ഒരു കുട്ട കളിപ്പാട്ടവും ഒരു വട്ടി പെന്‍സിലും..🖤

The visit to Govt. Model HS LPS Thycaud was fascinating. It was titled Experimental Learning Practices in Elementary School Space : A True Roadmap for Framing New Pedagogical Vision. It filled me with a blend of emotions and reinforced my trust in this profession. Just as we entered the school we were pretty convinced that the 'Model' in the school's name was in fact accurate. The school was a literal wonderland.

The story of how a bunch of teachers transformed a school this much felt like a fairy tale. The present school was the culmination of the massive physical, intellectual and financial efforts made by them. The school had reading corners for parents and students which were named as 'Poomukha Vayana' and 'Pusthaka Idanazhi'. There were student squads in charge of maintaining the books named as 'Pusthaka Police' and repairing the torn pages in the weekly organized 'Pusthaka Clinic'.The classrooms were thematically painted. The front cover of the coursebooks were drawn on the walls in an attempt to make the primary level learners feel closer to the content and characters they are about to learn. The teachers said how the students had responded as they saw those pictures for the first time when the school had reopened after the pandemic. There was a 'Bhoopada Idanazhi' which consisted of the maps of Kerala and India. The monuments of our country were also painted. The benches and desks were cut short and painted by the teachers to ensure that the whole environment of the school was age-appropriate and ideal for the learning process.

The activities we had planned for the students were performed at the pre primary classroom which according to me is the focal point of the school. The classroom was renamed as 'Activity Room' as it was devised as part of the activity based curriculum the school was following. The entrance to the room was structured like a cave with steps and a slide to provide an initial impression of the playfulness of the learning process.The roof of the activity room depicted the changing colors of the sky from dawn to dusk that began with a representation of the sun and ended with that of the moon and stars.Each walls were named as activity corner, science corner, number corner, music corner etc. that aimed at the development of specific skills and intelligence of the learners such as motor skills, musical intelligence etc. and basic knowledge regarding their surroundings.

A modern shooting floor is arranged at the more than a century-old school for the youtube channel called Kalivandi and the Facebook page, Mathrukam. This was an attempt by the school authorities to promote the lower primary students’ innate talents in a fun and interesting manner through stories, poetry, craft, and magic by bringing together the most prominent people in these areas under one umbrella in the wake of school closure.

We had prepared action song, magic tricks, word games, stories and simple experiments for the students and gifted them baskets of pencils and toys, a Christmas tree and decoration items for it and books for their library. We also presented a token of love for the teachers whose efforts in revamping the school were priceless.

The day spent at the school left us with insights and revelations regarding the profession we are about to step into and filled our baskets of experience.