Formula WON

Twelve-year-old Simran has never been more excited about the concept of magnetic levitation. A student of The Banyan Tree School,she had read about it in science books but it was during a powerpoint presentation in class that she finally started pondering over its details. After observing a repelling action between two magnetic rings,she excitedly pointed out,“This happened because poles of the same charge had been put together. I will repeat the experiment at home and also show it to my friends.” Simran’s class is among the several others being organised in city schools to make learning fun and interactive. “The idea is to translate theoretical science lessons into practical experiments,” says principal of the school V Tiwana,as she takes us around the TechFest being organsied to take the endeavour forward.

While elsewhere at Vivek High School,it’s critical thinking that they believe in inculcating in the student. “Though CBSE made High Order Thinking Skills a part of Class IX and X syllabi now,we have been following it for a long time now,” Anu Chaudhary tells us here more than the concept,its application is deliberated on. “Even in a subject like English students are made to understand the character by way of plays,” she says the aim is to simplify concepts. Simaranjeet Kaur Baidwan of Shemrock School too agrees. “One does not need elaborate equipment,simple material can do the trick,” Baidwan takes us through the composite week,where along with painting the concept on chart papers,students were made to make real composite pits in the sand. “This so that students can repeat the exercise,” she points out

With robotic classes been a part of workshop at Carmel Convent School,here they were made to understand the dynamics behind the machinery. “These make sure that the child is not just memorizing texts but also understands what is taught,” says Puneeta of the school,who tells us creativity projects form a part of the junior school curriculum.

At St Soldiers School,IT is the focus. “With a tech fest due in August-September and interschool competition comprising powerpoint presentation over,from quiz to practical work,all is done to make them tech savvy,” says Gurpreet Duggal of the school,who says that here designing experiments involve reading innumerable books and surfing the internet. “It brings out the learner in them and makes learning more fun,” she says. We couldn’t agree more!