NO KIDDING, THIS!

                           

This blog is written by a guest blogger who is Principal of Gandhinagar
 Podar International School Ms. Madhumita.

Angela Schwindt couldn’t be more explicit when she opined, “While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.” I have been fortunate to have spent most of my professional life working among kids and the best part of my learnings are what kids have taught me. Let me share here three very golden rules kids have given to me to follow as an adult:

1.    Happiness has no reason!

HAPPINESS spelt with capital letters! It is their default system. Kids are naturally happy beings and they do not require big justification for their happiness. If they cry or exhibit crankiness one can trace it back to either a physical discomfort or as their ploy to seek proper attention which often remains elusive from the adult world. Children invariably choose to remain unaffected by depressing things or grumpy people around them. In fact they like jolly people as easily as fish takes to water. When children are around us happiness free flows because they are genuine brand ambassadors of it.

2.    Only unconditional Love!

Kids love uninhibitedly without any conditional tags attached.  They have amazing capacity to forget and forgive. They don’t analyse, weigh upon or scrutinise the emotion of love. If they feel it they express it spontaneously. If a child has difficulty in expressing love, we better check what or who is stopping the child from doing so.

Human beings to toys, pets to cartoon characters- all receive abundance of love from kids. No bitter past accounts are held in their heart. They keep their dealings simple and beautiful.  In relationships, children deal only in one currency, i.e. unconditional love.  

3.    Don’t give up spirit!

If you stop a three year old from scribbling on walls, within moments the little genius launches another business. May be, this time it is dragging an oversized carton from corner to corner. You stop that too and next immediate target of attention could be your mobile phone left on table unguarded. Kids are born busy bees! Display of kinaesthetic energy is a sign of robust health in a child, both physical and emotional.

 Children do not buy discouragement very easily. If one occupation is taken away from them they instantly find another one and still another one.  Indomitable resolve!  Every child has it.

I learn my lessons in happiness, unconditional love and resilience from kids every day.  Their company is both therapeutic and enlightening.

When as parents, family members, teachers and care givers we deal with children we must understand our job is to preserve these three wonderful qualities in a child as much as possible while they are growing up. Let us help them: to continue practising happiness without harming or hurting others; to Show kindness and consideration to express their love; and remain unfazed at the face of any discouragement, rejection or defeat in life.

                                         -

It is Planet Earth’s birthday today…. Let’s celebrate by belonging to it.

Earth is the only planet with chocolates and children! That is because it is blessed with life- insects, trees, birds, animals and especially humans. Humans are searching for life forms on other planets and in this search have forgotten to take care of what we already have- Planet Earth, a living breathing planet that has water and air and food.

But many people have woken up to face the reality about the kind of world we want to leave for our children and grandchildren and have initiated a day on which we can remember and acknowledge the importance of this wonderful planet and strive to treasure and save it. The world now marks Earth Day to make the human race realize the importance of the Mother Earth. Earth Day is celebrated every year on the 22nd of April. In 1970, a senator from Wisconsin, USA, Gaylord Nelson first conceived of this day.

More than just remembering or acknowledging the wonder of Planet Earth on this special day it is important we teach our kids and ourselves to ‘belong’ to this planet. And to do that we have to fall in love with Planet Earth, because when we love something, we bond with it, treasure it and it belongs to us. And we never have to be told to take care of something that belongs to us!

Its time to fall in love with Planet Earth and belong to it. Its time to help our children experience its wonders, instead of always putting the responsibility of saving it on them. How can our children save something that they have not experienced or understood the importance of?

Its time to take our kids on walks…not in malls all the time but once in a while in a park, on the beach and places where they can breathe pure unadulterated oxygen! Try a nighttime walk, help your child hear the sounds during a day-time walk and a night-time walk. Take a magnifying glass along for your walk in the park and see how your little explorer loves to look at leaves and insects with the magnifying glass. Next time try taking tinted magnifying glasses (available easily in all  toy stores) and see how your child will giggle and wonder at how green leaves look red or the blue sky looks green.

