Discover, Design and Debate — Projects — "How Nature Works in Harmony"

1. 13 marks

   Design a school or park clean-up day project as described in the chapter. What should you record, and why does that recording matter?

   Hint. The activity asks you to sort and categorise what you collect, not just pick it up.

   ✦ Wearing gloves and using bags, collect litter found at school or a nearby park, then discuss and record the kinds of waste found and which type was most common. Recording this matters because identifying the most common type of waste is the first step toward figuring out how to reduce it at the source — you cannot design an effective reduction plan without first knowing what you are actually dealing with in the largest quantity.

2. 23 marks

   The chapter gives two examples of Indian tribes with a special connection to the tiger — the Nyishi/Mishmi tribes of Arunachal Pradesh and the Baiga tribe of Chhattisgarh. Describe each, and explain what kind of research this project asks you to do next.

   Hint. One tribe treats the animal as sacred directly; the other worships a deity connected to the same animal.

   ✦ In Arunachal Pradesh, the Nyishi and Mishmi tribes treat the Tiger as sacred. In Chhattisgarh, the Baiga tribe worships the Bagesur Dev and believes the Tiger is the protector of the forest. The project then asks students to find out about OTHER Indian tribes that have a similarly special connection with animals — extending this same pattern of cultural/spiritual reverence for wildlife beyond just these two named examples, since this requires further research rather than a fact already given in the chapter.

3. 33 marks

   Design the tree-observation project described in the chapter. What should be recorded weekly, over what total period, and how can findings be shared beyond the classroom?

   Hint. The activity specifies an exact weekly cadence, a total duration, and a named platform for citizen science.

   ✦ Pick a tree near your home or school and observe it once a week for 4 weeks, noting any new leaves, flowers, fruits, or visiting birds and insects, recording these observations each time. Findings can be shared beyond the classroom by uploading them to www.seasonwatch.in, which is why doing so makes you a young citizen scientist, contributing real observational data alongside others doing the same activity.

4. 43 marks

   Design a project to record indigenous sustainable farming practices, as described in the chapter's final project. What should the project produce, and how could it be shared?

   Hint. The chapter names a specific type of activity to interact with, a specific thing to create, and specific public venues to share the result.

   ✦ Interact with farmers and record indigenous practices they follow for sustainable farming, then create a sustainable herbal garden or natural farm at home or at school — potentially as a group activity involving students from different grades. Findings and suggestions for improving farming practices (drawing also on Fig. 12.21's different farming practices) can be shared through posters or models displayed at school functions, science fairs, or Krishi Mela, since schools may also invite agricultural scientists, farmers, and experts to discuss the practices directly with students.

Solutions written by the tuition.in editorial team and checked against NCERT Curiosity — Textbook of Science for Grade 8, Chapter 12 (hecu112.pdf), Reprint 2026-27, pages 190-209. Questions are referenced from the NCERT textbook for identification.