The biology of equilibrium – 1

Vijayalakshmi Nandakumar
Biology is full of awe-inspiring events. How living organisms adapt themselves to suit their living conditions is one such. Ever wondered how the extremely saline sea water sustains life? How creatures live underwater? What kind of adaptations are necessary for organisms that live on land? Learn about homeostasis and how it works in different animals to help them survive in their habitats.

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Why math matters

Sweety Rastogi
Once upon a time, the teacher would come to class, read from the book, fill up the board and leave. There was no talking between the teacher and the students. Today, children are encouraged to ask questions and actively participate in the learning process. A teacher, therefore, should not only be an expert in her subject, but should also know how to present herself and handle challenging questions from the students.

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The significance of classroom communication

Payal Bedi
Being able to express ourselves and be understood is a basic human necessity. It gains supreme significance in the classroom, as communication—between the teacher and the student, between students— is at the very core of learning. So how do you cultivate a communication culture in your classroom? How do you create a learning environment that will help students achieve their best?

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Mirrored in words

Nimesh Ved
One word can have different meanings when used in different contexts. But have we ever wondered how not all these meanings seem appropriate? Like for instance, why does the ‘strength’ of a school mean the number of students in that school? How do words get the meanings associated with them? Perhaps it is time for us to think hard about the words we use and how we use them.

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Teachers as learners

Neeraja Raghavan
If you like reading stories, then you are going to enjoy reading the monograph that Neeraja Raghavan discusses in her column. Find out how a group of adults, by playing with a random set of objects, ends up “inventing” the definitions of volume and weight. Does this research with a group of adults tell us teachers something?

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Health & PE can be a game changer in schools

Rishikesh B. S.
Health and Physical Education can become a game changer in schools if it is viewed as part of a comprehensive education model. Its inter-disciplinary nature provides many ideas on what can be done to integrate the theme into the regular curriculum. Its implementation can be made more robust and for this teachers need to be given the flexibility and autonomy to rejig the syllabus to suit their requirements.

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Health & PE can be a game changer in schools

Rishikesh B. S.
Health and Physical Education can become a game changer in schools if it is viewed as part of a comprehensive education model. Its inter-disciplinary nature provides many ideas on what can be done to integrate the theme into the regular curriculum. Its implementation can be made more robust and for this teachers need to be given the flexibility and autonomy to rejig the syllabus to suit their requirements.

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The physically active mathematics classroom

Pooja Keshavan Singh
Maths as a subject always brings in adverse reactions. But there are ways in which a math classroom can be made physically active. Teachers need to just tweak their planning a bit and the biggest gain is the increased activity and improved agility of the teacher herself and of course the students. Here are some activities that teachers can try out.

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Winning on the school playfields

Devika Kar
When a child is asked what he would like to change about his school, invariably the answer will be that he would like to have a huge playground. This kind of a response brings into sharp focus the need for open spaces and playgrounds for a child’s healthy development and growth. Five principals from different schools talk about integrating the physical with the intellectual and the need for open spaces.

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Physics of Sports

P.K. Thiruvikraman
Sports is always viewed as taking up precious time that can be devoted to studies at least according to most parents. However, teachers and parents must realize that most subjects are inter-disciplinary in nature and there are several scientific principles that can be applied to sports as well. This article illustrates the applications of some principles of physics in various sports and games.

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