Sleep on the grass and look at the clouds passing by and play a game of finding object shapes in the clouds. At night look at the sky and try to look for star clusters. All these activities will help children fall in love with nature and help them understand that birds and insects and animals and trees are an integral part of our environment. They will not look at insects as ‘eek’ something to scream about or dirt and mud as ‘yucky’, they will be able to feel different textures in nature and this stimulation is extremely healthy for their emotional development and brain development. After all the 5 senses are the main route to stimulating our brain synapses.

When our children stop going outdoors they are left out of the nourishment that nature can provide for their emotional development. Nature Deficit Disorder, is a term coined by Richard  Louv  in his 2005 book Last Child in the Woods, he refers to a growing trend around the world wherein  children are spending less time outdoors resulting in a wide range of behavioral problems.

Technology is something that children have already fallen in love with, and that is why you will notice how fiercely they protect their tech gadgets and tech use time. Because they have a bond with it, it belongs to them. Let us use technology to help them experience and fall in love with nature and when they do, ensure that they get real life nature experiences too.

I have given below a list of apps that you can use to help your child fall in love with Planet Earth (these are from igamemom.com and this site has a fantastic collection of apps). Have a fun Earth Day.

·         Lorax- this app recounts  a favourite Dr Seuss story by the same name in which Lorax tries to save Truffula forest from the hands of a factory owner. The story serves as an ecological warning and is suitable for age 3 to 6 years

·         Earth Primer- an interactive science book, in this app kids can create volcanoes and sculpt mountains.

·         WWF Together- this all is from the World Wildlife Fund and has origami instructions for each animal introduced. (free)

·         The Yuckies- a series of two FREE books teaching kids about environment. The stories use muck, goop and mischief to teach kids why it is important and how to keep our environment clean. The series is designed for 5-8 year olds.

·         Toca Nature- (is my personal favourite as it helps kids and adults understand the impact of ecological changes) this is an open-ended app for kids of all ages. Kids can make changes in the natural environment and watch how other elements change correspondingly. For example, by adding trees, kids will be able to see the animal distribution changes over time, water circulation changes too.

·         WilderQuest - is a free app by National Parks and Wildlife. Through the lenses of the device, kids experience the virtual reality of the wild nature, watching animals moving close by, be so near to the plants that they will feel they can smell them and touch them. It is great way to experience the nature when you cannot go out.

·         Ranger Rick Jr. Appventures: Lions-  from National Wildlife Federation (NWF), it is the first of the series of Ranger Rick Jr. Appventures. Kids follow Ricky Raccoon to visit Lars the Lion and experience a lion’s life in the jungle. With built-in games being integral part of the story, it is a great learning app for kids age 4 to 7.

·         Audubon Birds- it is an encyclopedia on birds from Audubon Institute, who has been working on ecosystems, with focus on birds and other wildlife, for decades. There are many nice features in the app. The best is the search function. You can search a bird by color, shape, name, location, song pattern, etc. A great app to keep handy when being in the park.

Suicides and Celebrations

“I don’t hate you but I would remove your life support to charge my phone.”…

This is a joke that I read in a daily newspaper that shocked me. How can someone joke about something like this? Have we lost all emotions that we just end up making everything a joke? And then it struck me that the fine lines that divide our emotions have been corroded and when there are no lines it leads to chaos. Our emotional world is in chaos, we are unable to feel, sympathize, or empathize. One of the most important things that define us from other animals is our ability to empathize and sadly today we have reached a stage where we have to help our young ones and ourselves ‘learn about empathy’.

Everything is about the latest tweet, the latest joke to share on whatsapp, joke about husbands and wives, children, political parties, our prime minister, everything can be joked about and in the same manner. So no lines again. We have forgotten how to care, respect we only know how to expect.

We don’t have emotional ties any longer. We have more than 3000 friends on Facebook, we ‘share’ with friends on whatsapp but we have actually distanced ourselves and there is no one that actually knows us, understands us, we are unable to share our true feelings with anyone.

A recent suicide again rocked this country, a young actress, just 24 years old, Pratyusha Banerjee. The young Balika Vadhu, everyone’s favorite. Abused by her boyfriend both physically and emotionally. Who was she able to reach out to? No one. Everyone knew she had problems but she was not able to get help in time. Because emotional problems are not considered a problem. We have to deal with them on our own. It’s our own private emotional sewage that has no dumping ground. We collect it and then one day drown in our own emotional sewage. That is exactly what happened with this young girl. Who was her community?

