This week, the School of the Little Giants welcomed a group of scientists from the soil ecology department of the Institut de Recherche et de Développement (IRD).
The IRD, a multi-disciplinary French public research organisation, has been represented in Antananarivo since 1996.
Lucile and Gauthier, both agro-ecology engineers, spent a whole day raising awareness among children in CE1 and 6e classes about biodiversity and soil composition.
Using their educational kit, they explained the different textures of soil to the CE1 pupils and, in a fun way, got them to observe their porosity.
The 6e class played a game on the food chain, and then Gauthier launched a practical project to enable all the pupils to observe the biodiversity present in the soil: in a transparent tray, they layered different types of soil and leaves on top of each other and moistened them well. They then introduced earthworms to observe their progress and behaviour in the soil over the course of the day.
The 6th graders were then given the task of looking after and observing the new occupants of the classroom.
Thank you to all the IRD team who came to bring the SVT course to life for a whole day!
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