written and spoken) and being more aware of themselves as language learners. Managing myself Setting and achieving personal goals Students will understand the importance of reflection, organisation and clarity to achieve goals effectively and on time, when dealing with and creating Irish texts Staying well Being positive about learning Students will develop a positive attitude towards learning the language when engaging with various language tasks and activities and when reflecting on themselves as language learners. Working with others Learning with others Students will consult and co-operate with their peers and with others for the benefit of both their own and others’ learning. Students will understand how important and beneficial it is to listen to and respect others while completing a wide range of activities and tasks.