We all need a community around us, people who will know us, our nature, accept us for our good and bad and be our emotional sewage release.  But today we have distanced ourselves from our family and community and created a cloud family and community on Facebook, twitter, and whatsapp.

My blog title says suicides and celebrations because when we have nothing to celebrate we get depressed and drown in our emotional sewage. Its time we have emotional celebrations not just physical ones.  All religions have abstinence, when communities come together to feel sorrow together. Happy festivals, festivals that talk about hope, new beginnings. These are the cleansers of our emotional sewage.

Today festivals and celebrations are about hoarding, buying, showing off. Its time to revisit celebrations and festivals and understand the true meaning of each and during those times connect with your family, community and feel a oneness, a spiritual release and you will realize that you feel emotionally lighter and happier.

Gudi Padwa is celebrated as Ugadi also and it is a celebration of spring, of new beginnings, of a new harvest. Celebrate the meaning behind the festival and you will feel an emotional happiness that helps you feel free and rejuvenated. Celebrate it emotionally, not what the ads in the newspapers want you to do- buy a house, buy gold. That is materialistic celebrations. Spend time with your family and community or just yourself. What ever makes you happy. But during festivals and celebrations seek happiness, embrace it with both hands.

This Gudi Padwa start a new chapter in your lives, have a person that you can vent to, a person you can confide in, a person you can share with. This person can be your emotional buddy, this is your new beginning. An emotional buddy has to be non judgmental, so choose wisely.

We go to a doctor if we have a physical problem, we call a plumber when the water is stuck in the sink. Then  why do we feel it is bad to go to an emotional counselor? So is our smartness only limited to using smart phones but we think it is not so smart to seek help for emotional issues?

Accept that you are depressed and then take responsibility for the same and seek help before it is too late. A recent survey conducted by Podar Institute of Education revealed that 70% of all adults above the age of 15 are depressed. Think, we are living in the most successful era of the human world, we have everything at our disposal, and yet we are losing the most important battle because our emotions are not strong.

On Gudi Padwa a Gudi is hoisted outside each house as a celebration of victory. This Gudi Padwa hoist a Gudi outside your house as your emotional victory, cleanse your emotions and your house. Get rid of emotional demons to be victorious. Clean your emotional sewage so that you don’t drown in it like so many youth who are committing suicide.  Happy Gudi Padwa.

26 reasons to be proud to an Indian.

26^th January is the day our “constitution” was created and it is on this day that we should remember that we are a great democratic country and revisit our own personal “constitution” of life.A “constitution” is a tool that helps us lay down what we feel we stand for, it helps uphold our values, beliefs, rights and freedom. Each child has a right and it is the right of every child to have a happy, stress free, safe and nurtured childhood. To nurture children, we adults need to be free of stress, feel safe, be happy with ourselves, and feel nurtured. And definitely do three things with your children on Republic Day.

1. Watch the republic day parade on television with your child and family; if possible go and experience the live one in Delhi.
2. Talk to children about Dr B. R.  Ambedkar the father and architect of our constitution.
3. Introduce your child to the person who wrote our constitution too. The original constitution of India was hand written by Prem Behari Narain Raizada, in his impeccable calligraphy.
4. Also mention about the artwork lavished in our original constitution is that of the most eminent painter Nandalal Bose.

How about making your own family constitution this Republic day? Maybe write it in calligraphy and have your children do the artwork and frame it and hang it for all to see. Your family constitution can be the rules and rights that you want for each family member. Try it, it can be fun.

And here are 26 reasons to be proud to be an Indian-

1.     India has never invaded any country in it's last 10000 years of history.

2.     India is one of the most ancient surviving civilizations. 

3.     India is the world's fifth largest economy. 

4.     India is the world's largest democracy. 

5.     India is the seventh largest country in the world. 

6.     India is one of the world's top ten industrial powers. 

7.      India has the world's largest film industry - bollywood - which produces about 1000 movies each year. 

8.      India has the third largest university system. 

9.     The fourth largest rail network is in india.

10.  India has the second most arable land. 

11.  The number system was invented in india. Zero was invented by Aryabhatta. 

12.  The world's first university was established in Takshila (India) in 700 bc, where more than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects.

