My Science School

The Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR) is all set to get its first tigers as the Assam government has agreed to provide six Royal Bengal tigers from the Kaziranga National Park. With the arrival of the six tigers from Kaziranga, BTR will be able to end its dubious distinction of not being able to show any direct evidence of a tiger population for the last 30 years. No tigers were found in Buxa in the 2018 Tiger Census.



The fencing that separates the Sunderbans Tiger Reserve from the human habitation was damaged in at least three places as cyclone Amphan has ravaged West Bengal but there was no incident of big cats straying into localities, a top forest department official said.

The control rooms in Gosaba in South 24 Parganas district and Salt Lake near here have not received any incident of tigers or other wild animals straying into adjacent villages in the past three days, Chief Wildlife Warden Ravikant Sinha told PTI.



 

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Have you heard of rocket planes? No, not the planes we make with paper in our classrooms, letting them fly around during a free hour. Rocket planes or rocket-powered planes are aircraft propelled by rockets, sometimes in addition to jet engines.

These planes are capable of achieving much higher speeds than similarly sized jet aircraft and are also suitable for flying in very high altitudes. Propulsion through rocket engines implies that these aircraft can also achieve shorter take-offs and much higher acceleration.

The first of these aircraft that was used in a public demonstration came about late in the 1920s. It turned out to be a reality, thanks to the work done by three men, who brought in their individual skill sets together for this project.

Meet Valier, Opel & Sander

The first among these was Max Valier, an Austrian rocketry pioneer. Valier worked tirelessly to popularise rocketry and wrote many popular articles and books that brought this technology closer to the layperson. He was also among the earliest to experiment with rocket-powered vehicles and dreamt of rocket-powered flights that will not only cut down the flying time between cities, but also eventually take human beings into space.

Fritz von Opel, a German engineer and industrialist, was the second person. Grandson of Adam Opel, the founder of the Opel company that now manufactures automobiles, Fritz was a racing driver and entrepreneur with an eye for detail, both technically and organisationally. German engineer Friedrich Wilhelm Sander completed the trio. A manufacturer and expert in pyrotechnics, Sander owned a company, which he expanded to produce rockets.

Together for the project

While Valier was drawn towards rocketry as early as 1924 after reading physicist Hermann Oberth’s research on the idea of rockets carrying humans to space, Opel was sucked into it after meeting Valier in 1927. The fact that Opel decided to get actively involved in the rocket research project also meant that he brought with him his financial clout. Believing that the Opel brand would have a positive impact through such an involvement, he next brought Sander into the project. As Sander’s company made solid fuel signal rockets, Opel was hoping for faster implementation of the rocket motor through this move.

As early as March 1928, the trio of Valier, Sander and Opel started seeing the fruits of their labour. Rocket-propelled prototypes of automobiles were launched behind closed doors, and by April, the automobile RAK 1 was test-driven. Opel decided to drive the RAK 2 automobile himself and on May 23, 1928, he fired the 24 solid fuel rockets fitted to his futuristic car and pushed it to a maximum speed of 238 km/hour! The feat, performed in front of nearly 3,000 people including celebrities, earned him the nickname “Rocket Fritz".

From cars to aircraft

Spurred on by their success, the trio turned their focus towards aviation. Despite setbacks, including the explosion of one of their test flights, they carried on and were ready for their demonstration next year. On September 30, 1929, Opel piloted the RAK 1 (sometimes referred to as RAK 3 to distinguish it from the automobile), the first such public rocket-powered flight, in front of a large crowd.

Opel flew at an altitude averaging about 50 feet and covered nearly two km in less than 100 seconds. Even though the plane was wrecked during landing, Opel was able to escape unhurt and wrote that it was “marvelous to fly like this” in an article in The New York Times after the flight. The Great Depression that came about at that time, however, put an end to these rocket experiments, pushing Opel’s company to focus instead on vehicle development.

In the decades that followed, rocket-powered aircraft were initially deployed in warfare and a number of models were built during World War II. Rocket planes were the first to break the speed of sound in level flight and they continue to be built for experimental usage, owing to the fact that there are practical difficulties while operating rockets.

 

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On August 15, 2020, Mahendra Singh Dhoni announced his retirement with a short video and a message that read “Thanks a lot for your love and support throughout from 1929 hrs consider me as Retired”.

It was some time in the making, considering that the last international game that Dhoni played for India came over 13 months before he eventually announced his retirement. But like we’ve come to expect from him, the way he went about making the information public was typical Dhoni. No farewell match, no in-stadium speeches…

Having already retired from Test cricket in 2014, Dhoni’s announcement implies that this marks the end of his limited-overs international career as well.

