When space to learn and when the need to learn is there, the learning willdefinitelybe there and as a child I find a lot of meaning to the learning.
We went to the sports ground to play cricket and after all excitement we settled in our teams. 1st ball, 1st show daphaak there goes the ball. Hey catch the ball, stop it, oh no, it has gone into the hole. Call for help, comes in a young cricketer, puts his hand in the hole, others suggest use the bat whatever was done, the ball is gone. Ab kya kare?
Eyes saw the garbage, mind said wish this place is clean, nose said I can’t stand this place. Faculty said what is your need as a child? The needs were poured out
we want clean place, we want pollution less place, we do not want garbage everywhere. How do we do this? We can clean, thought came we can’t do every time; we need lot of help from all and sundry.
Brainstorming session on who can help, how we can help etc let to children deciding on cleaning up the nearby areas. They started by physically cleaning up the garbage area, talking toneighbours, taking the help of the lady who cleans the place, fighting with a person who dumped garbage and spat on the road.etc. In the process theyrealisedthey need to write a letter to the BBMP. Still thinking from where they got this name.
They now reached astageof how to write a letter. Came into use thefloccinaucinihiliphilcationofLetterwriting.Believeme whenI wasdoing the floccinaucinihiliphilcation few children chose not to come, few werelikewe know how to write letter.
They now were eager to see how they would write a letter, how is the format, discussing the differences.
A small seed of a lost ball created so much excitement and learning curve for the children. This happened because the whole thinking process was theirs, the needs were genuinely theirs all through they were involved.