13.   The University of Nalanda built in the fourth century bc was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education. 

14.  Ayurveda, discovered in India, is the earliest form of medicine known to humans. Charaka, the father of medicine consolidated Ayurveda 2,500 years ago. Today Ayurveda is fast gaining its rightful place in our civilization. 

15.  The art of navigation was developed in the river Sindh 6,000 years ago.the very word navigation is derived from the sanskrit word Navgatih. The word Navy is also derived from sanskrit Nou. 

16.  Bhaskaracharya in the fifth century calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds of years before astronomer Smart, to be 365.258756484 days. 

17.  The value of "pi" was first calculated by Budhayana before Pythagoras.he discovered this in the sixth century long before European mathematicians. 

18.  Algebra, Trigonometry and Calculus came from India.

19.  Quadratic equations were made by Sridharacharya in the 11th century. The largest numbers the Greeks and the Romans used were 106 whereas Hindus used numbers as big as 1,053,91 0 to the power of 53 with specific names as early as 5,000 bc during the vedic period. Even today, the largest used number is tera 1,012,910 to the power of 12. 

20.  According to the gemological institute of America, up until 1896, India was the only source of diamonds in the world. 

21.  USA based IEEE has proved that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdeesh Bose and not Marconi. 

22.  The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra. 

23.  Chess (shataranj or ashtapada) was invented in India. 

24.  Sushruta is the father of surgery 2,000 years ago. He and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like caesareans, cataract, joining artificial limb, fractures, urinary stones removal, plastic surgery, and even brain surgery. Usage of anesthesia was well-known in ancient India, over 125 surgical equipment were used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology, etiology, embryology, digestion, metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many ancient texts.

25.  The place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 bc. When many cultures were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5,000 years ago, 

26.   India was one of the richest countries on earth until the British invasion in the early 17th century. 

Lets work together and bring up stronger, more confident and less stressed out children to once again become the best country in the world. HAPPY REPUBLIC DAY. 

5 senses test for checking preschools

Test the early childhood center you are choosing for your child…a unique new senses test for parents to ensure they are choosing a quality care kindergarten/daycare for their child.

It’s that time of the year as parents make a frantic rush to enroll kids in the ‘best’ preschool or daycare. Some make a mad rush to remove their kids from an ‘unsatisfying’ one and reenroll at another ‘best’ center. So are parents looking for? Is it ambience, price, furniture, air conditioning, proximity? Well, all these put together will only impact 20% of the child’s socio-emotional and over all development. So instead of only the 20% lets help you focus on the other 80%, use this ‘senses test’ and ‘taste’ the center with your senses and experience the other 80% which is teacher strength, curriculum, teaching-learning practices, experiences of the child, emotional and social development and stress free learning. After all your child uses all 5 senses to experience too.

The first test- Use your eyes- and look for ……

·         Check for Peeling paint on walls and furniture, it means that they are not bothered about safety of kids as kids can touch, scratch, and eat the paint.

·         Look for cobwebs. Cobwebs mean there are spiders and spiders would only build cobwebs if there were insects, so that means there are insects at that center which is a result of lack of cleanliness.

·         Look at the fingernails of all the staff. No long nails and chipped nail polish on the staff, all the staff, especially those that will serve food or look after the hygiene of your child. Chipped nail polish can go into your child’s food and harm your child and long, sharp nails can hurt, scratch the delicate skin of toddlers.

·         Check the mops, (bacteria breeding ground) mops tell you how they clean the vomit, urine, and potty from the floors. Well, many young toddlers are not yet toilet trained so if the center has carpets…god forbid. And if they are using the same mops to clean the floors, OMG! And yet another horror, many centers use the same floor mops to clean the tabletops. Ask, are the bais trained to wipe vomit, potty from floors with paper, then put disinfectant and wipe and then mop. The same mop will not be used for other work, and see separate cloths for tables etc.  

