Parallel Worlds: Journey on a Paper Microscope Through the Imagination of Children

A teacher reflects on how students at the Gubbachi Learning Community use Foldscopes to transform microscopic observations into imaginative stories.

We have watched these kids grow up from agog little learners into teenagers who hide their eagerness to look cool. Through the years, two things have been consistent about them: deliberate kindness and casual brilliance.

The kids at the Gubbachi Learning Community firmly have the systemic cards stacked against them at every step. That they still show up to school every day and learn is a testament to the {insert every good adjective you can think of here} teachers and {insert every good adjective you can think of here} students.

Whether it was meeting me halfway with my broken-is-an-understatement Hindi during the early years of teaching them, or actively participating in any class Chetana and I threw at them (from composting to flight dynamics), this batch, like every child we’ve taught at the Gubbachi Learning Community, is kind. I feel their kindness when they actively hear what we say and engage with us. I feel their kindness when they open their brilliant minds up and generously share their questions and ideas with us.

With the oldest batch, we were beginning to hit a wall. They were already reeling with the pressures of exam prep and, well, life as teenagers. We decided to introduce the idea of project-based learning to this fluctuating cohort of 3-6 students. Thanks to a generous grant of Foldscopes from the NCBS Science Education and Outreach Office, our idea for a project had a contextually relevant tool – something that made science accessible without compromising the quality of its function.

Day 1 of our project class began, as it does, around the long bright Akshaya Patra hour of the soul. Blaring noon light reflecting off every surface makes you squint your eyes; three classes have already passed, so the mental fatigue is real, and lunch is so close, you can smell it. Usually, a tough hour to crack as a teacher. Not so tough when you tell kids they’re going to get a microscope to play with. With that hook firmly in, we collectively discussed the concept of a project. We created a broad framework for their projects, which the students correctly dubbed a project plan. Then, out came the Foldscopes.

First, there was the disbelieving "No way is there a microscope inside that tiny envelope."

Then came the still slightly sceptical "Okay, let’s hear what he has to say."

Finally, there was the spirit of enough talk, more action "These assembly instructions are quite good. We’ll let you know if we need anything. Thanks!"

With their Foldscopes set up, their assignment was to explore their surroundings with their instruments and create an output that could be art or science. Three students - Elsa, Rabiya and Saheb - worked on their projects until completion. A recurring theme in their observations was students peering into their Foldscope and seeing analogues from memory and imagination.

Here is what they created.

Saheb’s own words: “In my village, when we go to catch fish at night in the river, the algae-covered stones underwater look like the algae from my school under a microscope.”

Saheb also went on to see more parallels, describing structures on a feather we found lying outside their classroom as fields of wheat.

Rabiya’s imagination took her - and the same feather - to the ocean. First, Rabiya saw four seahorses swimming through swaying seagrass.

On another section of the feather, she imagined a jellyfish with its tentacles spread out.

Elsa and Rabiya also worked together to investigate vegetables and fruits from their kitchen.

In addition to producing these phenomenal pieces of work, the group also created a library of samples, each meticulously labelled, categorised, and digitised on a spreadsheet.

Despite all its wonders, we still found it quite challenging to get consistently stable pictures. To solve this, we constructed a photography station using an old food delivery container and a flat block of discarded EPS (popularly known as thermocol in India).

Finally, here’s a brief reflection on the whole experience by Elsa, complete with a few friendly inside jokes and playful digs at her classmates.

A big shout-out to Ginchu Mariam Sunny, their science teacher, for the pictures, the support, and her reassuring presence.

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This story is the first in our monthly column - The Everywhere Lab (TEL).

TEL is a space that brings science out of formal laboratories and into everyday life. Inspired by frugal science, low-cost tools, and grassroots innovation, we aim to allow anyone to observe and investigate the natural world. It focuses especially on hands-on discovery, encouraging students, nature enthusiasts and citizen scientists to see that meaningful inquiry can happen anywhere.

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 About the author

John is a writer, photographer and researcher with a keen interest in spiders. ​ He regularly daydreams of using a calculator, a pencil and a cup of sambar to unravel the secrets of the universe.

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