Words Live Nature What's happening this week, on our adventure Creatures in Our Schools The school is housed in a small, seemingly nondescript building, offset from the Hesarghatta main road. A lone Singapore Cherry (Muntingia calabura) tree marks one corner of the school. ‘Look, there goes a Haavu Rani!’, one of the teachers casually remarked as she walked into the school. Haavu Rani is Kannada for Skink, it translates to ‘Snake Queen’. More A Bugs Life Is that little piece of paint from the wall moving? Who cleans up the crumbs from my kitchen while I’m asleep at night? Who lives in that little white tent in the corner of the wall? More

At Nature Classrooms, we run collaborative projects using multiple ways of engagement. These include the Suttha Muttha project with schools and teachers in Silvepura Village, Bangalore to enhance stories of local ecology among school communities. We also engage with schools and organisations to develop contextual resources based on the EVS curriculum. Additionally, we have been involved in a collaborative research project that explores how nature features in the social life of urban children. Natural History Step into the fascinating world of the creatures and plants right outside your door. Our "Natural History Series" offers a collection of simple, beautifully illustrated stories about the common but often overlooked residents of our local ecosystems. From mud and leaf architects to friendships and deception, these resources are designed to spark curiosity, deepen connections with nature, and provide educators and learners with accessible, engaging tools to explore and learn about the natural world around them. Ages 6+, Adults Bats: Flying Mammals Bats are some of the most amazing flying mammals, but also the most misunderstood creatures sharing space with us. Use this resource to learn, teach and start the conversation around these curious, upside-down marvels! DOWNLOAD (ENGLISH) DOWNLOAD (KANNADA) Termites and Termite Mounds Termites are extraordinary engineers of the natural world. Our Termite resource introduces you to these tiny architects and their magnificent homes, the termitariums. Use this teaching-learning resource to introduce children and adults to the fascinating world of termites and their homes, or as an anchor chart. Find a termite mound and learn around it! DOWNLOAD (ENGLISH) DOWNLOAD (KANNADA) DOWNLOAD (HINDI) Fig Tree and Fig Wasp We are incredibly lucky to have so many different types of Fig Trees growing all around us. As unique as the fig itself, are the Fig Wasps – very tiny flying insects, yet essential for the tree’s very existence. Our "Fig Tree and Fig Wasp" story cards invite you to listen carefully to the tale of this extraordinary friendship. Use this teaching-learning resource to introduce children and adults to the fascinating world of Fig Trees and Fig Wasps- indoors or outdoors, near or under a Fig tree. DOWNLOAD Projects Search Search

The Suttha Muttha project is a collaboration between Nature Classrooms and the Fig Tree Learning Centre in Silvepura Village to take experiences and stories of local ecology and biodiversity to school communities in peri-urban Bengaluru. The goals of this project are as follows: i) To provide access to good quality nature related teaching-learning material, ii) To increase awareness and curiosity about local ecology and biodiversity, and iii) To foster ecological relationships and identities. Suttha Muttha Connecting school communities in peri-urban Bengaluru to their local ecology and biodiversity The Suttha Muttha project is a collaboration between the Nature Learning Team at Nature Conservation Foundation and the Fig Tree Learning Centre in Silvepura Village to take experiences and stories of local ecology and biodiversity to school communities in peri-urban Bengaluru. Suttha Muttha in Kannada translates to ‘our surroundings’. This work supported by a Bangalore Sustainability Forum small grant will engage and collaborate with school communities and learning centres in and around Silvepura village to bring the natural world and ecological processes around them closer. Government schools in peri-urban Bengaluru are unique in their needs, opportunities and challenges. The school, classroom space and campuses are often small, with one or two rooms for the entire primary school and one teacher for 40 students across classes I-V. Few schools are fortunate to have access to a tree or two within or just outside the school compound. Learning in these schools is disconnected with the rapidly changing neighbouring landscapes of farmlands, gardens and fruit orchards. Many students come from families that have migrated from other parts of India to Bengaluru in search of work, making both the Kannada language and the local landscape something they have to contend with and acclimatise to. How do animals eat? Students observing cows in a shed near their school to find the answer. Students going on a nature walk! However, these are sparsely equipped, small, learning spaces are not without excitement and serendipitous opportunities to engage with nature though; during one of our school visits we were lucky to observe a pair of skinks frolic on the sunbathed school steps. The skinks captured the students’ attention and sparked many conversations about the similarity with snakes, superstitious beliefs and questions about their behaviour. By making meaning of these kinds of serendipitous encounters with myriad creatures that visit their schools, and then designing and creating relevant and accessible teaching-learning material, curating stories, songs, and sayings and offering immersive nature workshops we hope to facilitate deeper connections towards the natural world for teachers and students.We hope that consistent and meaningful experiences, conversations in and about nature will enable school communities to be more connected to their surroundings (Suttha Muttha) and encourage them to include nature learning as an integral part of their school culture and ethos. The goals of this project are as follows: To provide government schools in peri-urban Bengaluru access to good quality nature related teaching-learning material The creation and distribution of teaching-learning material that reflects local ecology and biodiversity is likely to increase the richness and diversity of EVS and nature studies in government school classrooms in the area. This will help teachers transact lessons in EVS as well as help students better understand concepts through local examples that can be easily observed. Students playing "Colours in Nature", a game designed to observe the variety of colours that can be found in the natural world To increase awareness and curiosity about local ecology and biodiversity Good quality, factually and ecologically sound nature learning material has the potential to inspire and motivate students to be more curious about their surroundings and natural phenomena around them. Students are likely to ask more questions, experience moments of wonder in nature and be more open to learning about biodiversity in their immediate surroundings. To foster ecological relationships and identities among school communities Through classroom discussions, stories, observations, nature immersion workshops and nature walks around the school(s) we hope to encourage school communities to engage with their local environments more regularly and meaningfully. Children playing nature games during an immersion workshop in Silvepura Partners ................................... ................................... Back to Projects Funders ............... ...............