·         And look at flannel board displays, you should see ‘children’s voices’ even in the  displays. There should  be drawings, paintings, worksheets, and loads of photos of activities. It all points to a great learning experience immersed in the 8 intelligences.

The second test- Use your ears and hear……

·         The sounds at the center. Are they about furniture clanging, teachers shouting, and screaming instructions to ayahs. Children  giggling, talking, enjoying or singing should be the sounds you hear.

·         Are kids constantly crying? A good center ensures that crying kids get settled within a short span of time by consulting and coordinating with the family.

·         Can you hear adults constantly ‘shushing’ shhh…. a child or reprimanding them, ‘don’t run, walk in a line’.   When staff shout at any center, it means the atmosphere is extremely formal and teachers are not trained in positive ways to get appropriate behavior.

The third test- Use your touch and…..

·         Touch surfaces around the center, are you getting dust on your fingertips?  If yes, its  because it is not cleaned regularly.

·         Check how the staff touch the kids , is their grip very harsh? Or is it gentle?  

·         Check how the toilet staff takes care of the kids, especially how they wash when a child has to be cleaned after potty.  

·         Touch the edges of furniture, are they too sharp? Furniture should be  well rounded.

·         Now a touch test for your child- what kind of toys are there for your child to  touch? Will your child get a multisensory experience? Are there soft, hard, plastic, wood, toys. Toys to build, toys to play, puppets, and role-play toys. Toys to dance, toys to exercise with and toys to share?  

The fourth test- Use your tongue…voice. And…

·         Ask what the qualifications of the center staff are. How many of them are trained teachers. They should not only trained in how to teach but also how to handle children with different needs, temperaments, and personalities.

·         How many hours of training do they get regularly in a week. Every week they should get trained for 2-3  hours

·         Who trains them?  Do they have educationists on board?

·         Ask about the curriculum used by the center. Ask about the educational philosophy.  

·         What are their safety and security guidelines. Do they have a safety and emergencies docket, and a training based on it for all staff?

·         Do they have a fire safety drill?

·         What about good touch- bad touch?  Are children told about good touch bad touch? How?

·          How are children assessed? With a simple A,B,C grading or with a detailed observation   that will help you understand your child’s stage of development.

The fifth test…Use your nose and ….

·         Smell the center. Is it smelling of food, urine? Because  young children are sensitive to smells.  

·         Does it smell of strong bleach? Bad. As heavy chemicals are bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of fresh wall paint? Bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of pesticide? Bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of the local gutter smell. Many centers do, which makes kids crankier.  Smells have a direct impact on kids learning and focus.  

·         How often do they service their air conditioners? As kids can fall sick with subserviced ones.  It should be done each month.

All of the above have an impact on your child’s  brain development as their brain development is mainly based on sensory stimulation. This can result in children becoming cranky, frustrated and thus impacting their social skills, emotional, language, and cognitive skills. So it makes great sense to ‘taste’ your child’s center with your senses to ensure the right nurturing and stimulation for your child especially in the crucial brain development years.

Choose well for your child after all the first 6 years are when 98% of the brain develops. 

Take a deep breath…

Vayu is one of the five elements of nature, so essential in our life, truly our life breath! But is Vayu really a part of our children’s lives today or are we giving them experiences that do not include this important element of nature?

Of all the five elements of nature, Vayu is everywhere in our homes and outside but rarely do we notice it or appreciate it! Maybe that is why we celebrate the festival of ‘Vayu’- Sankranti, kite flying, after all no kites can fly without Vayu and this festival reminds us that we need air in our lives to take us forward in life and to make it successful.

Our body needs Vayu or air because it has oxygen and oxygen is good for the brain! It keeps kids alert, attentive and active. So allow kids to take deep breaths after every activity. It helps break the monotony and gives a fresh burst of oxygen to the brain!

Vayu in our digestive system is not so good! So see that your kids avoid foods that cause gas! So too much of oily food or strong flavours are avoidable, keep food as natural as possible.

Yoga is an exercise form that helps make the best use of Vayu and ensures that air is taken in the right amounts and circulates in the entire body for its benefit. Take your kids outside early every morning and then take deep breaths, do yoga and see the difference in their health and over all disposition.