As a wicketkeeper batsman and a captain, Dhoni has done wonders for India. Here, we will take a look at some of the numbers that define his hugely successful international career…

Runs scored between the two run outs

Dhoni’s international career started and ended in the ODI format. His first international game was an ODI against Bangladesh on December 23, 2004. His last international came against New Zealand in what was the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final that was played across two days – July 9 and 10, 2019. Dhoni was dismissed by a run out on both occasions, scoring zero on debut and 50 in his last game for India. In the 15 years in between, he scored mountains of runs.

In Tests, Dhoni made his debut against Sri Lanka in December 2005 and played his last match against Australia in December 2014. He scored 4876 runs in the 90 matches he played, averaging 38.09 with six hundreds and 33 fifties.

He played 350 matches overall in the ODI format and finished with 10773 runs at an average of 50.57. He also had 10 hundreds and 73 fifties against his name. His T20I debut was against South Africa in December 2006 and his last game in the format was against Australia in February 2019. He managed 1617 runs in the 98 matches he played, averaging 37.6 with a strike rate of 126.13.

Dhoni, the Gloveman

While Dhoni’s captaincy and batting skills are well documented and discussed, his wicket keeping abilities aren’t often mentioned in the same vein. Dhoni finished his career as one of the best wicketkeeper-batsman ever, especially in the limited overs format, and he always prided his skills behind the wickets, innovating always and effecting lightning fast dismissals throughout his career.

Dhoni’s 444 ODI dismissals is the third-most in the format and his 123 stumpings are the most by any keeper. In T20Is, his 91 dismissals and 34 stumpings are the highest so far.

Captain cool

Dhoni relinquished his captaincy much before his retirement from the limited-overs format, but he leaves behind a rich legacy as one of the most winningest captains, not just for India, but in the cricket world in general. Dhoni is the only captain to win all three limited-overs ICC titles and he also led India to the number one Test ranking. Under his leadership, India won the T20 World Cup in 2007, reached rank one in Tests in 2009, won the ODI World Cup in 2011 and the Champions Trophy in 2013. Dhoni led India in 200 ODIs, 72 T20Is and 60 Tests, giving him a total of 332 – the most as captain for any player in international cricket.

 

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Some birds have red eyes, some yellow, while others have brown, blue or green. This is because of the difference in pigments in their iris. The colours do not serve any purpose as far as sight is concerned. But in some species, the colour helps identify the maturity status, breeding readiness and the sex of the bird.

In some species, the male and female have different eye colours. For instance, female Brewer’s blackbirds have brown eyes, while the male of the species has bright yellow eyes. Male saddle-billed storks have dark brown, almost black, eyes, and females have bright yellow eyes.

In many species, the eye colour changes as the bird matures. In such species, the colour change signals adulthood – possibly an evolutionary adaptation that helps them identify potential mates. Bald eagles, ring-billed gulls, and ducks such as goldeneyes and scaups have brown eyes as youngsters, and yellow as they mature.

In some birds, eye colour changes according to the breeding season, for example, the iris of the brown pelican changes from brown to blue during the breeding season. The changes in colour with age and season are likely to be driven by hormonal changes, say scientists.

 

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Growing up in the United States, Chloe Ardelia Wofford and her family struggled with racial prejudice. Her father was forced to flee his hometown on account of widespread lynchings of the members of the African-American community. A few years later, a landlord set fire to their house in Lorain, Ohio, because they could not pay the rent. While in college, she witnessed segregation in restaurants and buses. Wofford, who later changed her name to Toni Morrison, wrote about his African-American experience, particularly from a female perspective and became known as the champion of oppressed communities.

Her 1977 novel ‘Song of Solomon’ is one of her major novels. The book not only won the National Books Critics Award, but was also cited by the Swedish Academy in awarding her the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Her novel ‘Beloved’ inspired by the life of the escaped slave Margaret Garner was a critical success. The novel was later adapted into a movie starring Oprah Winfrey.

She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her novel ‘Beloved’ in 1988.

She was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993 for her novels “which characterized by visionary force and poetic import, gives life to an essential aspect of American reality". She married Harold Morrison, a Jamaican architect and fellow faculty member at Howard University, in 1958. They had two sons and later divorced in 1964. Her son, Slade Morrison, worked with her on several books and literary projects.

