Building that empathetic bridge

Teachers and students share a bond that sees them through the school years. Sometimes, this bond is emotional and the student is benefited both academically and emotionally. At other times, students and even teachers fail to connect leading to dire consequences. In such cases, would the presence of a trained counsellor help? It would, with support from the larger community of teachers and parents. But a beginning can be made only by a sensitised teacher who can understand a child’s need.

A story of a grammar class

Nabanita Deshmukh
Storytelling is a great way to make language teaching authentic. But teaching grammar which is the basic component of language requires skills that will encourage children to pick up the nuances fast and correctly. Given that stories always impact children, here are some activities that can make your grammar classes fun and interesting and will also motivate children.

Combating bullying: What teachers must know

Divyadarshan Chandrasekar
With instances of bullying on the rise, teachers need to devise newer techniques to tackle this menace. The issue is of growing concern especially in the light of globalisation and increased media exposure. The article outlines a few steps that will help teachers manage their classrooms better and how they can differentiate between different types of bullying.

Every child can be a counsellor

Aditi Mathur and Ratnesh Mathur
A peer to peer counselling system is something that every school must consider introducing. When a child is counselled by another child or a group of children, there are bound to be several benefits. The dynamics of any peer- to – peer interaction is different when compared to any adult- child interaction. Aspects such as bonding, trusting, listening are all different and add to the richness of any child’s journey through school.

All about me

Manaswini Sridhar
An essay or a conversation on ‘Myself’ at, perhaps an interview, will not find any takers today if a student just gives bare details about himself, or his parents. In tune with the changing times, this type of an essay requires more insight into a student’s personality, his likes and dislikes and his future plans. So, how can a teacher help a student with themes or ideas that will help him express himself in a more informative way? Here are some valuable tips and some resources.

Crime and humanity

Sheel
What exactly is a criminal act or deed? Post demonetisation, is keeping cash a crime? Is making bombs and throwing them at people a crime? Is Gandhi’s passive resistance a crime? How can students be made to understand crime and its different avatars ? This month’s project is aimed at clarifying the idea of crime.

Tagged – and tied – to geography

Gaurav Sikka & Manisha Kushwaha

Darjeeling tea, Lucknow Chikankari, Banarasi saree— do these names ring a bell? We all know that these are products and belong to a geographical region, which is why they have attributes and characteristics specific to the region . This is known as Geographical Indication and the GI tag is a certification of the product. How can a teacher explain this concept to students and why is it necessary to have the GI certification for products? Read on to know more.

Finding a voice through writing

Nidhi Qazi
Social sciences can be made interesting for children if a process of critical reflection is adopted which is aimed at helping a child to think and applying the knowledge gained to understand the issues happening around us. This kind of process can generate lively discussion and debates and also make the learning process interesting. This article profiles a Delhi Government School teacher who initiates writing exercises for his students on almost all topical events.

Confuse to survive – the mimics

Geetha Iyer

Take your students out into the field and introduce them to the world of animals and insects which use mimicry as a survival technique .This kind of activity will help students learn more about the natural world. It will also enhance their thinking, observational and reasoning skills.

Reimagining environment

Nimesh Ved
Is there a need for Environment Education to reinvent itself, to become more political and allow students to see the interconnections that is integral to all life forms? At a recent conference in Ahmedabad, speakers pointed out the need for people and students to question their lifestyles and respond to changing times.