Keep a track of how much outdoor activity your child has in a day, because lack of outdoor activity means lack of fresh air and this can lead to all kinds of diseases and attention deficit issues. Ensure that kids have at least an hour of outdoor play (if not more!)  without fail everyday.

Are you keeping your child in air conditioned areas all the time? Then it is quite dangerous for the child’s growing immune system, so ensure that your child gets natural air environments, remember sweating is healthy!

A kite teaches us a lot about life and air, have you ever flown a kite? It is an exhilarating experience, the ability to make the kite catch the wind, then seeing the kite soar, keeping it away from all other kites and controlling its path with a small thread are all awesome skills that kids should learn. The concentration, planning and logic required in kite flying will help your child become a better learner and a better person in control of his/her decisions and plans. So it is safe to tell your kids- go fly a kite!

As one the most important elements of nature, Vayu also teaches us about parenting-

Vayu or air- What can this element cultivate in the personality of your child?

®  Air is everywhere. Everyone needs air. No one can see air

®  Air can soothe or air can become a storm and destroy

®  Similarly independence in children is like air.

®  Independence  can give them the ability to explore, gives them a zeal to venture

®  But too much independence can become a storm that destroys everything in its path. So be careful about it

How to gift your child vayu or air?

Give them  opportunities to feel the grass, play with sand, splash in water and hug a tree! When was the last time your child did this? These sensorial experiences connect directly with your child and help them become more grounded and confident. Let them  feel the wind with activities like football at the beach or kite flying, the different and varied experiences will definitely benefit them. !

So this January gift Vayu to your child.  

Who is watching if Santa is being good?

Every one loves Santa Claus, our generation loved him because he stood for hope, a caring grandfather and someone who is fair, after all he gives gifts only to kids who have been good throughout the year.   Well, he has a gold book and a black book and he watches children all year long and makes his entry in the gold book every time a child is good and a child gets a black book entry if they have been wicked or naughty.

But who is keeping track of whether Santa has been good? Did you know that Santa could be smelly? Santa can grope little boys and girls inappropriately? Santa can be a drunk or a drug addict? Santa could be having many contagious diseases?   Let’s be practical, the Santa Claus that your child encounters is a hired man/boy who is just wearing a suit, and trying his best to convince the kids he is Santa. How much do we know about these Santas that we so willingly ask our kids to go and hug, shake hands with, sit on their lap? In countries around the world there have been instances where ‘Santa’ has been arrested for drinking, touching kids inappropriately etc. so this means that there could be a pedophile lurking behind the beard and rosy cheeks? Isn’t it the perfect opportunity for them? As   parents are urging their kids to ‘go to’ the Santa, ‘go kiss’ the Santa, ‘go sit’ on his lap.

Well, sad as it may sound, it’s time to keep an eye on these new age Santas. Warn our kids and watch them carefully when kids are with Santa. But how would you be able to keep an eye on all the Santas that your kids encounter this year? There is the Santa in school, the Santa at the mall, the Santa at a child’s party, the Santa in your own housing society.

 Keep a watchful eye on all Santas with these pointers-

1.     Ask your child’s school/housing society/or friends, to have a safe parent or teacher dressed as Santa and not hire one from outside.

2.     Get the hired Santa suit laundered.

3.     Talk to this Santa about the dos and don’ts with the kids; ask them to only shake hands with the kids and not to take the kids on their laps.

4.     Not to kiss or get kissed.

5.     Always have at least two other safe adults monitoring Santa.

Warn your kids about Santa Claus without killing the myth and belief.

1.     Teach your kids to only shake hands with Santa

2.     If you are clicking a photo of your child with Santa, be vigilant about Santa’s ‘hands’.

3.     Please do not ask your child to hug or kiss Santa. The suits that they hire are hardly clean so let’s not pass unnecessary germs to our kids.

4.     Teach your child about good touch bad touch before meeting Santa, and talk to your child that even Santa cannot be allowed to give bad touch

Try to keep your child’s belief in Santa alive as long as possible but important that you also believe in safety of your child. Maintain a balance. Merry Christmas.