Slade Morrison died of pancreatic cancer on December 22, 2010, at the age of 45.

Toni Morrison died of pneumonia on 5 August 2019, at Montefiore Medical Center in The Bronx, New York City, at the age of 88.

 

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Stephen King’s name is synonymous with horror and suspense writing. His books are used as textbooks on how to write. And yet, King’s first novel, “Carrie”, which went onto to become a cult classic, was rejected by 30 publishers! King was about to give up and threw the manuscript in the trash. His wife, Tabitha retrieved it and urged King to resubmit it. The rest is history. King has since then published more than 80 books, many of which became bestsellers.

His mother did so many odd jobs to raise them and she even worked as a care taker in a nursery to meet the financial requirements of the family. The hardships faced by his mother left a strong impression on his mind which can be seen on his novels. In 1970’s, when he was working as a teacher at Hampden Academy, he became addicted to alcohol and his lifestyle changed. Though he was writing stories, his personal life was affected and his health condition too became worst.

Suffering like this for ten years, he finally gave up drinking and concentrated on his career. On 19th June 1999, he was involved in an accident and his situation became critical. Multiple fractures and the lung injuries forced him to take rest for more than three months and it took more than six months for him to become normal. He wanted to announce retirement during this period but the support from his family made him recover quickly and his successful writing career is still continuing.

 

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Pratchett was born in April 28, 1948 in Beaconsfield, the U.K. He had numerous speech impediments, which distorted his voice and made him the target of bullies at school. His condition made it difficult for him to read or write properly. In 2007, aged 59, Pratchett announced that he had a rare form of early onset Alzheimer’s called posterior cortical atrophy. In his later years, Pratchett wrote by dictating to his assistant, Rob Wilkins, or by using speech recognition software. He wrote seven novels through the haze of Alzheimer’s. “Snuff’ is the third novel Pratchett wrote using voice-recognition technology rather than a keyboard; he was unable to touch type, although he could prod words out letter by letter.

He always made time for his readers, taking his guidance from his own childhood fan letter to JRR Tolkein. He attended fan events and stirred things up on the newly-forming internet, taking on marathon book signings all over the world. These events sometimes ran to more than six hours and stores would often have to send out for frozen peas to soothe his signing wrist.

He was appointed OBE in 1998 and was knighted for services to literature in 2009. He won many awards for his novels but perhaps his most prized was the Carnegie Medal, won in 2001 for The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents. He also received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2010.

 

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R.K. Narayan, the man who brought this fantasy world to life, who inspired many endless quests to track down the town and its inhabitants, failed his English exam. He loathed physics and chemistry. Surprisingly, he cleared those two subjects, but failed in English, his favourite. Even then, he did not give up! Assuring his father that he would attempt the exam again, he spent the next year at home, reading and writing in earnest. Subsequently, he passed the exam in 1926. Few years later, unable to find a publisher for his first novel “Swami and Friends”, Narayan told his friend to throw the manuscript into the Thames river. Instead, the friend took it to Graham Greece, English novelist, who was so impressed that he recommended it to his publisher.

He has published numerous novels, five collections of short stories - A Horse and Two Goats, An Astrologer's Day, Lawley Road, Malgudi Days, and The Grandmother's Tale, four collections of essays - Next Sunday, Reluctant Guru, A Writer's Nightmare, and A Story-Teller's World, a memoir - My Days, collection of legends drawn from the Mahabharata and the Puranas titled Gods, Demons and Others, two travel books - My Dateless Diary and The Emerald Route (about Mysore state which had sketches by his younger brother, R K Laxman, the famous cartoonist). 

Swami and Friends and Malgudi Days were made into a highly successful television series in the eighties by the late Kannada film-maker Shankar Nag. Another of Narayan's popular novel, The Guide, was made into a successful Hindi film by Dev Anand's Navketan Films in 1962. 

 

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Anne Frank spent over two years hiding in a secret annexe during the World War II. The 13-year-old poured her thoughts into her diary, which has become a symbol of hope and resilience. Despite fearing persecution by the Nazis, she wrote about forgiveness. “It’s difficult in times like these: ideals, dreams and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by a grim reality. It’s a wonder I haven’t abandoned all my ideals, they seem to absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart,” reads her diary. The last entry is dated August 1, 1944. All the family members were arrested and sent to concentration camps. A few months

later, Anne and her sister, Margot died of exhaustion while on their way to a camp in Auschwitz. Anne’s father Otto was the only survivor, who published her diaries.

