How leaders make themselves

Chintan Girish Modi
We have all heard about leadership training for teachers. But does this training extend to the students in the classroom as well? What do students look for in a class leader? Leadership can mean different things to different people. The Little Leaders series of books can be a value addition to your school library, apart from inspiring conversations about young people who followed their dreams despite all odds.

How to teach critical thinking

Chintan Girish Modi
We all like our classrooms to be peaceful, quiet and harmonious. As far as possible, we discourage dissent, disagreement and arguements especially related to the lessons they are learning. But then, are we training our students for life? By being passive and obedient listeners in class, are we crushing their spirit of enquiry? Let us give our students a voice in the classroom today, so that they can speak loud and clear when they need to in life tomorrow.

Lockdown lessons from a Netflix show

Chintan Girish Modi
For a change, here is something that teachers will love to follow up on. A Netflix show revolving around the life of a teenager named Sam Gardner –who lives with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Since there is very little awareness among educators about the needs of students with disabilities, this show will help them to make an effort to sensitize themselves.

Treasures linked to geography

CIPAM team
This article explores a community IP right known as Geographical Indication. GIs are an IP Right that extend protection to mainly agricultural, natural or manufactured products such as handicrafts and industrial items produced in a certain geographical area. How can teachers get their students interested in GIs so that they get to know more about their country’s treasure trove?

Make the world come alive through design

CIPAM team
Continuing our series on Intellectual Property Rights, this time, the author talks about how design can be the exclusive right of the creator. This means without the permission of the design owner, nobody can reproduce or create copies of the protected design.

An artist’s boon; a pirate’s bane

CIPAM team
In an age where the internet is a common feature, it has become more necessary than ever to protect our ideas and work lest someone else calls it their own. Make your students aware of copyright infringements when they do their school projects and also tell them how they can protect their own work from being stolen.

Chemistry out of the box

P.S. Kandagal
Having a science lab is an expensive proposition for most schools in India even today. But science is best learnt through observation, inquiry and experimentation. This is why micro-scale chemistry should be employed by more schools so that their students can carry out chemical experiments to learn better.

Trading on name and reputation

CIPAM team

A trademark protects a company’s identity represented by its logo, slogan or symbol. It is therefore extremely important for a company. What are the other things that a trademark can protect? Did you know that companies could register smell, sound and shape as their trademark? How long can a company keep a trademark? Enter the fascinating world of trademarks through these really fun and exciting games.

Protecting technological innovations

CIPAM team
Our students are always full of ideas, some quite brilliant actually. If built upon, these ideas can turn into solutions to problems like pollution, space management, depletion of natural resources, etc. As teachers/facilitators we must encourage our students to keep their ideas coming and tell them how they can patent their ideas and take them to fruition.

Invent, create, protect

CIPAM team
What is Intellectual Property and how necessary is it for children to not only be creative and innovative but also how they can protect their own creations and respect others’ IP.