How to learn the EEEF Way: Second Grade
 

(c) Yogesh Pathak

 

We can think of the following activity clusters for Second Grade.
 

Teachers and parent volunteers should meet at the beginning of the year and plan an activity schedule, based on community resources, school calendar, community calendar and events, and seasons.

These are just guiding examples. Teachers/parents/schools should feel free to modify these as desired or create new grade-appropriate activities.

 

* Nature’s Elements

 

Wind Diary: Create a wind diary / journal to record daily wind direction and strength in the local area or near their home/school. Discuss the journal entries in class on a weekly basis.

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Anemometers: Learn about the types of mechanical and electronic anemometers. Build a simple anemometer to measure wind speed using paper cups and straws.

 

Rainwater cycle: Understand it with a model. How does rain actually happen in the clouds? Discuss with a model.

 

Experiment - Water Cycle in a Bottle: Create a mini water cycle in a clear bottle to demonstrate evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.

 

Measuring rain: Build simple rainfall measuring instrument and track rainfall levels. Track rainfall over the full year and discuss the local rain patterns/season.

 

Discuss rainfall observation and wind observations on the same days and find patterns if any. Discuss storm types, and whether any days qualified as storm days.

 

It also snows here!: Add similar snow related activities if it snows in the local area. If it rains as well as snows, conduct both the activities.

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* Rivers

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Journey of a river: Using a model, discuss the journey of a river from it’s source region till it’s mouth/delta region near the sea. List our rivers – local, regional, national, global.

 

Class trip to observe a nearby river: Observe how much water it has, identify the rapid and calm sections of the river, what part of the journey it’s in, seasonal impacts on the river, flora around the river, fauna around the river, man’s interrelationship with the river, pollution of the river, etc.  If possible, visit a local waterfall and discuss its formation.

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Class activity – River Map: Draw a basic map of the local river along with the surrounding landscape.

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* Species - Animal Movement and Migration:

 

Movement and motion: Observe and record the movement patterns and motion of local insects, snakes, lizards, frogs, turtles, birds, and mammals.

 

Watching insects: Use magnifying glasses to observe insects in their natural habitat, noting their behavior and characteristics.

 

Bird migration: Learn about bird migration routes in the region. Go for a field trip with an expert during the migration season to observe migrant birds.

 

Bird migration – class activity: Create a "migration map" showing where local birds travel.

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Detailed Observation and Drawing: Ask children to draw very detailed pictures of natural objects, like the veins in leaves, or the patterns on insect wings.

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* Species - Interdependence in Nature (Local Focus):

 

Field visits - interdependence: Conduct field studies to identify examples of interdependence in the local ecosystem, including who eats whom.

 

Web of life in our area: Create a "web of life" diagram specific to the local area.

Photo journal or picture journal - interdependence:  : Compile examples of interdependence among species from class discussions and field visits.

 

Class Discussion – Consolidation – The web of nature: What kind of a web is nature? Take local and global examples.

 

Role Play – web of nature: Create a small play or demonstrate interdependence by taking up roles of the several local species in nature.

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* Species - Classification and Specimen Collection:

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Field visit to group & classify plants: Learn basic classification principles by sorting local plants into groups. Collect plant leaves and bring them to class and disuss.

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Field visit to group & classify animals: Same as above

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Class discussion around simple classification models of plants and animals:

What does it mean to study a given class of plants or animals systematically? What is classification (high level)? Include charts, draw a tree-like hierarchy.

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Visit a collection of nature specimens e.g. a simple herbarium or animal models or preserved specimens. Discuss the importance of specimen collection for scientific understanding.

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Naturalists and their work: Discuss the contributions of local and national naturalists, especially those who worked in research and conservation of specific species. If possible, visit a local naturalist to understand their work first-hand and see their collections.

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* Man-Nature Relationship (Local Focus):

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Fisherman's Life:

• Visit a local fishing community (if available) to learn about their practices.

• Discuss the process of catching, cleaning, and selling fish.

• Draw the process of fishing from catching to selling.

 

Forest Product Collectors:

• Visit and learn about the activities of local collectors of forest products (fruits, leaves, etc.).

• Discuss the sustainable use of forest resources.

• Create a display of local forest products.

 

Goat/Cattle Herder's Life:

• Visit a local herder family (if available) to learn about their daily routines.

• Discuss the relationship between herders and their animals.

• Create a story about a day in the life of a herder.

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A Local Farmer's Life:

• Visit a local farm to learn about seasonal activities.

• Discuss the dependence of farming on weather and natural resources.

• Create a seasonal farm calender.

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Herding Simulation: If possible, simulate herding animals, even if it is just moving a group of balls, or other objects, to understand the relationship between humans and domesticated animals.

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Waste Clean-up: Participate in waste clean-up in a local natural area like a hill, forest, or river, discussing the impact of pollution on the environment.

 

Storytelling – Man and Nature: Collect one story and one song each from local tribes, forest produce collectors, pastoralists, farmers, fishing communities, etc and re-tell them in the class and to parents. If possible, enact a short play with the help and participation of teachers and parents.

 

 

* Beauty in nature

 

Cloud Watching and Storytelling: Lie on a ground, observe clouds, and create imaginative stories about the shapes you see. Share your stories with class.

 

Sunrise/Sunset Appreciation: Visit local sunrise and sunset points. Observe and draw or paint the colors of a sunrise or sunset, discussing the beauty of light and atmosphere.

 

Walk with a nature photographer: Walk with a photographer who will take photos of plants, flowers, birds, and insets and then share them with class and discuss them.

 

Sound Mapping: Visit a natural place. Close your eyes and listen to the sounds of nature, then draw a map showing where the sounds are coming from.

 

 

Man-Nature Relationship (Consolidation):

 

Classroom discussion: Engage in discussions about human dependence and independence from nature. Create a "nature impact" chart, listing positive and negative human impacts. Brainstorm ways to improve the relationship between people and nature.

 

 

 

* Other pedagogical techniques

 

Guest Speakers: Invite local experts, such as naturalists, farmers, or fishermen, to share their knowledge.

 

Term-long nature education portfolio: Allow the children to create a portfolio of their nature education, including drawings, collected items, written stories, songs, pictures, and records of their activities. Children could create this for one or both the school terms.

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"Why?" Question Box: Create a "Why?" question box where children can submit their questions about nature. Encourage them to research and find answers together.

 

Access to Diverse Resources: Provide children with access to a variety of resources, such as nature books, field guides, online databases, and subject experts, to support their learning and exploration.