The Franks enjoyed the freedom and acceptance they found in Amsterdam. Anne attended Amsterdam's Sixth Montessori School, where she was a bright and inquisitive student with many friends of various backgrounds and faiths, according to "Anne Frank: The Biography" by Melissa Muller (Picador, 2014). Otto Frank founded a food ingredient wholesale company in Amsterdam.

 

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Sitting sill for hours glued to the computer or the television screen can affect our physical and mental well-being. Apart from the regular breaks you take in between your long sessions online, invest time in your fitness. Here, we list a few apps and videos you can refer to or download to start your workout programme in the comfort of your home.

Yoga for kids and family fitness

This app is not just for children, but for the whole family well. Offering interesting asanas as well as healthy recipes and nutrition facts, this app is a whole package. There are different difficulty levels in workouts to suit your needs. The animated characters that teach you the workouts are the most entertaining aspect of the app.

This app is available for free download on Android phones.

Fitness Pets

This app encourages you to stay fit in an interesting way, fun way. The app lets you choose a virtual pet and take care of it. Your virtual pet grows and develops when you walk a certain number of steps in a day. The app also has fun mini quests and games to keep you motivated.

This app is available for free download on Android phones.

Little sports

This YouTube channel has two animated characters showing different exercises. Their playlists have exercises targeting different body parts as well as full-body workouts. You can cast the workout to the television or stream it on your laptop. The videos are simple to follow and span anywhere between 10 mins and 40 mins.

Stand Up Kids – Movement break

This website aims to get kids moving and give up on their sedentary lifestyle. Under the Stand Up Kids movement break curriculum, you can find a variety of exercises that help you stay fit, not just physically but also mentally. The video are shot by coaches and physical education teachers and can be easily followed. They also have a YouTube channel with fitness videos.

Get kids moving

This interesting YouTube channel started by a health coach and personal trainer from London helps you realize your potential as a superhero. The channel has videos focused on moves from your favourite superhero and fantasy movies such as Wonder Woman, Captain America and Harry Potter. The workouts are short, fun and easy to follow. Time to put on your superhero game face.

 

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Marine conservation involves a study of marine organisms and evaluating threats posed to them and taking action to protect and rehabilitate them. Working as a marine conservationist can be highly satisfying as you can make a meaningful contribution to the planet, live in exotic places and lead on unconventional work life. Majority of the conservation efforts, today, focus on coral reefs, whales, dolphins, and sea turtles.

What are the prospects?

Although India has a vast coastline, marine conservation is a relatively new field in India. The rising threats to our oceans and the boom in marine sports such as scuba diving and sailing has sparked interest in exploring the ocean and preserving it. Conservation firms and government bodies are in need of experts who can research and advise them on protecting marine life. There are several opportunities for entrepreneurs to come up with their own organizations and initiatives. India holds more potential compared to other countries, which are already saturated with marine biologists.

Required skills

• Interest in marine conservation


• Awareness about environmental issues and in-depth knowledge of climate change


• Knowledge of Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics


• Numerical and statistics skills


• Practical fieldwork skills


• Research-oriented mindset


• Patience and good observation skills


• Excellent teamwork and personal communication abilities


• Ability to work outdoors in all weathers – perhaps at sea

Where to study

Many Indian universities offer a Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Marine Biology, but only Science undergraduate can pursue this postgraduation. Foreign universities offer undergraduate and Master’s courses in both Marine Biology and Conservation.

India

• Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar campus: M.Sc. Marine Biology


• Cochin University of Science and Technology Kerala: M.Sc. in Oceanography


• Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, Surat: M.Sc. (Aquatic Biology)

Abroad

• University of Tasmania in Australia: Bachelor of Marine and Antarctic science


• Scripts Institution of Oceanography, University of San Diego, the U.S.: Master of Advanced Studies Program in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation.


• Florida Institute of Technology, the U.S.: Bachelors in Science (B.S.) in Marine Conservation

Start volunteering!

Solid practical experience is key. Being involved with different projects, working on diverse hypotheses and learning about different species and processes also help keep an open mind while gaining experience beyond your selected subject. Volunteer opportunities are offered everywhere today and are easily found, thanks to the Internet. You can volunteer with Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation, Bengaluru, WWF, Reefwatch and other such organizations.

 

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Kirby’s origin story

From Captain America and The Hulk to The X-Men and the adorable Groot, comic look artist Jack Kirby breathed life into some of Marvel's biggest and most popular superheroes. Sadly, he never got due recognition in his lifetime.

