Exploring Night Soil Carriers

The K1 and K2 children from MapleBear Serangoon North explored how waste was managed in the past before modern plumbing and learnt about the role of night soil carriers through stories and discussions. They created pretend “poops” and took part in a bucket toilet role-play, where they pretended to use the toilet before taking on the role of night soil carriers to collect the full buckets, just as they did in the past.

The children then participated in a Night Soil Carrier Obstacle Course, carrying two pretend buckets suspended from opposite ends of a stick over their shoulders and navigating the course to a shared communal toilet. There, they pretended to collect the “poops” and transfer them into the buckets before carrying them away, while developing their coordination and body control. During the reflection, the children shared their thoughts and feelings about the experience. They expressed appreciation for having modern toilets today and recognised the importance of keeping school and public toilets clean and hygienic for everyone to use.