Houses of Puducherry

Shelter is dealt as a thematic concept in EVS across Grades 3 to 5. Changes in the structures of houses, that are occurring over time is discussed in Changing Times, types of bird nests, their feeding habits are discussed in Busy Month and types of houses in slums is discussed in Nandita in Mumbai. Certain changes in types of shelter (When the Earth Shook) that we observe when we travel from lowlands to highlands, is mentioned in Shelter So High. It also discusses about people and their living.

This project could be carried out across Grades 4 and 5. The concept is covered in textbook with North-Indian examples (for instance, Hindi words, places like Mumbai, Delhi, etc. are included) which is not familiar for children living in Puducherry and that issue is covered in the project suggested here. Children shall explore places that they are familiar with, learn about them and can be then exposed to the content in the textbook.

Objectives:

• To know the different types of houses in students’ locality
• To learn about different materials needed for constructing a house
• To learn how construction of houses and the materials used, have changed over time
• To know and profile where animals and birds live

Discussion:

Given below are some samples of discussion questions that can be asked in the classroom.

Where do you live? How does your house look? Do all the houses in your area look alike? How big is your house? How many types of houses are there in your area?

Teacher may draw simple house pictures on the blackboard and name them.

Based on the above activity, students may be encouraged to write as given below:

Students may be probed with these sample questions:

• Where do you think animals live?
• Have you seen any nests?
• How many types of nest have you seen? Describe them.

Exploration

1. Photography/drawing – taking pictures of the shelter near school and home using phone or drawing them

    Photography – taking a front/side view of the house

Interviewing elders – children can ask their parents and elders to know about the types of houses in their area. They may also ask about: what materials were used for constructing their houses? How old are their houses?, and so on.

Sample drawing of the front view of the house

2. Houses in my locality

3. Shelters of Animals

After listing out the places we (humans) see, live and go to, students may be encouraged to explore and discuss about the places where animals live or lay eggs.

Project Compilation

Once the documentation of houses in your locality is completed, it can be made into posters or booklets for display. A sample project booklet is given below.

Additional resources

Readings - Children can be asked to sit in groups. Each group could be given a book to read. It’s better if every group has one student who is good at reading, so that she/he can help others. Still, if they struggle to read, they can try to narrate the story in the book by seeing the pictures.

	First house (முதல் வீடு) – This is a short graphical story about two cavemen in Arunachal Pradesh who built their first house after discussing and getting ideas from the animals. (EVS217) Discussion ideas – During which year was your house built? How do you think it was built? Before your house, what would have been there in that place? (Use the worksheet 3 in the attachment.)
	My House (என் வீடு) – This story is about two friends Pranav and Maya. Pranav wants Maya to come to his house. So he tries to get her interested by explaining the features of his house to her. (EVS218)   Discussion & activity – What are the interesting features in your house? Draw and label.
	The House that Sonabai built – Sonabai fights loneliness through creativity and tries some innovative experiments using clay. (EVS219)   Discussion & Activity – What are the things available in your house? List out, draw and label. House, chair, table made using papers (origami), clay, cardboards.
	This includes sketches of different types of houses, mentioning the name of its shape. (EVS220)   Activity – drawing different types of houses present in their locality i.e. near school and home.

Videos for classroom discussion

1) Animation of a city going back in time – This video explains how a city has changed over time. Changes in building structure, transportation was shown. (EVS222)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eqacica9Rik

2) Houses around the world – This video shows the different types of houses existing around the world. (EVS223)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rj3HU7_Y8Io&t=15s

3) Housing through the centuries – This video shows how different types of houses have evolved and existed over time. (EVS224)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoCZnboThfk

4) Animal homes - It talks about different types of birds and other animals and how they make their homes. (EVS225, EVS226)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xwi0tBRRcQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nard4vwtmKs

Discussion & Activity – Drawing different kinds of houses, bird nests, and animal houses (for student observation only)

(Use the worksheet 2 in the attachment.)

Teacher resources

• 10 facts about birds’ nests - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lneBlxZn6sg
• 21 different types of houses in India with pictures - https://stylesatlife.com/articles/types-of-houses-in-india/
• Types of houses around the world - http://www.nlb.gov.sg/sure/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Cheatsheet_house_F...
• Dakshina Chitra Museum has a good collection of community and state specific houses from South India - http://dakshinachitra.net/tamilnadu
• Glimpse of traditional houses in South India - http://www.pickpackgo.in/2015/05/dakshinachitra-glipmse-of-traditional.html