Written in the form of a graphic novel, “The Epic Life of the King of Comics” by Tom Scioli tells the improbable tale of how a young kid raised in the streets of New York became the most important figure in the evolution of comics.

Rough-and-tumble life

Born as Jacob Kurtzberg on August 28, 1917, Kirby lived in the Lower East Side of Manhattam – a neighbourhood infamous for its violent street gangs, Kirby too joined one of the gangs and led a rough life – partly due to poor financial conditions at home. Years later, these experiences helped him come up with dynamic fight and action sequences in his comics.

Drawing from scrap

The timeless characters that Kirby created are testament to his talent. But id you know how Kirby learnt to draw? No, he could not afford to study at any fancy art school. Instead, he practised his art skills using newspapers stolen from his neighbour’s trash can.

At the age of 11, he started drawing cartoons for the local newspaper. A few years later, he was hired to illustrate columns such as “Your Health Comes First” and “Facts You Never Knew” by another newspaper. From there he moved on to Max Fleischer’s animation studio where he worked for a while creating backgrounds for “Popeye” cartoons.

A timely choice

Working with Timely Comics (which eventually became Marvel), Kirby partnered with writer Joe Simon to come up with the shield-bearing Captain America.

While he was busy illustrating the eye-popping fight scenes of the Cap on paper, he soon experienced them in real life. In 1943, he got drafted into the Army to fight in WWII. On learning of Kirby’s background in the comics industry, his lieutenant made him a scout who would advance into towns and draw reconnaissance maps and pictures, an extremely dangerous duty. During one such mission in Normandy, he nearly lost his leg to frost-bite.

Working with Stan Lee

Kirby worked on several projects with Marvel comics figurehead Stan Lee, and Steve Ditko. They came up with legendary characters such as Fantastic Four, Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Anti-Man, the collective Avengers, Silver Surfer and the X-Men. But while Lee come into the limelight, Kirby and Ditko remained in the shadows.

At Marvel, Kirby struggled for better pay, royalties, and the return of original artwork.

Later, he worked for other publications including DC Comics, created the Fourth World saga, which includes New Gods, an integral part of the DC universe. He also worked with Neil Gaiman to revive the “Sandman” series.

Work ethic

Kirby was known for his strict work ethic. In his prime, Kirby would draw three or four pages a day, resulting in thousands of pages over the course of his career.

Legacy

Kirby died in 1994, but his name remains etched in stone in the comic world.

Did you know?

• In 2017, Kirby was posthumously named a Disney Legend with Lee for their co-creations, which formed the heart of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.


• The Jack Kirby Award was presented in his honour from 985-1987 for achievement in comic books.


• Kirby produced over 25,000 pages during his lifetime as well as hundreds of comic strips and sketches.

 

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 The Sao Francisco De Assis Church

The Sao Francisco De Assis Church remains in use as a church and is considered to be the greatest masterpiece amongst all the buildings in the ensemble. It was designed in the form of a parabolic wave with reinforced concrete. The church is popular for its bold, unusual and striking forms, which also prevented it from being consecrated as the then Archbishop declared the church unfit for religious purposes. After many struggles, the church finally got its status in 1959.

The Pampulha Art Museum

Now an art museum, this building was functioned as a casino till April 1946. The casino ceased to exist as Gaspar Dutra, the former president of Brazil, prohibited gambling across the territory, it was converted into an art museum in 1957. The museum now boasts a collection of over 1,600 works including a collection of pieces by plastic artists and modernists.

The Ballroom

The Casa de Baile, known as the ballroom house, was inaugurated with the other buildings in 1943. However, in 1948, it ceased to function due to lack of visitors. Today, it houses the Centre of Reference in Urbanism, Architecture and Design. Situated on an artificial islet, it can be reached by crossing a bridge.

The Golf Yacht Club

The Golf Yacht Club has been turned into the Yacht Tennis Club today. Used as a place for entertainment and sports until the 1960s, it changed hands due to lack of funds. The original building was in the shape of a boat overlooking the lake. But over the years several modifications have been made.

The Kubitschek House

This was also designed in the 1940s along with the other buildings. It was intended to be the weekend residence of Juscelino Kubitschek. Today, it is a cultural space and a museum where objects from the time of the construction of the Pampulha Modern Ensemble have been collected.

 

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Juscelino Kubitschek, the former mayor of Belo Horizonte and former president of Brazil, wanted to develop an area around the artificial lake Pampulha in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state. Therefore, around 1940, he commissioned the design of a set of buildings from renowned architect Oscar Niemeyer. Oscar was also responsible for the construction project of the current capital city of Brazil, Brasilia.

