Grade VII and VIII textbooks describe the role of soil in supporting life and agriculture. But many children, who relate to soil through smell, play, poetry, song, and art, find these chapters disconnected from their lives and their experiences of soil. What role do such sensory experiences have in the science classroom? How can children’s perspectives on soil help make our lessons more relatable and engaging to them? Can examining humus, the life-giving component of soil, help children appreciate the central position of soil in their own lives?

We explore such questions in a live interactive conversation with teachers and authors Santosh Kumar and Radha Gopalan.

 Read their articles here:

Learning about soil: Student’s voices, by Santosh Kumar (Aug 2018, i wonder…)

Getting to the soul of soil, by Radha Gopalan (Aug 2018, i wonder…)

About the authors

Santosh Kumar teaches Environmental Science at the Valley School, Bengaluru. He is passionate about growing food in ways that rejuvenate soil and landscapes. Santosh is especially interested in working with children to tend and care for land.

 Radha Gopalan, Consultant Editor of i wonder…, is an environmental scientist. She taught Environmental Science at the Rishi Valley Education Centre, Andhra Pradesh. Radha is a Visiting Faculty at the School of Development, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru and a member of the Kudali Intergenerational Learning Centre, Telangana.