-by Priyanka Prakash An Educator's Diary#9 Who wants to even talk about emotions? Do they matter in the space of conservation or nature education? Do teachers even care?   I facilitated my first training workshop for Nature Classrooms a little over two years ago. Newly out of a Master's degree and stepping into the world of nature education, I stood in front of 30-odd teachers freshly under training themselves, with their eyes fixed on me, wondering what either of us was doing there. I had 4 hours with this group to get them not just excited about nature and nature education, but also to push them to take this to their classrooms even after I am long gone. And as someone who had never facilitated this kind of workshop, the pressure was high, and the nervousness was much higher!  As I took them through different nature educational approaches, activities, and discussions, I kept wondering what they felt  every minute of this workshop. Were they here because they were asked to? Does any of this even feel relevant to them? Am I assuming that I know a lot more than they do and that they need to be trained? Do I have sufficient understanding of their contexts and lived experiences? Am I truly adding value to their journeys as educators?  I guess I will never know the answers to any of these questions. But what brought about these feelings and questions in the first place was the research I had going on in parallel in the field of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and other feelings-based approaches to education. When Vena Kapoor, my programme lead at Nature Classrooms, recommended that I pick this up as a part of my Master’s internship work, honestly, I was deeply sceptical. Who wants to even talk about emotions? Do they matter in the space of conservation or nature education? Do teachers even care?   That’s it!  “Do teachers even care?” - that was the question that piqued my desire to untangle a lesser-talked-about relationship between emotions, education, and nature. Some may say - “Do they even have a connection?” But after months of reading, talking to teachers, and facilitating workshops, I truly believe that they do. And for whatever reason(s), as nature educators, especially in India, we are only now beginning to recognize the crucial role of understanding socio-emotional complexities when teaching about and building connections with nature.  A Pedagogy for Feelings towards Nature  Why do people care or not care about nature? What shapes our admiration, our phobias, our actions, or even inaction towards nature? Can just asking people to “Save the Planet” make them save it?  - This began my journey into a rabbit hole of understanding the role of social-emotional contexts in teaching-learning. And I guess I am writing this blog piece, not with the intent to present my work or the framework, but rather to process and share what the journey has been like so far - to imagine practices in nature education that allow for feelings and experiences to become an integral part. And oh! That has not been easy, and remains a work in progress!  The Social-Emotional learning  framework is just one among the many frameworks that explore the importance of bringing in the social and emotional contexts of a learner into education. It is also a  great and relevant starting point for any educator to reflect on how their curriculum and pedagogy can go beyond academic learning. When I began imagining a ‘ Nature-based Social Emotional Learning ’ Framework (a mouthful title for sure!), I tried reflecting on some difficult questions: How does nature shape our sense of identity and belongingness? How does our emotional state affect the way we interact with nature? How do our social, historical, political, and cultural contexts influence the way we perceive, value, and engage with nature? What is the relationship between nature and human well-being? How does the changing climate influence how we feel about nature and even learn about it? And most importantly, how can all of this be integrated into teaching-learning curriculum and pedagogy?  These questions slowly began to shape the practices I started developing (and continue to develop) as part of my work at Nature Classrooms. I was also fortunate to meet Nirmal Govindaraju and Gurpreet Kaur, the founders of the Eikas Foundation, who began mentoring and guiding me as I navigated the complex and evolving space of Social-Emotional Learning. With that, I arrived at a broad purpose for my Nature-based SEL work. Through teacher training and capacity-building workshops, I hope to create spaces where teachers can pause and reflect on their own relationships with nature. The intention is to move beyond the familiar conversation of how nature supports human well-being and instead explore what it means to understand our relationship with nature from a more nature-centric perspective. The goal then is for teachers to deeply reflect on how all of this influences the ways