Oscar worked in collaboration with renowned engineer Joaquim Cardozo, and artists including Candido Portinari, to build a casino, a ballroom, a church, a golf yacht club and a hotel around the artificial lake. Except for the hotel, the cultural and leisure complex was inaugurated on May 16, 1943.

The team exploited the plastic potential (the moulding capability) of concrete, and integrated plastic arts (any art form which involves modelling or moulding in three dimensions) such as sculpture and ceramics in the buildings. Landscape designer Roberto Burle Marx reinforced the links between the buildings through designed gardens and a circuit of walkable spaces.

The Pampulha ensemble reflects the way principles of modern architecture evolved in the early 20th century from rigid constructivism and adapted organically to reflect local traditions, the Brazilian climate and natural surroundings.

The ensemble was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2016.

 

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It is not always easy to ask questions in class. You may have a doubt, and you may even have a teacher who encourages student participation in class, and yet, getting your voice heard amidst 40-60 children needs strategy. You can scream your head off to be heard, but that may invite punishment.

A better option would be to tweak the way you ask questions and pose them in a dear voice. And of course, be patient and wait for the right moment.

Here are some strategies:

After an absence

When you’re absent from class and you return the next day, you naturally want to know if you missed anything. I have heard students says, "I was absent yesterday, can I have the quiz paper now?" This is rude. Others ask: "Did I miss anything yesterday?” That’s a strange question, because those who are absent certainly miss lessons. Will the class do nothing just because some were absent?

So try this: “What did I miss yesterday when I was absent?" You'll get a much better response.

Before a test

When you ask, “Is this included for the test?" you actually mean, "Should I be paying attention to this?" The answer is simple: "Yes, pay attention." So, do not ask this question.

For real uses

There are teachers who take a tot of interest in what students learn and step outside the text to bring in other relevant facts. Some students say, "When am I ever going to use this?" That sounds rude and seems to question the teachers good intention.

So, change your words to ask, “Could, you give me a real-world example of how this information can be used?” That’s what the teacher wants to hear and you’ll get a much better response to future questions.

To be excused,

If you have to leave the classroom in the middle of a lesson, it is not a good idea to say, "I am going to the wash/rest room" Even the more polite “May I go to the wash/rest room?” is not quite the way to ask for permission. I have heard students launch into a complete explanation of why they have to leave. That is quite unnecessary.

Whenever you want to be excused, when in the company of people - whether its classmates, co-workers, bosses or relatives - say just that: "May be excused?"

Time it right

Wait for the right time to get the teacher's attention. Most teachers give students a chance to ask questions and get their doubts cleared. So wait. If the teacher stops during the course of the lesson to let you ask questions, use that opportunity. If the teacher does not invite questions, wait for a pause before asking.

Be polite, get noticed

Raise your hand. This is the most common anal polite way of letting our teacher know that you have a question. It is a silent signal that you need clarification about something. It shows that you are willing to wait and not interrupt the lesson or disturb the class. You get noticed in a room full of students. Keep your hand up until your teacher acknowledges you.

Direct attention

If the teacher fails to notice your raised hand for more than five minutes, say. "Excuse me," in a soft tone. That is bound to attract the attention of the teacher. Wait until you are called before you begin talking.

Always be polite. Repeating "Excuse me!” and talking over your teacher will make you look like you’re trying to disturb the class.

Make it short

Keep your question brief. Ask for specific information. Long-winded questions eat into the time the teacher has in class to complete her work. So stick to the point and, do not begin with an introduction. Avoid: "Ma’am you told us yesterday that....." OR "My friend, and, I were discussing this lesson and..." OR “I was reading the questions at the end of the lesson..."

Make your question specific. Start with a question word: who, what, where, when, why, how.

Pay attention

Listen attentively to the answer. Do not look around the class when the teacher talking to you. Do not interrupt. If you want to remember the answer word-for-word, take notes after informing the teacher. Once you have the answer, thank the teacher. If you're still having trouble grasping something, ask the teacher for clarification before you move on.

One at a time

Avoid, asking several, questions at the same time. The teacher may not remember all those questions. Also, she may not have time to answer all of them at once, especially if it’s near the end of the period. Also, other students may have questions of their own.

If you have several doubts, the best option is to approach the teacher after class or during recess. If your questions are related, ask them one by one.

 

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