Rajaram Nityananda
The sky and its elements have intrigued human beings in the past and they continue to fascinate us even today. What is the relationship between the sun and the Earth? Like the sun, do the stars and moon also appear to rise and set? Where does the sun appear to rise? In relation to the stars, does the sun change its position? How often? This article provides a few activities that will aid the teacher in helping her students understand and observe the sky better.

V S Pragadheesh
Every time we pass the flower market, the aromas that hit us make us heady. Whenever we stop to water the tulsi or ajwain plants at home, our instinct is to smell them. How do plants produce these different aromas? What is the purpose of these aromas in plants? How do we bottle these aromas and sell them? Here’s entering a fragrant world to find the answers.

N S Sundaresan
Experiments are an important part of any science class. They help understand concepts better and are a means for children to explore ideas. Here are a few experiments that will clarify the concept of matter.

Venkateswaran Thathamangalam Viswanathan
The sun is a fascinating object and there are many fun activities and experiments that you can carry out with the shadows that the sun casts to know more about this fireball in the sky.

Gurinder Singh
No science class can be considered successful if there are no questions asked. Curiosity leading to questioning is the best way of learning science. Questioning in the Indian classroom however is purely pedagogical in nature, is often one-sided and does not encourage discussions. So how can we encourage students to ask questions in the classroom? When should teachers ask questions and what kind of questions should they be asking?

Karen Haydock
Uncertainty is something that most human beings cannot handle. We like to be aware of things and in control of situations. This is why when the coronavirus first arrived and confusion reigned, instead of asking the right kind of questions and working towards finding the answers, we latched on to any piece of information or ‘fact’ about the virus that came our way and that seemed to give us some control back.

Sanjay P Sane
Termites are generally considered as pests by humans because they infest our homes and turn our wooden doors and furniture into sawdust. But just because they are performing a function that they are meant to by nature, doesn’t turn these insects into pests. Termites are extremely important to the environment and are in fact wondrous creations of nature that we can learn a lot from.

Pratap G, Vasanth G, Rajith P, Siva P, Raghu P, Sanjeev R
Science is a tool to enhance life experiences and find solutions to its many problems. The children at Isai Ambalam school near Auroville, don’t just learn science, geography, math and civics but engage with these subjects. Here are a few projects that students in this school undertook, which helped them closely understand life problems and use their knowledge of the different subjects to either solve problems or to enhance their understanding further.

Sanjay Sondhi
Citizen science is a beautiful idea that encourages common citizens to get involved with the natural world. By becoming citizen scientists we can help professional scientists collect data on animal/bird species, record observations and do our bit to conserve and protect this environment. It is one of the best ways to understand the environment and its various inhabitants and also a good way to introduce children to the natural world. So here’s how you can encourage your students to become citizen scientists.