in which they bring nature learning into their classrooms. Nature-based SEL in Practice   And so I had identified my starting point. Even before thinking about the application of this framework in classrooms, I was keen on designing activities and practices that pushed teachers and educators to recognise their social-emotional relationship with nature. And how they think this can translate into their pedagogy. I began by trying to integrate some of this into Nature Classrooms’ larger teacher training and capacity building workshops. One of my personal favourite practices invites teachers to explore their Environmental Identity . Using the metaphor of a tree, its parts and life cycle, they reflect on how their interactions with nature shape their sense of self, belonging, and emotions, and how these experiences influence the way they perceive and engage with the natural world. This activity often leads to powerful reflections. Many teachers share that they have rarely paused to think how they personally feel about nature, or how deeply their childhood experiences have shaped that relationship.In another workshop we conducted with the Aga Khan Foundation for primary school teachers in Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh, we explored an activity that unpacked the region’s Socio-Ecological Identity. Teachers mapped the rivers, forests, and biodiversity of Bahraich alongside the folk songs, traditions, and cultural practices rooted in its landscape. As they reflected on how these relationships are shifting with changing environments, many observed how such local narratives rarely appear in formal EVS curriculum. The discussion ultimately led to a shared realisation: for nature learning to be meaningful, it must first nurture a sense of belonging to the landscapes we call home. Another way we bring Nature-based SEL into our workshops is by opening up reflective conversations about how our relationship with nature is changing alongside the changing climate. We introduce ideas like shifting baselines  and discuss emotions such as climate grief, anxiety, and burnout. These discussions invite teachers to reflect on how classrooms, instead of leaving students feeling numb or powerless, have the opportunity to become spaces where they process and understand environmental changes in age-appropriate and mindful ways. In Closing…  I vividly remember the very first interview I conducted as a part of my research with an Anganwadi teacher in Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh. In addition to asking her all about her socio-emotional experience as a teacher and her connectedness to nature, I casually asked, towards the end, “ What do teachers truly want? ” And she replied, “All we want is for people to ask us how we are.”  I carry that response with me to this day.  When we, as external facilitators, NGOs, researchers, scientists, practitioners (or any of the other hats that we identify with), enter into an education space, we often carry our preconceived notions, assumptions, and experiences. We enter these spaces believing that the people of that space need what we have to offer. Seldom do we pause to understand what is important to them, and what they are already doing within their contexts and capacities. Bringing in this sense of mindfulness to our work could be the first and simplest step we all could take as nature educators to bring a Nature-based SEL approach to our work!And, as for how I imagine Nature-based SEL shaping nature teaching-learning? I see it as a way to create spaces where teachers and students connect with the nature around them, not just through knowledge, but through feelings. A space where they slowly discover their own relationship with the natural world, through their socio-cultural-emotional contexts. I imagine our schools becoming a space to pause, cope with, process, and express the many changes unfolding in nature around us, so that we do not begin to feel distant from nature, but instead be reminded that we are part of it, together. Because perhaps the most meaningful way to learn about nature is not just to understand it, but to truly feel that we are a part of it!  Acknowledgments:  My sincere gratitude to Nirmal and Gurpreet from the Eikas Foundation for their constant guidance and support. I’m grateful to all the teachers and educators who participated in the pilot workshop and to those who continue to engage in the Nature-based SEL sessions through our workshops. And to my wonderful Nature Classrooms’ team for believing in me and the work!  Image credits - Priyanka Prakash, Aditi Rao Written by : Priyanka Prakash , Senior Manager (Education, Training & Research), Nature Classrooms If you are an educator looking to engage with articles and opinion pieces on nature education and pedagogy, a student looking to explore discourses in nature education, or just curious about these things - here's a curated list of essential readings available online.

-by Gousia Taj. English Translation by Aditi Rao An Educator's Diary#8 “ Ma’am, we saw the signature spider! ” On 19/12/25, a workshop on animal homes was conducted for the 4th and 5th grade students of Tarabanahalli. One of the activities included a bingo game about spiders. The bingo sheet had pictures of different kinds of spiders. The children managed to find all the spiders except the 'signature spider'. They kept wishing they could find the signature spider too. So we allowed them to take their bingo sheets home and told them, “It’s okay if you didn’t find the signature spider here. Look for it near your house, on the way, or at school.” About two weeks later, as usual, when I stepped into the classroom to call the children for the lesson, they shouted loudly, “Ma’am, we saw the signature spider!” I was startled for a moment. Usually the children greet me with a “Good morning, Ma’am,” but that day, hearing them shout that they had seen the signature spider shocked me. A Signature Spider from Tarabanahalli School Campus I asked, “Where did you see it?” The children said, “It built a web in the grass in front of our school toilet. Ma’am, come, we’ll show it to you!” and they pulled my hand and took me there. When we went and looked, there were signature spiders in three places. I told them, “Yes, children, this is the same signature spider from your bingo. It was missing, right? Now you can tick it.” I saw so much happiness on the children’s faces about the spider. They were celebrating as if they had found a treasure. Seeing their excitement made me very happy too. I felt the workshop had left a deep impact on the children. Later that same day, at the end of the lesson, we were setting up a table for an insect display. In the corner, a daddy long legs spider had built a web, which was sticking to our hands. I said I would bring a broom and clean it. But a student named Malappa said, “No Ma’am, let it stay here, poor thing,” and left it as it was. Hearing and seeing this made me feel very proud. At the same time, I wondered if I should not have asked to remove the web. Children observing an ant carrying a dead insect. Overall, the children’s interest in observing spiders has increased now. Every time I go to teach, the lesson begins only after the children first share their experiences and stories about animals, birds, insects, and trees they have encountered. Spider made out of natural materials by the students Image credits - Priyanka Prakash, Aditi Rao Written by : Gousia Taj- Facilitator at the Fig Tree Learning Centre (FTLC). If you are an educator looking to engage with articles and opinion pieces on nature education and pedagogy, a student looking to explore discourses in nature education, or just curious about these things - here's a curated list of essential readings available online.

by Jayashree Ramadas and Dhanya K Our Motivation We (Dhanya and Jayashree) are two educators eager to promote rational, evidence-based scientific thinking among children. Science has helped us delve deep into the beauty and complexity of the natural world. At the same time we are surprised and shocked to see the same tools of science, used in short-sighted ways, threaten life and eventually our very existence on earth. This stark contradiction has made us stop and ask, could we possibly learn and teach our children to appreciate and save this precious gift of life on earth? Prelude Here we are, cosily wrapped in a blanket of an oxygen-rich atmosphere, going about our lives on planet earth, our one and only home in this vast cosmos. But did you notice recently, this blanket is getting dirtier, just a bit warmer, even acting stormy and unpredictable? So many species have gone extinct: birds are fewer, bees are disappearing, and, as we intrude into their spaces, some, like the Coronavirus, are literally going viral. Make no mistake, it’s our own actions that are causing these far-reaching changes. Shouldn’t we then, as an intelligent species, try to understand what we are doing? Try to equip our children to deal with these changes, perhaps even reverse them? As pollution, global warming, and climate change threaten our very existence on earth, we need more effective environmental education in our schools. What is an effective environmental education? How can we (as a community) make our existing environmental education more effective? Let us explore these questions in this four part series. Part 1: Learning through students' natural and social environment. Is ‘environmental education’ a new idea? Not at all! In one or another form, environmental education has existed in our schools from early on. It gained momentum in 1991 when the Supreme Court of India mandated school boards to ensure its teaching at all levels. Subsequently, several curricular reforms gave it serious thought. Despite all these efforts, environmental education has remained peripheral in our schools. Environmental values may be commonly preached but critical and meaningful approaches are missing in practice. It is not that textbooks are lacking in content. Concepts, ideas, and activities related to the environment are found in almost all textbooks. From EVS at the primary level to the different branches of science and social science at the secondary and higher secondary subjects, environmental science is a compulsory part of the syllabus. Between the subject textbooks at all grade levels, the relevant topics appear to be sufficiently covered. What then is the problem? The shortcomings were correctly identified by an NCERT document of the 2000s which outlines how environmental education should be infused into the syllabus of Classes 1-12. Despite the major curricular initiatives, it says, there is inadequate exposure of students to their habitat: "There is little active learning from the natural and social world around them." The report mentions routine teaching of prescribed material, activity-based projects (often sold by commercial agencies) executed in a set manner, and the dominance of rote learning. Such concerns may cut across all subjects but, in the case of environmental education, a disconnect from the environment - a lack of active learning from the world - is a self-contradiction, a paradox. Environmental education loses all meaning if it simply amounts to teaching and preaching about the environment, without learning from the environment. In school practice there is another well-known problem. Environmental education is often treated as extracurricular: desirable but not at the cost of other more perceived “important” subjects like maths and the physical sciences. Such is the perception of schools, teachers and arguably parents as well. How do we get out of these conundrums? Let’s look at the examples of some schools which have managed it, in the next part of this series. You tell us too - What is your most memorable experience of ‘learning about nature’? What are some good examples of environmental education that you have seen or experienced, in or outside of school? Share your responses with us by emailing to: edu@ncf-india.org All images in this article were captured by the Nature Classrooms team as a part of our outreach and engagement initiatives. About the Authors Jayashree Ramadas : Research and Development in Science Education; formerly at Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education and TIFR Hyderabad. Dhanya K : Researcher & Science Educator formerly Teacher at Rishi Valley School.